Stoneham Theatre & Gloucester Stage Partnering for THE APPLE FAMILY PLAYS

Stoneham Theatre and Gloucester Stage join forces for two consecutive seasons to produce the New England premieres of all four of The Apple Family plays by Richard Nelson. Striving to achieve a common mission, this partnership further enables both theatres to proliferate and produce new and rarely performed works, enriching the art of live theatre in Greater Boston's northern suburbia to the shores of Cape Ann, Massachusetts.

"I love theatre collaborations. Theatres thrive when they work together," conveys Stoneham Theatre's Producing Artistic Director Weylin Symes. "It's great to be back working with Gloucester Stage after co-producing Stones in His Pockets and collaborating on Israel Horovitz's translation of Eduardo Erba's Marathon in the early 2000s. This is an exciting opportunity to bring Richard Nelson's poignant Apple Family Plays together within a short time frame. Partnering with Gloucester Stage will also enable us to reach new audience members with his powerful material."

Gloucester Stage looks forward to embarking on this collaborative venture with Stoneham Theatre. "I am thrilled by this opportunity to partner with Stoneham," said Jon Wojciechowski, Executive Managing Director of Gloucester Stage. "It's great to share an audience, but it's even more important to take that audience on such a unique journey. Watching the same actors evolve as their characters over four different plays is rare. Even rarer is to find a series of plays that will resonate so personally with the audience; everyone will find a little piece of him/herself on that stage." Gloucester Stage Interim Artistic Director Robert Walsh adds his perspective, "I'm excited about the net benefit for our collective audience in watching the work deepen over time - the actors, director, and design team collaborating richly in bringing their shared experience to each new story in the series."

Stoneham Theatre's Producing Artistic Director Weylin Symes will be directing and utilizing the same cast for all four plays, and the scenery and props will travel between the theatres as well. The all-star cast features Joel Colodner*, Laura Latreille*, Karen MacDonald*, Paul Melendy*, Bill Mootos*, and Sarah Newhouse*. The Scenic Designer is Boston local Crystal Tiala, who is Chairperson and Associate Professor of the Theatre Department at Boston College and Chair of the Boston College Arts Council. Tiala is joined by Lighting Designer Jeff Adelberg, Sound Designer David Wilson, Costume Designer Gail Astrid Buckley, and Props Master Megan Kinneen.

Several issues are brought to the table for review at the home of the Apple family in Richard Nelson's four plays: That Hopey Changey Thing, Sweet and Sad, Sorry, and Regular Singing. Over the course of three years, like a fly on the wall, the audience is taken for a journey through the lives of three sisters, a brother, their aging uncle, and the significant other of one of the women. Each play is set at the dinner table on the day of a political event in recent American history and originally premiered on the date on which it is set. Nelson surreptitiously engages the audience in the conversation, evoking present emotions, thoughts, and questions about current events. "Conversations which are not arguments, not someone trying to win something or push something, but talk about whatever -- that permission that we somehow don't allow ourselves on television anymore, because now it is all about taking sides," expressed Richard Nelson. Though political events are an anchor in the four plays, family dynamics are on display at the heart of every discussion. With each new obstacle the Apples face, from table manners, to every shade of grief, Nelson brilliantly portrays the complexities of American society by showcasing the complexities of a modern-day family.

That Hopey Changey Thing launches the four-play series on stage at Stoneham Theatre this February 26-March 15, 2015, followed by Sweet and Sad at Gloucester Stage this May 28-June 20, 2015. With a sneak peek into Season 16 at Stoneham, Sorry will be performed in the spring of 2016. And concluding the series, Regular Singing can be seen at Gloucester Stage during the summer of 2016.

Tickets are available for That Hopey Changey Thing through Stoneham Theatre by calling the Box Office at 781-279-2200 or online at www.stonehamtheatre.org. Tickets for That Hopey Changey Thing at Stoneham Theatre are $45-$50.

Tickets are available for Sweet and Sad through Gloucester Stage by calling the Box Office at 978-281-4433 or online at www.gloucesterstage.com. Tickets for Sweet and Sad at Gloucester Stage are $28.