Court Theatre's 2012-2013 TelstraClear Season Announced - AUGUST: OSAGE COUNTY, THE MOTOR CAMP and More

"A kaleidoscope of theatrical treats" is how Artistic Director of The Court Theatre Ross Gumbley describes the 2012-2013 TelstraClear Season.

The season features a smash Kiwi comedy, three world premières, an iconic musical, the most critically-acclaimed drama in recent Broadway history and two "modern classics" of comedy and drama.

"The last year for The Court Theatre has been one of designing, fundraising and building," says Gumbley, referring to the $4.6 million fundraising campaign and 120-day construction of The Court Theatre's new Addington venue. The four plays of the TelstraClear Opening season welcomed audiences to the new theatre, with over 13,000 people attending the debut production, A SHORTCUT TO HAPPINESS. Reviews of the new theatre have been glowing. "Now that we are back up and running," says Gumbley, "we have the opportunity to bring a year-long season of eight first-class plays.".

The TelstaClear Season opens with NZ playwright Dave Armstrong's comedy The Motor Camp, about the conflict between two families who find their campervans parked next to each other, with the resulting tensions (for the parents as much as their hormonal teenagers) threatening to jeopardise their holidays. Gumbley says "this genuinely funny, robust Kiwi comedy shows why Armstrong is being hailed as the new Roger Hall.".

The Court will next present the world première of a New Zealand play with an international focus - Lynda Chanwai-Earle's Man In A Suitcase. Inspired by the true events of a murdered Chinese student whose remains were found in a suitcase floating in Auckland harbour, Chanwai-Earle's fictionalised play "unfolds very much in the style of a thriller, with an elegant theatrical twist". The Court Theatre has developed Man In A Suitcase in conjunction with the World Institute of Theatre and Film at Peking University in China, where the play will be staged later in 2012. The Court is honoured to be taking New Zealand theatre to an international stage.

When Irish playwright Mark Power sent his script for The Slapdash Assassin to The Court, the black comedy of murder, mayhem and malarkey immediately caught Gumbley's eye. Originally scheduled for the 2011 season, Gumbley is looking forward to bringing "a good dose of craic" to The Court's stage. Comedian and TV3's "7 Days" regular Jeremy Elwood has been cast in the lead role of Gerry.

Pacific Post is a heartfelt and deeply personal play from Stephanie McKellar-Smith and Ross McKellar, based on correspondence between McKellar-Smith's grandparents whilst her grandfather was stationed in the pacific. "The script has moved me to tears each time I have heard it," says Gumbley, "this is a play with a huge heart".

In December Grease will be the word at The Court, with the legendary musical rounding off 2012 and bringing in 2013. The classic story of love, cars and drive-ins in a 1959 American high school "is one of the all-time greatest 'good time' shows," says Gumbley.

August: Osage County is one of the most lauded modern American dramas, winning a Pulitzer Prize, Tony Award and Drama Desk Award for best new play in 2008. Tracy Letts' play follows the dysfunctional and destructive interactions of the Weston family, who return to the family home when the head of the household mysteriously vanishes. Using a thirteen-actor ensemble cast ("every role a tour de force", says Gumbley), August: Osage County is an epic exploration of the most intimate moments.

Clare Booth Luce's The Women was first staged in 1936, and proves that "some things never go out of style - like sex, infidelity and the irresistible maliciousness of gossip" according to Gumbley. In a script "dripping with equal parts maliciousness and wit", a group of wives, girlfriends and mistresses navigate the glamorous jungle of high-society Manhattan.

Rounding off the season is Peter Schaffer's opulent drama Amadeus, which transforms the rumoured rivalry between Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Antonio Salieri into a spectacular drama of jealousy, revenge and self-destruction.

"We are all incredibly excited about the upcoming season," says Gumbley. "That excitement is heightened by the potential of our new space. As a company we have room to really spread our wings and present work with an exciting new dimension. Previously, having a full-sized car on stage (forGrease) or a three-storey set (in August: Osage County) would have been impossible.".

Gumbley will be giving a public presentation at The Court Theatre on the TelstraClear Season onSunday 25 March at 2pm and invites "anyone who wants to know more about the season" to attend. Brochures are now available at The Court Theatre and online at The Court Theatre's website (www.courttheatre.org.nz).

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