THEATREWORKS ANNOUNCES 2009 SEASON Celebrating 42 years of live theatre in New Milford

NEW MILFORD, CONN. (November 21, 2008) – Now that TheatreWorks New Milford has marked 2008 as its most highly-attended season in its 42-year-history, the theater has selected five main stage productions for its 2009 Season to build on its extraordinary success of 2008.

“Theatergoers of all kinds will be excited to know that affordable, Broadway-Caliber theater exists right here in New Milford, Connecticut,” said TheatreWorks President, Richard Pettibone. “While the current economic environment remains precarious, it’s a fact that our audience members can take in one of our highly polished shows ― which includes classics like KISS ME, KATE to searing dramas like DOUBT ­― for about one-sixth of the cost it takes to see a show in New York, including parking and travel. Our upcoming season is simply a great alternative to get away from the everyday doldrums and enjoy a great night of live performance.”

The Season kicks off in February with David Lindsay-Abaire’s, RABBIT HOLE under the direction of Susan Pettibone (New Milford). Winner of the 2007 Pulitzer Prize for Drama, RABBIT HOLE charts the journey of Becca and Howie Corbett, a typical, suburban couple from Westchester County whose world is turned upside down in the wake of a life-shattering accident. Without sentimentality or mawkishness, Lindsay-Abaire weaves a simple and honest tale of loss filled with brilliant dialogue, all-too-familiar characters, unexpected laughter, and an overriding sense of hope for Becca and Howie’s uncertain future.

In May comes the comedy THE FOURTH WALL by “Sylvia”playwright A.R. Gurney under the direction of Sonnie Osborne (New Milford). Peggy, an idyllic upper-middle-class housewife who usually possesses exquisite taste, is overcome by a mysterious impulse to redecorate her living room as if it were a stage set. All who enter begin to behave as if they were acting in a play, or even a musical when someone feels the urge to sing a Cole Porter song. Unable to cope any further, Peggy’s confused husband Roger summons an old friend and an aloof theatre professor who Roger hopes can “Doctor” Peggy’s play and bring it to a close, so Roger and Peggy can get on with their so-called “normal” lives.

In July, DOUBT: A PARABLE, the popular and riveting drama by John Patrick Shanley, will open at TheatreWorks with director Alicia Dempster (Danbury) at the helm. DOUBT is set in a Bronx Catholic school in 1964 and concerns Father Flynn, an amiable new priest who believes the clergy should be thought of “as members of the family” to its congregation. His forward-thinking views immediately clash with those of Sister Aloysius ― the authoritarian principal who favors discipline over compassion. The conflict mounts towards an explosive climax when Aloysius accuses Flynn of “interfering” with a student based on unproven evidence. This captivating drama captured both the Tony Award for Best Play and the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 2005. September will see the opening of the classic Broadway musical, KISS ME, KATE, with William Shakespeare’s classic “The Taming of the Shrew” as its foundation and Music & Lyrics by the immortal Cole Porter. The team of director Bradford Blake (New Milford) and musical director Charles Smith (Danbury) will lead this audience favorite. Big-time actors Lilli Vanessi and Fred Graham are formerly-married, constantly battling, and now forced to reunite for a new musical version of…what else? “The Taming of the Shrew”! Their onstage tussles as Shakespeare’s Katherine and Petruchio are nothing compared to their offstage affairs, backstage brawls, and hilarious misunderstandings. The enduring Tony Award-winning score includes hits such as “Another Op’nin, Another Show,” “Why Can’t You Behave?”, and “Brush Up Your Shakespeare.”

Finally, in December, Alan Ayckbourn’s (a.k.a. “The British Neil Simon”) tale of Holiday dysfunctionality, SEASON’S GREETINGS rounds out the season under the direction of Glenn Couture (Ansonia). It’s just a typical English Christmas at Belinda and Neville’s quaint country home. Uncle Harvey is glued to the TV watching a non-stop marathon of action films. Neville’s friend Eddie and his wife Patti are practically at each others throats. Dr. Bernard is involved in an unintentionally hysterical rehearsal of a sixteen-scene puppet show of “The Three Little Pigs,”while his wife Phyllis slowly gets sloshed on the cooking wine. Yes, it all sounds pretty normal until Belinda’s sister Rachel invites Clive to the home — a writer friend no one knows — and then things really start to go awry.

For more information, tickets, and subscriptions, visit WWW.THEATREWORKS.US or call the box office at (860) 350-6863.

TheatreWorks is an award-winning, volunteer non-Equity theatre company located at 5 Brookside Avenue, just off Route 202 (next to the CVS) in New Milford, CT.