New Harmony To Present 'Crimes of the Heart'

New Harmony Theatre, University of Southern Indiana's professional Equity stage, continues its 21st season with Beth Henley's Pulitzer Prize-winning comedy, "Crimes of the Heart." The tale of three sisters reuniting in their family home in Mississippi runs July 11 - 27 in New Harmony's Murphy Auditorium.

The Magrath sisters have all come home to struggle through "a real bad day." The youngest and most volatile, Babe, has been sprung from prison on charges of shooting her husband because she "just didn't like his looks." Lenny celebrates her 30th birthday confident in the knowledge that no man will ever love her because she suffers from a  "shrunken ovary," while Meg, the former beauty queen, returns home to reveal that her dreams of stardom have been crushed by a dead-end job at a dog food company. As they attempt to keep Babe out of prison, the past and present collide to rekindle a bond so strong that even Hurricane Camille couldn't tear through it. According to The New York Times, this pitch-perfect portrayal of Southern sisterhood "[mines] a pure vein of Southern Gothic humor worthy of Eudora Welty and Flannery O'Connor" that "rings true enough to draw that dark, heart-deep laughter."

The cast includes several actors who will be familiar to New Harmony Theatre audiences from their performances in "Othello" and other NHT productions including Susan Derry (Meg), Jarred Kjack (Doc), and Kensington Blaylock (Chick).  New York actors Eileen Ward (Babe), J. Max Miller (Barnette), and Marnye Young (Lenny) will make their New Harmony Theatre debut in the production.  Derry, Ward, Young, and Miller are all members of the Actors' Equity Association, the union of professional actors and stage managers in the United States.

Young, a 2003 graduate of the University of Evansville's theatre department and the Yale School of Drama, is delighted to return to the Evansville area.  She said that her experiences as a student at the University of Evansville "nurtured her heart and passion for theatre."

The artistic team for "Crimes of the Heart" includes Lenny Leibowitz, director; Tijana Bjelajac, scenic designer; Shan Jensen, costume designer; Craig A. Young, lighting designer; Robert Dagit, sound designer; and Michele Fugate, production stage manager.

Tickets for "Crimes of the Heart" are $22 for adults, $20 for seniors, and $10 for anyone 25 or younger. On Thursday, July 19, Posey County residents can attend the production for only $8 thanks to a grant from the Posey County Community Foundation.  Group discounts are available for groups of 20 or more. For more information about the New Harmony Theatre's production of "Crimes of the Heart," contact the box office at 812/682-3115 or toll free at 1-877-NHT-SHOW (648-7469), or visit the theatre's new web site at www.newharmonytheatre.com

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