August: Osage County to Be Highlighted in REPaloud April 8-9

Tennessee Repertory Theatre has announced plans for REPaloud, the popular play reading series which highlights contemporary plays. The third staged reading of the 2010-11 season will be August: Osage County by Tracy Letts, winner of the 2008 Tony Award for Best Play and the 2008 Pulitzer Prize for Drama. REPaloud will take place on April 8 - 9 at 7:00 pm at Tennessee Rep's Rehearsal Hall (NPT Studio A, 161 Rains Avenue).

A vanished father... a pill-popping mother...three sisters harboring shady little secrets. When the large Weston family unexpectedly reunites after Dad disappears, their Oklahoman family homestead explodes in a maelstrom of repressed truths and unsettling secrets. Mix in Violet, the drugged-up, scathingly acidic matriarch, and you've got a major new play that unflinchingly-and uproariously-exposes the dark side of the Midwestern American family.

"Few contemporary playwrights have managed to blend brilliant dialogue and compelling characters in the way that Tracy Letts has," says Tennessee Rep Producing Artistic Director René D. Copeland. "Nowhere is that more evident than in August: Osage County, which has been called ‘one of the greatest plays of Modern American Theatre.' There's darkly comedic brilliance on every page, and the cast we have assembled for the staged reading is guaranteed to make this a very special experience for those in attendance.

"And timing is everything. With Meryl Streep and Julia Roberts already on board for the movie version that is in development and with the contemporary drama Superior Donuts on the slate for Tennessee Rep's 2011-12 season, our staged reading of August: Osage County is the perfect opportunity to introduce Tracy Letts to Middle Tennessee."

The cast includes Holly Allen, Chip Arnold, Matthew Carlton, Rona Carter, Henry Haggard, Jenny Littleton, Cinda McCain, Amanda Card McCoy, Laura Matula, Maurice Ralston, Brain Webb Russell, Martha Wilkinson, and Bobby Wyckoff.

Tennessee Repertory Theatre's REPaloud features contemporary, award-winning dramas. For more information on REPaloud, visit tennesseerep.org/repaloud.php.

Since 1985, Tennessee Repertory Theatre has been a critically acclaimed regional theatre, creating the highest quality professional productions and by serving as a prime cultural, educational, and economic resource within the Nashville and Middle Tennessee communities. Tennessee Rep produces work that is designed, built, and rehearsed in Nashville by highly skilled actors, designers, directors, and technicians. A non-profit organization, Tennessee Rep is committed to consistently delivering thought-provoking theatre each year. For more information on the Tennessee Repertory Theatre, please visit www.tennesseerep.org.