Chautauqua Theater Company 2012 Summer Season to Include AS YOU LIKE IT, PHILADELPHIA STORY

Chautauqua Theater Company (CTC) announces its 29th season as the resident theater on the grounds of the Chautauqua Institution -- western New York's summer arts festival. The 2012 season includes the world premiere of CTC's inaugural commission (Kate Fodor's Fifty Ways) two great classics (The Philadelphia Story and As You Like It), the annual New Play Workshop series and a host of other special events and performances.  

"It's a season packed with over 50 events in 56 days," says Artistic Director, Vivienne Benesch, "but more important, it's a notable demonstration of the breadth and depth of our company. Our 2012 programming embraces the power of theater-- old, new and re-imagined-- to provoke and move our hearts, minds and conscience."

The Philadelphia Story (June 30-July 8).
Kicking off the season will be Philip Barry's The Philadelphia Story.  Best known as the 1940 Hollywood blockbuster that made Katherine Hepburn a star, this bubbly and witty American comedy has all the ingredients for a great party:  heart, humor and unparallelled style. The cast will include up and coming stars of tomorrow from CTC's exceptional conservatory and guest artists including Emmy award-winning actor Stuart Margolin ("The Rockford Files", CTC's Death of A Salesman) as Uncle Willie. CTC Associate Artisctic Director Andrew Borba directs.

Fifty Ways (July 20-29)
Last winter, Chautauqua Theater Company awarded its first play commission to Chautauqua's Kate Fodor.  One year later,  Fifty Ways gets its first world premiere production.  Full of Fodor's signature intellect, biting humor and humanity, this insightful piece takes a scalpel to the damages we inflict on those to whom we are closest. Resident Director, Ethan McSweeny takes the helm with Michael Gaston (TV's "Unforgettable", "Jericho" ) and OBIE award-winning, CTC Artistic Director Vivienne Benesch (Going to St. Ives, Broadway's After The Fall) set to star.  Two of Fodor's earlier plays, 100 Saints You Should Know and Rx, received workshops in CTC's New Play Workshop series and have recently gone on to highly successful Off-Broadway runs at Playwrights Horizons and Primary Stages respectively.

As You Like It (August 11-17)
The 2012 season will conclude with a Shakespeare production.  This year, CTC takes on the Bard's funniest and most frolicsome play, As You Like It,  where love comes in all shapes, sizes, and disguises.  A treat for the whole family, director Jackson Gay (Off-Broadway's Intelligent Design of Jenny Chow, David Adjmi's 3C)  makes her CTC debut with a cast that features CTC's  nationally acclaimed conservatory of emerging actors.

New Play Workshops  (July 12-14 and August 2-4)
Over the last eight years, Chautauqua's NPW series has gained momentum and provided some exceptional voices in American Theater with an experience in the development of their work. Past seasons have hosted new plays by Zayd Dohrn, Kate Fodor, Rinne Groff, Molly Smith Metzler, Alex Lewin, Michael Mitnick, David Schulner, David Zellnik, and Anna Ziegler, among others.  Our two 2012 selections will be announced by May 1.

SINGLE TICKETS AND PACKAGES AVAILABLE NOW! To purchase, order by phone at (716) 357-6250 M-F 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Order online at www.ciweb.org 24 hrs. a day! For more information on our season visit us at www.ctcompany.org.