Contact:
Keith Stevens, Managing Director
kstevens@peterboroughplayers.org
603-924-9344

At the 2005 Annual Meeting on February 12, the Peterborough Players announced the summer season of plays at the historic theatre on Hadley Road. Season highlights include the returns of James Whitmore and Mary Beth Hurt, a world premiere and a regional premiere, and one of the most popular musicals of the last 40 years.

The season opens with GRACE AND GLORIE, a comedy by Tom Ziegler running June 15 through June 26. Grace is a feisty 90 year old who has checked herself out of the hospital and returned to her cottage in the Blue Ridge Mountains. Her volunteer hospice worker, Glorie, is a transplanted New York sophisticate. From this unlikely pairing comes a comedy with great tenderness. Carmen Decker (last seen in 2004’s ABOUT TIME and LAUGHING STOCK) and Lisa Bostnar (seen in LAUGHING STOCK and THE RETURN OF THE PRODIGAL) return in a wonderful and heartwarming play. GRACE AND GLORIE is rated PG.

In LETTICE AND LOVAGE, a comedy by Peter Shaffer running June 29 through July 10, stage and film star Mary Beth Hurt (last seen in Peterborough in OUR TOWN in 2000) returns as Lettice Duffet, a theatrical tour guide at Fustian House, the least interesting stately home in England. After she begins embellishing the story of the home, she is fired by Lotte, an inspector from the Preservation Trust. However, Lettice succeeds in drawing Lotte into her world of reenacted British history, fanciful costumes, and Elizabethan cuisine. Together, the two women refuse to accept the mediocre and the second rate, and forge a hilarious alliance to awaken their fellow citizens. Hurt is joined by Dale Hodges (last seen in 2003’s YOU CAN’T TAKE IT WITH YOU and CANDIDA) as Lotte. The New York Post called LETTICE AND LOVAGE “…an evening of enchantment and delight.” LETTICE AND LOVAGE is rated PG.

INHERIT THE WIND, a drama by Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee, is the third play of the subscription season running July 13 through July 31 for a special 3-week run. This classic of the American stage has as its genesis the events of the famous Scopes monkey trial. Legendary actor James Whitmore returns with his son, acclaimed actor and director James Whitmore Jr. in what promises to be a riveting and unforgettable production. The Columbus (OH) Citizen called INHERIT THE WIND “…a masterpiece. This is the test: to see a play once, twice, three times. And each time to leave the theatre as deeply moved, as enlightened, as lifted up, as magnificently entertained.” INHERIT THE WIND is rated PG.

SOLIDARITY, a world premiere by Artistic Director Gus Kaikkonen, will be performed August 3 through August 14. Ted O’Leary seems to have it all: a beautiful wife and family, his own consulting firm, an incredible New York apartment, and a little something on the side. But his hold on the good life turns out to be as tenuous as a house of cards. SOLIDARITY is a moving, sometimes biting, always funny portrait of a modern American family that falls apart, picks up the pieces, and puts them back together again. Many Players favorites are featured in the cast including Sevanne Martin, Michael Page and Kraig Swartz (who all appeared in 2004’s LAUGHING STOCK and THE RETURN OF THE PRODIGAL). SOLIDARITY is rated PG-13 and contains some adult situations.

YOU’RE A GOOD MAN CHARLIE BROWN, based on the comic strip “Peanuts” by Charles M. Schulz with book, music and lyrics by Clark Gesner, appears on the Players stage for special 3-week run August 17 through September 4. This musical day in the life of Charlie Brown has charmed audiences for almost 40 years as one of the most produced plays of our time. Look at life with six-year old innocence as Charlie Brown, Snoopy, Lucy, Linus, Schroeder and Patty share their hopes, dreams, and their angst-ridden but optimistic view of the world. Todd Almond (who appeared in LAUGHING STOCK) and Pamela Bob (last here for 2003’s SYNCOPATION) join the acting company for this production. YOU’RE A GOOD MAN CHARLIE BROWN is rated G.

Closing the subscription season is A NUMBER, the regional premiere of Caryl Churchill’s drama, running September 7 through September 18. Human cloning is the subject of this psychological thriller that blends topical scientific speculation with a stunning portrait of the relationship between fathers and sons. The recent New York production was one of the most sought-after tickets of the season. The Daily Telegraph said “…what a tremendous play this is, moving, thought-provoking and dramatically thrilling.” A NUMBER is rated PG-13 and contains some adult situations.

In addition to the six plays in the subscription season, the Second Company will present two plays for children and families. Second Company productions feature members of the Players Intern and Apprentice company, and are designed to be enjoyed by children age 4 and up. Plan to make a day of it by packing a lunch to enjoy on the grounds. Be sure to stick around after the show so the kids can meet the cast on the patio! Second Company productions are not included as part of any subscription package.
JACK AND THE BEANSTALK by Marjorie Sokoloff (who also adapted SNOW WHITE from the 2003 season) will be performed at 10:30 AM June 24 and 25 and July 1, 2, 8, 9, 15, 16, 22, 23, 29 and 30. Jack has a difficult life – no money, no food, a run-down house, and an opera-singing cow that won’t give milk. When all seems lost, a mysterious stranger gives Jack three magic beans and this bit of advice: “What you really need is already inside you.” Come along with Jack, his cow, a wise-cracking chicken and Albert the Giant as they travel up the beanstalk for an unforgettable adventure in the clouds. JACK AND THE BEANSTALK is suitable for children age 4 and up.

The Second Company will present the premiere of Gus Kaikkonen’s version of Louisa May Alcott’s classic LITTLE WOMEN, with performances at 2 PM August 20, 7 PM August 22, and 2 PM August 24, 26 and 27. The March sisters Meg, Jo, Amy and Beth come to life on our stage in this new adaptation. This all-time classic tale is the basis for a current Broadway musical. LITTLE WOMEN is suitable for children age 8 and up.

The Peterborough Players is sponsored in part by the New Hampshire State Council on the Arts, the National Endowment for the Arts, the Monadnock Community Foundation, the A. Erland and Hazel M. Goyette Memorial Fund, and the Grimshaw-Gudewicz Charitable Foundation. Corporate Sponsors of the 2005 season committed to date include Monadnock Paper Mills and Ocean National Bank. Co-sponsors include Rivermead and Belletetes.

Season subscriptions are now on sale at the Players Box Office. For reservations and further information, call (603) 924-7585, or visit the Peterborough Players web site at www.peterboroughplayers.org.