Amy Wright to Take Over as Director of Pearl Theatre Company's THE SUBJECT WAS ROSES, Opens 4/9

THE Pearl Theatre Company has announced that actress and director Amy Wright wil direct the company's spring production, THE SUBJECT WAS ROSES. Ms. Wright replaces the previously announced Sheldon Patinkin, who has withdrawn from the production due to recovery and rehabilitation from recent surgery.

"While I am saddened that friend and colleague Sheldon Patinkin has had to step down as director of the show," said Pearl artistic director J. R. Sullivan, "all of us are very pleased that distinguished actress Amy Wright is able to step in and lead the production. She is a remarkable talent in the theatre and brings her great skills to The Subject Was Roses."

Amy Wright was seen in the original Broadway casts of The Fifth of July and Noises Off, as well as many off-Broadway successes that included the original cast of Mrs. Klein with Uta Hagen. Ms. Wright has also been featured in numerous films, including Breaking Away, The Accidental Tourist, John Huston's Wise Blood, and Woody Allen's Stardust Memories. Ms. Wright teaches acting at the HB Studio in Greenwich Village, where she has also directed productions of The Cherry Orchard, John Guare's Lake Hollywood, The Hot l Baltimore, The Birthday Party, and Three Sisters. She is a founding member of Rip Torn's Sanctuary Theatre Workshop.

THE SUBJECT WAS ROSES begins preview performances April 9, 2010 and continues through May 9. A poignant story that revolves around the return of a young man from the battlefields of World War II to the turbulent marriage of his parents, The Subject Was Roses won playwright Frank D. Gilroy the Pulitzer Prize for Drama for 1965, as well as the Best Play Tony Award. An Oscar-winning film version released in 1968 starred Martin Sheen, Patricia Neal, and Jack Albertson. The play was last seen in New York in 1991. Pearl Theatre Company members Carol Schultz and Dan Daily will be featured as Nettie and John Cleary, while the role of son Timmy has yet to be announced.

The Pearl Theatre Company produces a full-range classical repertory with an established Resident Acting Company, dedicated to bringing timeless stories to new and vivid life. Moving this season from its long-time home in the East Village, The Pearl now performs at New York City Center's Stage II. The 2009-2010 season marks the 26th Season of the company's work in New York and includes J.M. Synge's THE PLAYBOY OF THE WESTERN WORLD, Bernard Shaw's MISALLIANCE, and Stephen Jeffrey's adaptation of Charles Dickens' HARD TIMES.

Single tickets for all of The Pearl's productions can be purchased by calling CityTix® at 212-581-1212, online at www.nycitycenter.org or at the City Center Box Office (West 55th Street between 6th and 7th Avenues).