Hampton Theatre Company to Present THE FOREIGNER, 3/13-30

Confusion, conspiracies and the collision of cultures yield copious laughter when a painfully shy Englishman is brought by his friend to a backwoods Georgia fishing lodge in Larry Shue's "The Foreigner," the Hampton Theatre Company's revival of one of its greatest hits, from March 13 through March 30 at the Quogue Community Hall.

Philip Brandes of the Los Angeles Times called the play "outrageously funny" and "one of the few modern comedies that remains true to human nature despite its absurd excesses."

Charlie Baker, the shy Englishman of the title who morphs into an unexpected hero, is played by Matthew Conlon, returning to the Quogue stage following a near 20-year hiatus and long string of professional credits. He appeared with the HTC as John Proctor in "The Crucible," as Morris Townsend in "The Heiress" and as Henry in "The Real Thing."

Two longtime HTC company members are reprising the roles they played in the original 1991 production in Quogue, with Diana Marbury once again playing naive innkeeper Betty Meeks and James Ewing playing redneck firebrand Owen Musser.

Three other HTC veterans are also in the cast: Joe Pallister (last seen as Morgan in "The Drawer Boy") plays the Reverend David Marshall Lee, who is not all he seems; Ben Schnickel (last seen as Miles in "The Drawer Boy") plays the simple but helpful Ellard Simms, and Terry Brockbank (last seen in "My Three Angels") plays the cheerful cockney military man "Froggy" LeSeuer.

A newcomer to the Quogue stage, genuine Georgia native Krista Kurtzberg, has the role of wealthy, young ex-debutant Catherine Simms.

HTC's executive director Sarah Hunnewell directs. The set is by Sean Marbury, lighting by Sebastian Paczynski and costumes by Teresa LeBrun.

"The Foreigner" is the best-known play by Larry Shue, the promising young playwright and actor who died in a plane crash at the height of his success in 1985. At the time of his death, productions of two of his plays, "The Foreigner" and "The Nerd," were running in both London and New York; he was about to make his Broadway debut in "The Mystery of Edwin Drood" and he was working on a screenplay of "The Foreigner" for Disney.

Called "a charming comedy about the magic of kindness" by Chicago Theater Beat, "The Foreigner" has been universally hailed as "hilarious" by reviewers of productions across the country.

"The Foreigner" runs at the Quogue Community Hall from March 13 through March 30 with showtimes on Thursdays and Fridays at 7, Saturdays at 8 and Sundays at 2:30. The Hampton Theatre Company will once again be offering special dinner and theater packages in collaboration with the Southampton, Westhampton Beach, Hampton Bays and Quogue libraries. Complete information about the dinner and theater packages is available on the company website, www.hamptontheatre.org.

To reserve show tickets, visit www.hamptontheatre.org, or call OvationTix at 1-866-811-4111.