100 YEARS, THE MOST DESERVING and RAPTURE, BLISTER, BURN Set for Dreamcatcher Rep's 20th Anniversary Season

Dreamcatcher Repertory Theatre, in residence at the Oakes Center at 120 Morris Avenue in Summit, is announcing its twentieth season. This professional company will bring three New Jersey premieres to the stage in addition to improvisational comedy, new play readings, a holiday variety show and many programs for seniors and students. As always, the Dreamcatcher Resident Acting Company and their guests will tell stories that reflect our shared experience of being human with heart and humor.

Dreamcatcher's fall mainstage production is Richard Dresser's new play 100 Years, a dark comedy which will be a co-production with the Playwrights Theatre of New Jersey. In this dark comedy set in the not-too-distant future, Stevie and Joan prepare for what will be a transformative experience. But what will it mean for their life as they know it? And what's going on with the strange couple next door? 100 Years will open on October 2 and will play until October 19.

The second mainstage production of the season, opening in February, is the New Jersey Premiere of Catherine Treischmann's hit The Most Deserving. This comedy recently played Off-Broadway at The Women's Project. The Ellis County Arts Council is giving away the largest artist grant in its history. Now if only they could agree on who is the most deserving. This recent Off-Broadway hit was called a "frisky new comedy" by The New York Times and "smart, hilarious, riveting" by The New Yorker. The Most Deserving plays February 12 through March 1.

Dreamcatcher's final mainstage production of the season will be the New Jersey Premiere of Gina Gionfriddo's Rapture, Blister, Burn, which played at Playwrights Horizons in 2012. After grad school, Catherine and Gwen chose polar opposite paths. Catherine built a career as a rockstar academic, while Gwen built a home with her husband and children. Decades later, unfulfilled in polar opposite ways, each woman covets the other's life, commencing a dangerous game of musical chairs -- the prize being Gwen's husband. The New York Times called it an "intensely smart, immensely funny new play." Rapture, Blister, Burn runs from April 16 through May 3.

The improv comedy group Multiple Personality Disorder will bring its own brand of silliness and spontaneity to life for two evenings during the season. The first MPD show will be on Saturday, September 13, 2014 and the second will be Saturday, March 22, 2015.

From Friday, November 21 through Sunday, November 23 will be an original musical cabaret performance, celebrating the Great American Songbook. A few weeks later, on December 12 and 13, Dreamcatcher will present A Very Special (Holiday) Special, a unique and affectionate send-up of traditional television holiday variety shows. This Very Special Special will include holiday songs, comic sketches and improv, and lots of good old-fashioned fun.

In the spring, two "Meet the Artist" free new play readings will be held on May 20 and 27, thought-provoking experiences which include the opportunity for audience discussion with the writer, director and actors after the performance.

After its month-long Summer Theatre Conservatory for students aged 10-17, Dreamcatcher will present its annual Dreamcatcher Junior production on Friday, July 31, an original family show that always draws on the creativity of its young actors to shape the piece. Each year, the youth company creates a one-of-a-kind piece that has ranged from fairy tale quest to Shakespeare adaptation to musical revue.

Throughout the year, Dreamcatcher offers internships for high school and college students, classes for teens and adults, and many volunteer opportunities. In addition, the theatre provides a menu of outreach programs for students and seniors that travel to other venues. All of Dreamcatcher's activities center on the collaborative nature of theatre and creating a comfortable environment for artists and audiences of all ages to explore and grow together. The company's work is supported by grants from the New Jersey State Council on the Arts, the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, and several other corporate and individual donors that believe in the power of the arts to bring people together and promote understanding between them.

Season passes may be purchased that provide substantial discounts to all events, and special rates for groups are also available. The theatre at The Oakes Center is wheelchair accessible, and such access services as large print scripts, assistive listening devices, and audio description will be available by prior arrangement throughout the season. Performances will be held at the Oakes Center, 120 Morris Avenue, Summit, NJ 07901. For more information and tickets for any of Dreamcatcher Repertory Theatre's programs, call 908-514-9654, and visit www.DreamcatcherRep.org.

About Dreamcatcher Repertory Theatre: Dreamcatcher was founded in 1994, and is a non-profit professional ensemble of actors who build community with the audience by sharing life-affirming stories in an intimate environment. We seek to expose theatregoers to ideas and lives like and unlike their own, to awaken their imaginations and create empathy for others. The company focuses on deepening the experience of our patrons by supplementing the performances with personal contact through receptions, talkbacks, and interactive programs.

Dreamcatcher's core company of professional local actors performs contemporary work that entertains and challenges, and has at its heart a belief in the essential goodness of people. The company's activities include mainstage productions, improvisational comedy and cabarets, new play readings and a variety of educational and senior outreach programs.

Dreamcatcher's programs are funded by the New Jersey State council on the Arts/Department of State, a Partner Agency of the National Endowment for the Arts, the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, Dramatist Guild Fund, The Summit Area Public Foundation, the Manley-Winser Foundation, and many other corporations, foundations and individuals. Dreamcatcher Repertory Theatre is a senior member of the New Jersey Theatre Alliance.

Pictured: Janet Sales and Scott McGowan will appear in The Most Deserving at Dreamcatcher next season. Photo by Steve McIntyre.