{"id":439,"date":"2011-09-21T18:00:13","date_gmt":"2011-09-21T18:00:13","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/vandfam.net\/dev\/wordpressmu\/college\/?p=439"},"modified":"2011-09-21T18:00:13","modified_gmt":"2011-09-21T18:00:13","slug":"tony-nominated-comedy-to-open-playmakers-season","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/collegearchive.unc.edu\/?p=439","title":{"rendered":"Tony-nominated comedy to open PlayMakers\u2019 season"},"content":{"rendered":"

PlayMakers Repertory Company, the professional theater in residence at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, will kick off another main-stage season Sept. 21-Oct. 9 with Sarah Ruhl\u2019s comedy \u201cIn the Next Room (or the vibrator play).\u201d<\/p>\n

PlayMakers also will present events related to the production from Sept. 14 to Oct. 9.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn the Next Room\u201d was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for Drama and a 2010 Tony Award nominee for Best Play. Playwright Sarah Ruhl (author of \u201cEuridyce,\u201d \u201cThe Clean House,\u201d \u201cDead Man\u2019s Cell Phone\u201d) has been honored with a MacArthur Fellowship \u201cgenius grant.\u201d \u201cIn the Next Room\u201d was her Broadway debut.<\/p>\n

The story is inspired by the late 1800s invention of the then-new device named in the play\u2019s title. It was a medical invention originally intended to treat patients afflicted with \u201cfemale hysteria.\u201d The show is a charming and insightful tale of desire, frustration, sympathy and understanding between the sexes.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>\u201c\u2018In the Next Room\u2019 is written with the sensibility of a play by George Bernard Shaw or Oscar Wilde, seen through the lyrical lens of one of America\u2019s finest modern playwrights and presented with sets and costumes evocative of the Victorian era,\u201d said Joseph Haj, PlayMakers\u2019 producing artistic director.<\/p>\n

The New York Times called the play \u201cspirited and stimulating.\u201d \u201cBreathtakingly inventive \u2026 a modern masterpiece,\u201d said the Los Angeles Times.<\/p>\n

Actor-director-producer Vivienne Benesch will direct the PlayMakers production. She has worked on Broadway and off-Broadway productions, in film and television and at many of the country\u2019s most eminent theaters. Benesch is co-artistic director of the Chautauqua Theater Company and Conservatory in New York. She has directed many productions for Chautauqua and is a frequent director at The Juilliard School.<\/p>\n

All performances of \u201cIn the Next Room\u201d will be in the Paul Green Theatre at UNC\u2019s Center for Dramatic Art on Country Club Road.<\/p>\n

Shows will be at 7:30 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays; 2 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 1; and 2 p.m. Sundays. Tickets are $10 to $45. For a complete schedule, more information and to purchase tickets, call (919) 962-PLAY (7529) or visit www.playmakersrep.org<\/a>.<\/p>\n

In conjunction with \u201cIn the Next Room,\u201d PlayMakers will host \u201cThe Vision Series-Directors in Conversation,\u201d a behind-the-scenes preview with Benesch, at 6:30 p.m. Sept. 14. Theater-goers and others interested in the creative process are invited to the Paul Green Theatre to share wine, coffee and other refreshments, learn about the production and get a behind-the-scenes look at the design and vision for the show.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Vision Series\u201d is free and open to the public. Reservations are encouraged, as space is limited. Call PlayMakers\u2019 box office at (919) 962-7529 to RSVP.
\nOther special events during \u201cIn the Next Room\u201d will include:<\/p>\n