Press Release: Tickets On Sale August 15

Tickets on sale August 15 for
Round House Theatre’s 2011/12 season

 FAHRENHEIT 451 • REENTRY • PRIDE AND PREJUDICE
NEXT FALL • CROWN OF SHADOWS: the wake of odysseus
DOUBLE INDEMNITY

 (Bethesda, MD) Single tickets go on sale on Monday, August 15 for the six productions in Round House Theatre’s 2011/12 mainstage season in Bethesda. The season is a mix of recent or new plays and adaptations, of comedy and drama. The six-play season includes a World Premiere, an East Coast Premiere, and two Area Premieres.

•  Tickets range from $10 to $60 and may be purchased by calling 240.644.1100, online at roundhousetheatre.org, or at the box office in Bethesda. Groups of 10 or more should call 240.644.1387.

• Specially priced tickets for patrons age 30 and under are available at all performances: $10 Wednesday through Friday, $15 Saturday and Sunday – call 240.644.1100. Proof of age is required.

• Discounted $10 Side Orchestra and Side Balcony seats are available for all on specified Tuesdays. Visit roundhousetheatre.org or call 240.644.1100 for information about “$10 Tuesday.”

• Members of the Military can purchase $10 tickets for any performance of ReEntry, onstage from October 18 – 30, 2011. Limit of 4 tickets. Call 240.644.1100 or order online at www.roundhousetheatre.org. When ordering online, use code 4MILITARY. When ordering by phone, mention the Military discount.

• Flexible subscription packages of three or more plays are available by calling 240.644.1100 or visiting www.roundhousetheatre.org. Subscribers save up to 26% off the regular price and receive priority seating and exclusive benefits. Patrons can subscribe to all six plays for as little as $120. Three-play subscription packages start at just $75.

Round House Theatre Bethesda is located at 4545 East-West Highway, one block from the Bethesda station on Metro’s Red Line.

Bradbury’s masterpiece about a future without books comes chillingly to life in an adaptation by the legendary author himself. Firemen in this futuristic world burn books and hunt down anyone who risks reading them. Free-thought and intellectualism are discouraged, questioning authority is dangerous, and the masses are spoon-fed a diet of interactive reality shows on huge TVs. Montag, a fireman in charge of burning the forbidden volumes, befriends a young woman who dares to read. Suddenly a hunted fugitive, he must choose between safety and intellectual freedom. Bradbury’s message still resonates today in this multimedia production utilizing cutting-edge special effects and projections. “Bradbury’s account of this insane world, which bears many alarming resemblances to our own, is fascinating.” ‑ New York Times
(Recommended for age 13 and up)

 ReEntry

By Emily Ackerman & KJ Sanchez
Directed by KJ Sanchez
October 18 – 30, 2011 • Round House Theatre Bethesda

Honest, poignant, inspirational, and surprisingly funny, ReEntry is an unflinching look at the lives of Marines returning from Iraq and Afghanistan. It’s about stepping off that plane and coming home, re-entering ones life, family, and country – again. Based on interviews with privates and colonels, combat vets and clerks, and one particularly memorable family, ReEntry tells the stories you haven’t heard. It puts politics aside to probe the unvarnished, powerfully personal truths of those who serve and sacrifice. How do you shift from battlefields to backyard barbecues? What is the price paid by families when husbands, mothers, sons, and sisters go to war? “Provocative and powerful” – New York Times
(Recommended for age 13 and up)

 Pride and Prejudice

Area Premiere
By Joseph Hanreddy and J. R. Sullivan
Adapted from the novel by Jane Austen
Directed by Blake Robison
November 23 – December 31, 2011 • Round House Theatre Bethesda

Mr. and Mrs. Bennet are desperate. With no sons, they are determined to arrange profitable marriages for their five daughters. However, when two eligible young men arrive in the neighborhood, excitement and passion begin to rule. The Bennet household is in danger of being tipped firmly on its end as the willful, witty Elizabeth is taunted and tantalized by the disciplined, dashing Mr. Darcy. Jane Austen’s delicious world features desperate spinsters, determined bachelors, nosy neighbors, embarrassing relatives, and a smarmy cad or two. Fully capturing the spirit of the classic book, it’s delightful, romantic fun. “Robison’s smooth and stylish direction is perfectly in sync…Austen lovers will  admire this adaptation’s faithfulness to the spirit of the original.” – Salt Lake City Tribune
(Recommended for age 11 and up)

 Next Fall

Area Premiere
By Geoffrey Nauffts
Directed by Mark Ramont
February 1 – 26, 2012 • Round House Theatre Bethesda

Next Fall captured the hearts and minds of Broadway, winning a 2010 Outer Critics Circle Award as Best New American Play and a Tony Award nomination for Best Play. Weaving a tale that’s as funny, infuriating, and unpredictable as life itself, Next Fall is a contemporary love story that will make you smile, laugh, and perhaps even cry. The characters have irrational phobias, conflicting religious beliefs, and lingering secrets. They are two men in love, two parents in denial, and two friends on speed dial. Bring someone you care about, take a deep breath, and enjoy this “artful, thoughtful and very moving” (New York Times) new drama. “Ample heart and snappy humor…speaks in a quiet voice of momentous things.” ‑ New York Times
(Recommended for age 15 and up)

 Crown of Shadows: the wake of odysseus

World Premiere
By Jason Gray Platt
Directed by Blake Robison
April 11 – May 6, 2012 • Round House Theatre Bethesda

This gripping, modern take on The Odyssey uses contemporary language and leanings to paint a chilling portrait of the family the warrior leaves behind. Penelope and her teenage son Telemachus struggle to maintain control on Ithaca while waiting for Odysseus to return. As Penelope navigates the political waters of countless suitors, Telemachus, in his turbulent youth, chafes against both the bombardment of potential usurpers and his father’s legacy. With pressure for a successor mounting, they battle two outsiders for control over the island, with a shocking ending that can’t be found in Homer’s saga “In his startling debut, Jason Gray Platt unleashes his furtive imagination on a classic tale” – Blake Robison

(Recommended for age 17 and up, contains brief nudity and adult situations)

Double Indemnity

East Coast Premiere
Adapted by David Pichette and R. Hamilton Wright
From the novel by James M. Cain
Directed by Jeff Steitzer
May 30 – June 24, 2012 • Round House Theatre Bethesda

Mystery, lust, intrigue, and murder! When hard-boiled insurance agent Walter Huff meets femme fatale Phyllis Nirlinger, the wife of one of his wealthy clients, he quickly realizes that she wants to get rid of her husband ‑ and decides to help her do it. Accident insurance pays double indemnity on railroad mishaps, so they plot to get Nirlinger on ‑ and off ‑ a train without arousing the suspicions of the police, the insurance company, Nirlinger’s daughter, her mysterious boyfriend, or Nirlinger himself. This crime tale, adapted by Billy Wilder in his snappy film noir, comes to the stage in a delicious new take on the celebrated suspense novel. “This stylish, sexy thriller will be an intriguing and fun change of pace to close out our season.” – Blake Robison
(Recommended for age 13 and up)

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