BWW Previews: Summer With Sir - A Season of New Productions by Sir Alan Ayckbourn

Last month, Britain's most prolific playwright Sir Alan Ayckbourn celebrated his 75th birthday. With 78 major plays to his credit, the busy play maker seems more popular than ever - even on this side of the Atlantic. In fact, over the next few months, fans can see a wealth of Ayckbourn productions - all located in and around the New York area. Let's take a look at what the master playwright has in store for metro area theater-goers this summer!

Every other year since 2005, the Brits Off Broadway Festival hosted by New York's 59E59 Theaters has showcased the work of the Stephen Joseph Theatre Company of Scarborough, England. The Yorkshire playhouse has been Ayckbourn's home-base since 1957. This year American Anglophiles are in for a triple treat with a repertory of three of Sir Alan's plays - one revival and two world premieres - all staged by the author himself. During undercover military operations in a railway station, two strangers get to know one another in "Arrivals and Departures." The play begins performances on May 29th and continues until June 29th. It plays in rep with "Farcicals," two linked one-act farces - Ayckbourn's first work in the genre since "Taking Steps" in 1979. The laughter begins on June 7th and continues until June 28th. Just for good measure, there's also a revival of Ayckbourn's 1992 play "Time of My Life," a story that travels back and forth in time to show us the past, present, and future of the troubled Stratton family. This production will mark the play's New York City premiere. "Time of My Life" joins the repertory on June 6th and finishes on June 29th. For the intrepid Ayckbourn fan, the Festival is offering four 'marathon' days where all three plays can be seen in one sitting. As in past years, Brits Off Broadway will offer theater lovers a rare audience with the man himself - "A Conversation with Alan Ayckbourn" - in which Ayckbourn talks with arts writer Howard Sherman about his life and work. The one-time-only event is scheduled for June 1st at noon. For tickets to all Brits Off Broadway events visit www.59E59.org or britsoffbroadway.com.

Also this summer, the National Theatre Live will broadcast its current revival of Ayckbourn's 1987 play "A Small Family Business." The wickedly funny show is centered around a family-run furniture concern - one where the family concerned seems to have lost its moral compass. The high definition broadcasts can be seen in a variety of area venues starting June 12th (at City Cinemas 123, NYC) and continuing until August 4th (at IFC Center, NYC). Visit ntlive.nationaltheatre.org.uk for exact dates, times, and venues.

Summer day-trippers to bucolic Bucks County, PA, might want to check out a rare staging of Ayckbourn's 1991 play "Wildest Dreams." The seldom-seen play is a dark comic journey into the lives of four misfits who gather weekly for a fantasy role playing game - a game that slowly transforms even the players themselves. The adventurous Langhorne Players of Newtown, PA, stage the show between July 18th and August 2nd. Visit the troupe online at www.langhorneplayers.org for tickets and information.

As Labor Day approaches, Connecticut's historic Westport Country Playhouse presents the area premiere of Ayckbourn's "Things We Do For Love." The 1997 play comically examines the nature of love and whether or not we can live without it. Westport has a long history of presenting Ayckbourn's work, as does the show's talented director John Tillinger. He previously staged Westport productions of "Relatively Speaking," "Time of My Life," and "How the Other Half Loves." He also directed Manhattan Theatre Club's 2005 Broadway revival of "Absurd Person Singular." "Things We Do For Love" begins performances August 19th and continues through September 6th. Book tickets by visiting www.westportplayhouse.org.

To find out more about all the plays listed above (and much more), visit Alan Ayckbourn's official website at www.alanayckbourn.net.

Have a great summer with Sir!