DTF Stages Reading of Adam Rapp's THE PURPLE LIGHTS OF JOPPA ILLINOIS Today

Dorset Theatre Festival continues its longstanding commitment to New Play Development with an exciting new work by award-winning playwright Adam Rapp. Now in its 6th Season, DTF's New Play Programs have drawn critical and national acclaim, attracting some of the top writers each year to their Writers Retreat and Play Reading Series. "It is exciting that we have begun to attract such a sophisticated and engaged audience for our Reading Series. The Q & A with the writer and actors directly after the reading has become one of our hottest tickets," says Ashley Connell, DTF's New Play Reading Coordinator.

Adam Rapp, whose play Red Light Winter was a finalist for the 2006 Pulitzer Prize, will present his new play The Purple Lights of Joppa Illinois in a staged reading that he will also direct. Rapp's other work includes The Metal Children (Vineyard Theatre), and Dreams of Flying, Dreams of Falling (The Atlantic) among many others. He is also known for his television work as a writer on In Treatment (HBO), and The L Word (Showtime) as well as his feature film Passing Winter which he also directed starring Zooey Deschanel and Will Ferrell.

The stellar cast will feature Paul Sparks, known for his work on HBO's Boardwalk Empire and the Charlie Kauffman film Synecdoche, New York. Alongside Sparks will be Connor Barrett (The Metal Children) and newcomers Christina Lorenn Elmore (The American Clock/ACT) and Zoe Van Tieghem (The Last Keepers).

The Purple Lights of Joppa Illinois is a tense, emotional drama of reunion between a father and daughter whose lives have been irrevocably shifted by tragedy. The performance will be tonight, June 25th at 7 pm at the Dorset Playhouse. Tickets are $12.

For more information or to purchase tickets go to www.dorsettheatrefestival.org or call 802-867-2223.