A Walk in the Woods AND String of Pearls open THIS WEEK!

Malcolm on 07 26, 2010

Here at The Group Rep, we have two shows opening in repertory this weekend (July 30-August 1^st)!

The first show, which opens on Friday July 30^th is called A Walk in the Woods, by Lee Blessing. Our production stars Larry Eisenberg & Fox Carney and was directed by Richard Alan Woody.  Performance Friday Evenings 8:00 pm with a Saturday matinee at 4:00 pm.  It runs: July 30 through September 4, 2010.

The second show opens Saturday, July 31^st and is called String of Pearls, by Michele Lowe and features direction by Sherry Netherland and was produced by Gina Yates.  It stars Michele Bernath, Katelyn Ann Clark, Lareen Faye & Sean Kathryn O’Connor.  Performances are Saturday Evenings 8:00 pm and Sunday Matinees 2:00 pm

It runs: July 31 through September 5, 2010.

For ticket reservations: www.thegrouprep.com or 818.700-4878.

A Walk in the Woods: In 1983, faced with a breakdown in nuclear arms reduction talks between Ronald Reagan and Yuri Andropov, lead negotiators Paul A. Nitze and Yuli A. Kvitsinsky met secretly in Geneva’s Botanic Garden to break the impasse. Based on those real-life events, Lee Blessing put a human face on the life-and-death issues confronted by two Cold War adversaries when two arms negotiators – one from the United States and the other from the Soviet Union – meet in Geneva and edge toward common ground. The play takes place in the scenic woods outside of the city where these two superpower negotiators meet informally after long, frustrating hours at the bargaining table. As the talks drag on and the seasons change, the relationship between the two develops from wariness to a sort of personal mutual understanding. In 1988, A WALK IN THE WOODS opened at Broadway’s Booth Theater and was nominated for the Tony Award, the Pulitzer Prize and the Olivier Award. The Broadway cast starred Robert Prosky and Sam Waterston. The play was originally presented at the O’Neill Playwrights Conference in Connecticut in 1986, and had a run at the La Jolla Playhouse before heading to the Big White Way.

What critics have said:

“…a work of passion and power with the ring of political truth. It is not only the best of the few dramas to reach Broadway this season, it is also the funniest comedy.” – Time Magazine

A minor miracle” – New York Magazine.

“A splendid evening of theatre.” – New York Daily News

String of Pearls:

A play about all the women we know. 4 actresses – 27 roles

Michele Lowe’s radiant play explores the possibilities that open up in the lives of an array of women as they come into contact with a certain strand of pearls. While the pearls are stolen, bought, bestowed, unstrung and nearly lost, four actresses play 27 characters in this deeply moving drama that is as fresh as it is funny. Spanning 35 years, the pearls touch the lives of mothers and daughters, sisters and friends, even husbands and wives as they weave a deeply affecting story of love and loss.

“Highly satisfying hilarious blend of sex, satire, poignance, and absurdism.” – New York Times

“String of Pearls is a funny and moving tale of a fated necklace that changes the lives of over two dozen characters. The stories and characters, intricately threaded together, create a gently comic, wonderfully magical puzzle.” – TheatreChannel.com

Are you ready for excellence in the theater?  So come on down to the Group Rep, one of the only theaters in the Southland performing shows in repertory!