Centenary Stage Presents DEATHTRAP & More in 2013-14 Season

A murder mystery to stun audiences, first class ballet performances to leave them in awe, and affordable events to fit every entertainment need will create an exciting atmosphere at The Centenary Stage Company.

One of the most popular successes in Broadway history, a theatrical triumph with gasp-inducing thrills and spontaneous laughter, Ira Levin's Deathtrap is a chilling murder-mystery running October 4- 20 in the Sitnik TheatrE. Sidney Bruhl, a successful writer of Broadway thrillers, is struggling to overcome a dry spell which has resulted in a string of flops and a shortage of funds. Suddenly help seems to come from out of nowhere when he receives a script in the mail from a student in the seminar he has been conducting at a nearby college-a thriller Sidney recognizes as a potential Broadway hit. What happens next is the stuff of Deathtrap. Audiences will be held spellbound to the very end. Deathtrap is sponsored by Bea McNally's Irish Pub and Old Souk Trading Company.

The critically acclaimed 2013 CSC World Premiere production of The English Bride, developed through the CSC Women Playwrights Series and written by Yale Alum and New Jersey playwright Lucile Lichtblau, will be moving to New York this fall as part of the 59E59 Theatre season, running Oct 21 - Nov 17. Following a failed bombing attempt on an El Al flight out of London, the search for the truth becomes an elusive chase of a young Englishwoman and the Arab man she loves. This riveting tale of love and intrigue garnered such reviews as, "This superior, thought-provoking drama is beautifully acted, staged and written, in other words, a must-see-event," by Rick Busciglio of New Jersey Footlights. Tickets for The English Bride are $25 or $17.50 for 59E59 Theatre members with a Sunday evening special ticket price of $15. Please contact the 59E59 Theatre at 212.753.5959 x102 or online at www.59E59.org to purchase tickets.

On Saturday, October 19th at 11 am, the Young Audience Series returns to The Little Theatre with the family favorite If You Give a Mouse a Cookie. Based on the beloved book by Laura Joffe Numeroff, If You Give a Mouse a Cookie is an adventurous, fun-filled performance appropriate for children in pre-k through 5th grade. When a rather demanding mouse in coveralls wearing a backpack shows up in a curious boy's kitchen one day, the boy soon finds himself figure skating on scrub brushes, wrestling a boa constrictor, and climbing mountains, as an innocent milk and cookie snack time goes from mishap to calamity to catastrophe faster than the twitch of a whisker.

The New Jersey Ballet is back this season by popular demand and is bringing two very different performances this season. On Saturday, Oct 26 at 8 PM, the NJ Ballet will highlight two legendary choreographers who helped set the course of ballet in America in aBalanchine/Robbins Evening sponsored by Fulton Bank. And on Oct 27 at 2 PM, CSC will present one of NJ Ballet's most Popular Productions for kids and families, Cinderella sponsored by the New Jersey Civic Youth Ballet. This two-act romp through the well-known fairy tale has wickedly funny stepsisters, the hours of the clock coming to life, a pumpkin turning into a coach, and is accompanied by their hallmark narration promising magical moments for every spectator.

Renowned actors and directors Randall Duk Kim and Anne Occhiogrosso return to lead the popular Great Authors Out Loud Series this season opening with the notorious classic, Oedipus Rex, on Sunday, September 15th at 3 pm in The Kutz Black Box Theatre. This series of free staged readings covers classics from some of the world's greatest playwrights. Winner of the New York Obie Award for "Sustained Excellence in Performance", Kim has performed leading roles in the works of Shakespeare, Chekhov, Moliere, Ibsen and more at regional theatres throughout the country, including his own American Players Theatre, which he founded with Occhiogrosso in 1981. Audiences may recognize Kim from his performances as the Key Master in Matrix Reloadedand in DreamWorks Kung Fu Panda. He has also been seen on Broadway in the 2002 Broadway revival of Rodgers and Hammerstein's FLOWER DRUM SONG.

Deathtrap tickets are $25 for adults on Matinees and Fridays and $27.50 on Saturdays with discounts for seniors, students and children under 12. Thursday evening tickets are all $25 with a two-for-one Date Night discount when purchased at the door.

If You Give a Mouse a Cookie tickets are $12.50 for adults and $10 for children under 12. Seating is by general admission in The Little Theatre.

The New Jersey Ballet tickets are $25 for adults and $18.50 for children under 12 when purchased in advance. All ticket orders for concerts and special events increase $5 when purchased on the day of the performance.

Tickets may be purchased online at www.centenarystageco.org, at the CSC Box Office located in the David and Carol Lackland Center at 715 Grand Ave in Hackettstown, or by calling 908-979-0900. The Box Office is open 1-5 PM Mondaythrough Friday, and 2 hours prior to performance times.

The 2013-14 season of performing arts events at the Centenary Stage Company is made possible through the generous support of the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, the NJ State Council on the Arts, and CSC sponsors, including Premier Sponsor Heath Village Retirement Community, Silver Sponsors Hackettstown Regional Medical Center, The Holiday Inn in Budd Lake, and Fulton Bank, Bronze Sponsors The Blanche and Irving Laurie Foundation and Wells Fargo Bank, and Centenary Stage Company members and supporters.