Steven Dietz's PRIVATE EYES Opens Tonight at Shakespeare & Company

Shakespeare & Company unleashes its Fall Season with the hilarious thriller Private Eyes written by Steven Dietz and directed by Jonathan Croy. Private Eyes runs weekends only in the Elayne P. Bernstein Theatre tonight, September 20 - November 9. For tickets and information, visit Shakespeare.org.

In this side-splitting relationship thriller about love, desire and the power of deception, actors Matthew and Lisa, a happily married couple, find the truth nearly impossible to uncover. Is Lisa having an affair with a British director, or is the affair part of the play being rehearsed? Or perhaps Matthew has imagined all of it-or perhaps only Cory, the mysterious house detective, is the only one who can bring the tale to its unexpected conclusion. Or is she? The audience itself plays the role of 'private eye' in this production where theatre and life intertwine and in the deft hands of Jonathan Croy this zany comedy of suspicion-where nothing is ever quite what it seems-will keep you laughing long after you leave the theatre.

"Private Eyes is a play of contrasts-and I find that satisfying in that it's a 'full meal'," says Croy. "It's delightfully silly one moment, heartfelt the next, aching and hungry the moment after that; sensual and yet edgy; sentimental from a cynical point of view. I'm finding in rehearsals that I laugh harder at the characters' foibles because I care about them, and I care more deeply about their heartache because we've laughed together. I think it's important to remember that Steven Dietz was developing this play through the early nineties. It's a romantic comedy for that time. All made of the confidence, the doubt, the surety and insecurity of a popular culture redefining itself in reaction to the cynicism and self-involvement of the eighties, and yet it still works beautifully today."

The cast features Company artists Caroline Calkins and Marcus Kearns, who played opposite each other in the title roles in this season's Romeo and Juliet at The Mount, Edith Wharton's Home, as well as Elizabeth (Lily) Cardiopoli, who was seen in Private Lives this past winter at S&Co., Lori Evans Pugh, who makes her S&Co. acting debut in Private Eyes, and Luke Reed who recently played Mercutio in in this season's Romeo and Juliet at The Mount (Reed is also one of the Company's prized composers and musicians: The Servant of Two Masters, Tartuffe.)

The design team re-unites Company favorites Patrick Brennan (set designer for Shakespeare's Will, Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike, It's A Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play) with Govane Lohbauer (costume designer for Shakespeare's Will, The Complete Works of William Shakespeare(Abridged), It's A Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play); newcomers Robyn Warfield will do the lighting design and Iain Fisher designs the sound.

Jonathan Croy (director of this season's hits The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged) in the Packer Playhouse and Romeo and Juliet at The Mount, Edith Wharton's Home) is also the Company's Youth Programs Director and an Artistic Associate. Croy has been aCompany member since 1982 and has played more than 70 roles in over 60 plays, includingRichard II, It's a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play, King Lear, Kaufman's Barber Shop, and The Hound of the Baskervilles. In recent seasons, he has directed Richard III, Twelfth Night, The 39 Steps, The Real Inspector Hound, Julius Caesar, Scapin, and for last season's return to The Mount, A Midsummer Night's Dream.

Steven Dietz is a two-time finalist for the Steinberg New Play Award, Mr. Dietz received the PEN USA Award in Drama for Lonely Planet, and the Edgar Award for Best Mystery Play for Sherlock Holmes: The Final Adventure. Selected plays include Yankee Tavern, Becky's New Car, Last of the Boys, Lonely Planet, Shooting Star, Inventing Van Gogh, and The Nina Variations-have been seen at over one hundred regional theatres, as well as Off-Broadway and in fifteen countries internationally.

For tickets, Gift Cards and information about the 2014 Fall & Holiday Performance Season: visit www.shakespeare.org, or call the Box Office at (413) 637-3353, or stop by in person at 70 Kemble Street, Lenox, MA. Ticket prices for The Bernstein Theatre range from $10 to $60, with discounts from 10-50% off regular ticket prices for Groups, Students, Seniors, Teachers and the Military. Our very popular 40% Off Berkshire County Residents' Discount will also be available. The Bernstein theatre is wheelchair accessible and hearing-aid assisted. To learn more about the season, discount availability, to order tickets or request a season brochure, visit www.shakespeare.org. Groups: For bookings, parties, and special event rental information and details contact David Joseph, Director of Sales & Group Tours, at (413) 637-1199 ext. 132 orgroupsales@shakespeare.org.

THE TEAM AT A GLANCE:
Playwright: Steven Dietz
Director: Jonathan Croy
Set Designer: Patrick Brennan
Lighting Designer: Robyn Warfield
Sound Designer: Iain Fisher
Costume Designer: Govane Lohbauer
Sound Board Operator: Cooper Stone
Wardrobe: Kate Washington
Stage Manager / Light Op: Megan Radish
Cast: Caroline Calkins (Lisa), Elizabeth 'Lily' Cardaropoli (Cory), Marcus Kearns (Adrian), Lori Evans Pugh (Frank) and Luke Reed (Matthew)

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