THE COTTAGE to Close Out Season at Stage West

Stage West Theatre will present The Cottage, by Sandy Rustin, beginning its 3-week regional premiere run Wednesday, August 12, 2026, at 821 W Vickery Blvd. in Fort Worth, in the Evelyn Wheeler Swenson Theatre.

It's 1925, and Sylvia Van Kipness is done being discreet. She's tired of being secretly whisked away to this English countryside cottage for her annual tryst. So she's decided to expose her affair to both her husband and her lover's wife with a series of scandalous telegrams, turning this tranquil cottage into a hotbed of hilarity. Manic hijinks ensue as a web of infidelity is hilariously revealed in this saucy, side-splitting romp.

Executive Producer Dana Schultes notes: 'We're closing the season with a bang! The Cottage is fast, flirtatious, and laugh-out-loud funny. It's full of big personalities, bigger secrets, and all the theatrical mischief you could hope for. We wanted to end the year with something joyful and outrageous. This one definitely delivers.'

'An over-the-top comedy funhouse' - New York Theatre Guide

PERFORMANCE DETAILS

PREVIEWS: Aug 12, 13, 14, and 15 matinee
REGULAR RUN: Aug 15 evening – Aug 30, 2026

Wed-Sat evenings at 7:30 PM

Sat-Sun matinees at 2:00 PM
The show has one intermission.

SPECIAL EVENTS

ASL Interpreted Performance: Fri, Aug 28

Post-Show Conversations:

• Leah Mazur, Scenic Designer, Wed, Aug 19
• Emily Scott Banks, Director, Thu, Aug 27

TICKET PRICES

• Previews (1st 4 performances): $38
• Sat mat (following the preview performance): $44
• Wed/Thu/Fri eves: $46
• Sat eve/Sun mat: $52

Pre-show Dining available in The Lobby Café 90 minutes prior to performances (reservations are essential).

For tickets, café reservations, and information:

Box Office: 817-784-9378

Online: www.stagewest.org

CONTENT ADVISORY: suggestive language and situations, sexual displays and discussions, adultery, smoking, innuendo and blue humor, sound of gunshots, (oh, and the possibility of a murder!). No profanity. Recommended for 16+ and adults.

ABOUT THE CREATIVE TEAM

Directed by Emily Scott Banks*, starring Lee George*, Parker Davis Gray*, Nicole Renee Johnson, Kristen Lazarchick, Philip Matthew Maxwell, Natalie Young*

Stage Management is by Tiffany Cromwell*. The primary production team includes Scenic Design by Leah Mazur, Lighting Design by Leann Burns, Costume Design by Murell Horton, Sound Design by Ryan Simón, Properties by Maria Leon Hickox, Dialect Coaching by Megan Noble, Intimacy and Fight Choreography by Harper Caroline Lee.

*Denotes Member, Actors' Equity Association

Sandy Rustin is an actress and award-winning playwright named by American Theatre Magazine as one of the 'Most-Produced Playwrights of the '22-'23 season.' Her stage adaptation of the film Clue is one of the most-produced plays in the U.S., with over 3,000 productions worldwide. Her original comedy, The Cottage, premiered on Broadway in July 2023 at The Hayes Theatre (Jason Alexander, director). Other works include: the concert adaptations of Dear World and I Married an Angel for New York City Center Encores!, Mattel's American Girl Live!, The Suffragette's Murder (upcoming premiere), Rated P for Parenthood (Off Broadway/ABC-TV), Houston (New American Musical Award), Always Something There for Primary Wave Music, and many others. Sandy serves on the Board of Camp Kesem, helping children through a parent's cancer diagnosis. She lives in Maplewood, NJ with her husband and two sons. www.sandyrustin.com INSTA: @sandyrustin

ABOUT Stage West THEATRE

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