YOU CAN'T TAKE IT WITH YOU Opens The Rep Stage's 2010-2011 Mainstage Season

The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis (The Rep) opens its 2010-2011 Mainstage series with You Can't Take It With You by Moss Hart and George S. Kaufman. Performances of You Can't Take It With You will be given on the Browning Mainstage of the Loretto-Hilton Center for the Performing Arts, 130 Edgar Road (on the campus of Webster University), Webster Groves, September 8 through October 3, 2010.

Curtain times are Tuesday at 7 pm; Wednesday-Friday at 8 pm; selected Wednesday matinees at 1:30 pm; Saturday evenings at 5 pm; selected Saturday nights at 9 pm; Sunday matinees at 2 pm; and selected Sunday evenings at 7 pm. Ticket prices start at just $15 (previews) and $18.50 (regular performances). Season packages are still available, with 6-show packages as low as $81. To purchase, visit The Rep Box Office, located inside the Loretto-Hilton Center, charge by phone by calling (314) 968-4925, or visit The Rep's online Box Office at www.repstl.org

Major sponsorship for this production is provided by Wells Fargo Advisors.

You Can't Take It With You, a play in three acts, first debuted at the Booth Theatre in New York City in the winter of 1936, running for nearly two years with over 830 performances. Awarded the Pulitzer Prize in 1937, this romantic comedy has since been adapted for both film and television and takes audiences everywhere on a laugh-filled adventure.

Written by true masters of comedy, Moss Hart and George S. Kaufman, You Can't Take It With You is a light-hearted story filled with crazy antics about a truly idiosyncratic family trying to be on their best behavior when their "normal" daughter's boyfriend and parents come over for dinner. The story begins when Alice Sycamore announces to her eccentric family that she is in love with Tony, the son of a rather rich and conservative family-the polar opposite of the Sycamore's. Worried that her father's snake collection and sister's deep aspiration to become a ballerina, despite her uncanny inability to dance, will embarrass her, Alice attempts to get her family to act as normal as possible. When Alice finally invites Tony and his parents over to her quirky family's house for dinner, lively and noisy events take place, inevitably leading to exploding fireworks and a hilarious mess!

You Can't Take It With You showcases the inherent differences in people, teaches us lessons about life and family, and is sure to captivate audiences of all ages!

The cast of You Can't Take It With You at The Rep is Tony Campisi as Paul Sycamore, Stephanie Cozart as Essie, Benjamin Eakeley as Tony, Jeffrey Hayenga as Mr. Kirby, Joneal Joplin as Martin Vanderhof, Barbara Kingsley as Mrs. Kirby/Grand Duchess, Jamie LaVerdiere as Ed, Todd Lawson as Henderson/Man, Rachel Leslie as Rheba, Anderson Matthews as Boris Kohlenkov, Amelia McClain as Alice, Scott Schafer as Mr. De Pinna, Carol Schultz as Penny, Susie Wall as Gay Wellington, and Scott Whitehurst as Donald.

The Rep's production of You Can't Take It With You is directed by Rep Artistic Director Steve Woolf.

The creative staff also includes John Ezell, set designer; Elizabeth Covey, costume designer; Peter Sargent, lighting designer; Rusty Wandall, sound designer; Glenn Dunn, stage manager; and Shannon B. Sturgis, assistant stage manager.

For more information about The Rep's production of You Can't Take it With You, including a guide introducing the characters, plot and background on the play; photos related to the production; and more, visit The Rep's comprehensive public website at http://www.repstl.org.

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