GROUNDED, THE LIAR & More Set for Seattle Public Theater's 2016-17 Season

Seattle Public Theater announced today the four shows selected for its 2016-2017 regular mainstage season. The season will include the NW Regional Premiere of ON CLOVER ROAD written by two-time New American Plays Award-winner Steven Dietz, and GROUNDED (also a NW Regional Premiere and a Smith Prize award winner). Both GROUNDED and ON CLOVER ROAD will be helmed by SPT's Associate Artistic Director Kelly Kitchens, who was recently named one of the City's 20 Most Talented People by Seattle Magazine. David Ives' critically-acclaimed adaptation of THE LIAR will be directed by SPT's Artistic Director Shana Bestock (Bad Jews and Amadeus). GRAND CONCOURSE by former Seattle resident and two-time Obie Award winner Heidi Schreck closes out the mainstage season and will be directed by Annie Lareau (former Artistic Director of Arts West).

"This season is about putting electrifying performances up close," says Bestock. "We searched for plays that focus tightly on strong women and create opportunities for our audiences to see the diversity of Seattle's community reflected on our stage. Our mission of great theater up close is juxtaposed with a season of plays about lies and liars, obfuscation and misdirection. The closer you get, the more authentic the performance - but the slipperier the truth."

Holiday favorites THE BEST CHRISTMAS PAGEANT EVER, directed by Emily Purington, and local playwright Wayne Rawley's smash-hit CHRISTMASTOWN: A HOLIDAY NOIR complement the company's mainstage programming in December.

Season subscription packages start at $87.00 and will go on-sale in mid-April. For more information, call (206) 254-1300 or visit http://www.seattlepublictheater.org.

ON CLOVER ROAD
by Steven Dietz
directed by Kelly Kitchens
September 22 - October 16, 2016

In this smart, harrowing, edge-of-your-seat thriller, a desperate mother will do anything to get her daughter back. In an abandoned motel on a desolate American road, she meets with a man whom she believes is her only hope at reunion. But nothing is as it seems and what happens instead will shock her to her core.

THE LIAR
by David Ives
directed by Shana Bestock
January 26 - February 19, 2017

For audiences who love wit, wordplay, and savvy reinvention of the classics comes THE LIAR: a sparkling urban romance, reinvented by David Ives with contemporary flair. Ives' "translaptation" of Pierre Corneille's 17th century comedy follows Dorante, a young Frenchman and pathological liar whose outlandish stories become the talk of the capital, but for every problem he solves with his deception, he creates two new ones in its place. What is truth in an urban landscape of rumor, innuendo, and the formidable power of a fabulous story?

GROUNDED
by George Brant
directed by Kelly Kitchens
March 23 - April 16, 2017

An ace fighter pilot's career in the sky is ended early due to an unexpected pregnancy. Reassigned to operate military drones from a windowless trailer, she hunts terrorists by day and returns to her family each night. As the pressure to track a high-profile target mounts, the boundaries begin to blur between the desert in which she lives and the one she patrols half a world away.

GRAND CONCOURSE
by Heidi Schreck
directed by Annie Lareau
May 18 - June 11, 2017

Having dedicated her life to religious service, Shelley runs a Bronx soup kitchen where even the staff is needy, but lately her heart's not quite in it. When Emma - an idealistic but confused college dropout - arrives to volunteer, her reckless mix of generosity and self-involvement pushes Shelley to the breaking point. With keen humor and startling compassion, Shelley and her motley group navigate the mystery of faith, the limits of forgiveness, and how to find a little peace.

Test and expand your Broadway knowledge with our new game - The Broadway Match-Up! How well do you know your Broadway casting trivia?	Play the Daily Game, explore current shows, and delve into past decades like the 2000s, 80s, and the Golden Age. Challenge your friends and see where you rank!
How well do you know your Tony Awards history? Take our never-ending quiz of nominations and winner history and challenge your friends.	Can you beat your friends? Play today’s daily Broadway word game, featuring a new theatrically inspired word or phrase every day!