SHAW FESTIVAL KICKS OFF ITS 45TH SEASON THIS WEEK

 "This is theatre at its best, plays that achieve the effect of making you laugh, cry, gasp and ultimately care."

-         Shaw Festival Artistic Director Jackie Maxwell

 

 

Thursday May 4, 2006 will find the curtain rising on ARMS AND THE MAN – the opening production of the 45^th season at the Shaw Festival in Niagara-on-the-Lake.

 

ARMS AND THE MAN is one of two plays by George Bernard Shaw being showcased at the festival this season.  The other, TOO TRUE TO BE GOOD will open later in May.

 

Each season the festival offers a selection of classic plays by Shaw and his contemporaries plus a few rediscovered gems in three theatres located in the heart of the picturesque town located 10 miles downriver of Niagara Falls. Theatre lovers from across Southern Ontario and the North-eastern United States already know what gems the festival offers and have been buying up tickets in record numbers since they went on sale in January.

 

Last season, the Shaw Festival's hits included a well-received production of the musical GYPSY, a riveting staging of JOURNEY'S END and a delightful new interpretation of Shaw's YOU NEVER CAN TELL.

 

The line up for 2006 goes like this:

 

ARMS AND THE MAN (by Bernard Shaw) opens May 4^th and runs until October 29^th.

 

THE HEIRESS (by Ruth and Augustus Goetz) opens May 5^th and runs until October 7^th

 

HIGH SOCIETY (with songs by Cole Porter, adapted for stage by Arthur Kopit) opens May 6^th and runs until November 19th

 

TOO TRUE TO BE GOOD (by Bernard Shaw) opens May 26^th and runs until October 7^th

 

THE INVISIBLE MAN (by Michael O'Brien, adapted from the novel by H.G.Wells) opens May 27^th and runs until October 29^th.

 

THE CRUCIBLE (by Arthur Miller) opens June 23^rd and plays until October 14^th.

 

LOVE AMONG THE RUSSIANS (by Anton Chekhov) opens June 24^th as a lunchtime offering playing until September 24^th.

 

THE MAGIC FIRE (by Lillian Groag) opens June 24^th and plays until October 8^th.

 

DSIGN FOR LIVING (by Noel Coward) opens July 14^th running until November 18^th.

 

ROSMERSHOLM (by Henrik Ibsen) opens July 15^th and runs until October 7^th.

 

 

In addition the Festival will presented a staged reading of the musical THE GOLDEN APPLE for two performances October 1^st and 7^th that will be of special interest to musical theatre aficionados. The musical had a short run on Broadway in 1954 and was severely truncated to fit the massive score onto a single long-playing record. This staged concert will allow fans to hear the complete score of this much-admired musical.

 

For more information visit www.shawfest.com or call 1-800-511-7429.

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