Rebeck, Churchill, Etc. Part of MTC's '07/'08 Line-Up

Manhattan Theatre Club has announced four upcoming productions for its 2007-2008 season. 

Specific production dates, casting, and the remaining three productions of the seven play season will all be announced at a later date.

Playing at the Biltmore Theatre on Broadway will be the New York premiere of Theresa Rebeck's Mauritius, which will be presented as a co-production with the Huntington Theatre Company.  "A gripping new play from the enterprising author of such acclaimed hits as The Scene, Bad Dates and Omnium Gatherum (for which she and her co-author earned a Pulitzer Prize nomination). Jackie and Mary are half-sisters whose mother's death leaves them in possession of a rare stamp collection. But which sister actually owns the stamps? Which of three dealers can be trusted with their sale? And where do we choose to live: the present or the past?," state press notes.  The director will be announced at a later date.

Top Girls, by Caryl Churchill, will have its Broadway premiere.  "Set at the Top Girls Employment Agency in London in the early 1980s, this groundbreaking, theatrical play tells the story of Marlene, an ambitious career woman who has just been appointed head of the firm. But as she celebrates her achievements, can we applaud her values? This bold and ingenious work from the singularly talented author of Far Away and Cloud Nine offers one of the theatre's most honest portraits of what it means to be a woman in the modern world. Directing is James MacDonald, who staged the New York premiere of Churchill's A Number, as well as this season's hit production of Dying City at Lincoln Center Theater."

Playing New York City Center will be Adam Bock's The Receptionist, which will receive its world premiere. "Beverly takes pride in her work as the receptionist at a busy Northeast office. Whether coaching her co-worker Lorraine through romantic troubles, fielding calls for their boss Mr. Raymond or carefully monitoring the flow of office supplies, Beverly keeps her domain shipshape. But when handsome Mr. Dart arrives unexpectedly from the central office, Beverly is charmed, Lorraine is smitten and Mr. Raymond is caught completely off guard. This world premiere from Adam Bock, the author of The Thugs and Swimming in the Shallows, is directed by Joe Mantello, the two-time Tony Award®-winning director of this season's Blackbird at MTC, as well as Assassins, Wicked and Take Me Out. The cast will feature Jayne Houdyshell, a Tony Award-nominee for last season's Well."

Abbie Spallen's Pumpgirl, in its American premiere, will be presented at New York City Center. "In this gripping play from one of Ireland's brightest new talents, playwright Abbie Spallen shapes a startling tale of three lives colliding in rural Ireland. The play unfolds with the story of a homely, tomboyish pump girl at a rundown gas station. When a local racetrack star becomes the focus of her obsession, the affair threatens more than the feelings of his disenchanted wife. A blazing success last season in Edinburgh and at London's renowned Bush Theatre, the play is in the best tradition of richly detailed and unforgettable Irish storytelling."

Under the leadership of Artistic Director Lynne Meadow and Executive Producer Barry Grove, MTC has presented plays and musicals such as Shining City; Rabbit Hole; Doubt; Proof;  The Tale of the Allergist's Wife; Yellowman; Kimberly Akimbo; Love! Valour! Compassion!; Sylvia; Four Dogs and a Bone; Putting It Together; Lips Together, Teeth Apart; Frankie and Johnny in the Clair de Lune; Crimes of the Heart; and Ain't Misbehavin'.  In 2003, MTC reopened Broadway's landmark long neglected Biltmore Theatre, following a two-year, $35 million capital campaign. 

When Meadow begins her previously announced sabbatical during the 2007-2008 season, Daniel Sullivan a close associate of MTC and director of several Manhattan Theatre Club productions (Rabbit Hole, Brooklyn Boy, Sight Unseen, Proof, Psychopathia Sexualis), will serve as Acting Artistic Director. Sullivan will continue consulting with Meadow and MTC's artistic staff on the planning of the 2007-2008 season. Meadow will return to MTC for the 2008-2009 season and will consult on the planning of that season.

MTC subscriptions can be ordered by calling (212) 399-3030, Monday - Friday, noon - 8 PM with a major credit card. Subscriptions are also available online at www.ManhattanTheatreClub.com.

Photo of Jayne Houdyshell by Walter McBride/Retna Ltd.