Washington Stage Guild Announces 2014-2015 Season

The Washington Stage Guild announces its 29th season of our distinctive repertory, an array of eloquent plays of idea and argument, passion and wit-smart theatre for a smart town. The 2014-2015 season includes the second part of our multi-year presentation of George Bernard Shaw's BACK TO METHUSELAH, and as the visionary cycle leaps into the future and examines the effect of human advances on relationships, the other three plays also focus on unexpected looks at basic ties to create A SEASON OF LOVE AND/OR MARRIAGE. Two Washington premieres are joined by two plays not seen here in decades, as we offer our first productions by two of Shaw's followers, Frederick Lonsdale and Terence Rattigan, and one by a contemporary American playwright, David Marshall Grant.

"Audiences at the Stage Guild know to expect wit and wisdom from playwrights of all periods. Since we're on this mesmerizing journey into the future with Methuselah, it seems fitting to pause along the way with three writers, one from the 1920s, one from the 1970s, and one from the past decade, as they deal with some of the same issues Shaw's characters face. As changes come to the world, love, relationships, and families can change, too. Should they? As ever, a topic in the headlines was anticipated by GBS, and his confreres weigh in with humor and emotion," says Bill Largess, artistic director of the Stage Guild.

"Shaw's prescience inspired us to look at other takes on similar issues in the intervening period, so we'll present our first productions of the prolific Frederick Lonsdale with his Noel Cowardesque ON APPROVAL, and the wonderful last play by Terence Rattigan, IN PRAISE OF LOVE, which longtime Washingtonians may remember as an early hit at the Kennedy Center. But we aren't neglecting the present, as we'll start the season with American playwright David Marshall Grant's PEN. Kasi Campbell and Laura Gianarelli return to direct, and we have many old and new friends slated to appear on stage!"

The 2014-2015 Season of Love and/or Marriage
PEN
by David Marshall Grant
October 30 to November 23, 2014
Directed by Kasi Campbell
Washington area premiere!
"My mother's a Jew, my Father's a WASP. I feel nothing, but I feel guilty about it."
A divorced couple wrangle over their college-bound son's future, and while the boy's life is about to change, he and his mother undergo perplexing changes themselves. The bonds of a family some would call broken, expressed in David Marshall Grant's sharp and pointed dialogue, make this Off-Broadway hit a funny, touching success. Featuring Emily Townley, Michael Russotto, and Chris Stinson.

IN PRAISE OF LOVE
by Terence Rattigan
January 1 to January 25, 2015
Directed by Laura Giannarelli
"The English vice is not flagellation or pederasty, it's our refusal to admit to our emotions."
A seemingly fractured family whose ties to each other are deeper than any of them realize find that sometimes, unkindness is the kindest thing. Rattigan, the author of The Winslow Boy and Separate Tables, is characteristically witty in this play based on the marriage of Rex Harrison and Kay Kendall, one of the early hits at the Kennedy Center.

BACK TO METHUSELAH:
THE THING HAPPENS and THE TRAGEDY OF AN ELDERLY GENTLEMAN
by George Bernard Shaw
February 19 to March 15, 2015
Directed by Bill Largess
"You do not make vows until death when death is three hundred years off."
Shaw examines the human life-span in a series of comic episodes that take us from the Garden of Eden to "as far as thought can reach" in the distant future. One of the first works of science fiction ever put on stage, with GBS's celebrated wit and a touch of satire. The second installment this season takes us 250 years into the future, then 3000 years beyond that! This multi-year cycle of productions of Shaw's landmark will culminate in our 30th anniversary in 2016.

ON APPROVAL
by Frederick Lonsdale
April 23 to May 17, 2015
"A dinner party lasts two hours. Marriage has been known to last two years."
A comedy of (bad) manners from the 1920s, in which two wealthy women who want to get married have chosen their prospective husbands, but insist on trying the merchandise on before making the deal. Lonsdale's biting wit sparkles as his characters match and mismatch in this once-hugely popular play, not seen in DC for decades.

The Readings Series
TONIGHT AT 8:30 by Noel Coward
During the season, we again present off-night readings that complement the full productions. This year, to accompany Shaw's titanic cycle of plays, we'll present Noel Coward's brilliant cycle of ten masterly miniatures, originally produced as Tonight at 8:30! Coward looks at love, marriage, and family in every style from melodrama to drawing-room comedy to farce to vaudeville!

Coward Tonight I
Tuesday, November 18, 2014 at 7 p.m.
STILL LIFE (the original version of Brief Encounter), WE WERE DANCING, HANDS ACROSS THE SEA

Coward Tonight II
Tuesday, January 20, 2015 at 7 p.m.
THE ASTONISHED HEART, WAYS AND MEANS

Coward Tonight III
Tuesday, March 10, 2014 at 7 p.m.
FUMED OAK, SHADOW PLAY

Coward Tonight IV
Tuesday, May 12, 2014 at 7 p.m.
RED PEPPERS, STAR CHAMBER, FAMILY ALBUM
Performance times and prices for all productions
Thursday evenings at 7:30 p.m. $40.00
Friday and Saturday evenings at 8 p.m. $50.00
Saturday and Sunday matinees at 2:30 p.m. $40.00
Discounts are available for senior citizens, students, and groups.
Season passes are available, offering incredible savings for the entire Stage Guild season.

Location for all performances
The Undercroft Theatre of Mount Vernon Place United Methodist Church
900 Massachusetts Avenue, NW, Washington, DC
The Undercroft Theatre is located in the heart of downtown Washington, on the corner of Massachusetts Avenue and 9th Street, NW. It's steps from the Convention Center, and blocks from the National Mall, the Smithsonian, the Verizon Center, Chinatown, and restaurants galore!

The Undercroft Theatre is within easy walking distance from the following Metro stations:
Gallery Place/Chinatown-Exit SE corner of 9th and G Sts., NW (Green, Yellow and Red lines)
Mt. Vernon Square-Exit SW corner of 7th and M Sts, NW (Green and Yellow lines)
Metro Center-Exit SE corner of 11th and G Sts., NW (Blue, Red and Orange lines)

Play selection and schedule are subject to change.
For information and reservations, please call 240 582-0050, email info@stageguild.org or go to www.stageguild.org.

To post a comment, you must register and login.