Westport Country Playhouse Hosts Autumn Script in Hand Play Readings

Westport Country Playhouse will present two Script in Hand play readings this autumn with the classic whodunit, "Dial ‘M' for Murder," by Frederick Knott, on Monday, November 14, 7 p.m., and the delightfully touching comedy "Holiday," by Philip Barry, on Monday, December 12, 7 p.m. Tickets to the one-night-only events are $15.

"I love looking for plays that will intrigue our loyal Script in Hand audience and give me the opportunity to work with our Playhouse friends and alums," said Anne Keefe, Playhouse artistic advisor and curator of the Script in Hand series. "I'm beginning to feel we are putting together a bunch of regulars who really enjoy the form and embrace the challenge of creating an entire theatrical evening with just the wonderful words of good playwrights."

"Dial ‘M' for Murder" asks the question: is there such a thing as a perfect murder? Tony married Margot for her money, and now plans to murder her for the same reason. When the murderer gets murdered, Tony takes the opportunity to have Margot convicted of the crime. Will Inspector Hubbard of Scotland Yard and Margot's would-be-lover be able to turn the tables on Tony and save Margot from the gallows? A suspenseful tale of blackmail, murder and clever police work, the whodunit is written by Frederick Knott (1916 - 2002), who also scribed "Wait Until Dark."
The cast includes Kieran Campion as Max, Sean Patrick Reilly as Lesgate, Mark Shanahan as Tony and Paxton Whitehead as Inspector Hubbard. Other casting will be announced soon.

Campion appeared in "Journey's End," "David Copperfield" and two Script in Hand readings at Westport Country Playhouse. He joined WCP's production of "Our Town" for the Broadway run. Also on Broadway, he was in "Journey's End" and "Pygmalion." His film credits include "The Good Shepherd" and "The Adjustment Bureau."

Reilly performed at Westport Country Playhouse in "Of Mice and Men" and a Script in Hand reading of "Chapter Two." Broadway credits are "Superior Donuts" and "The Beauty Queen of Leenane." Film and television work includes "Jerry Maguire," "Solitary Man" and "Boardwalk Empire."
Shanahan appeared on The Westport Country Playhouse stage in "Around the World in 80 Days," "Tryst," "Sedition," "Journey's End" and "David Copperfield." He is a recurring actor and director for many Script in Hand readings. On the New York stage, he was in "The 39 Steps."

Whitehead appeared at Westport Country Playhouse in "The Circle" and "How the Other Half Lives," among others. His many Broadway credits include "The Importance of Being Earnest" and "Camelot," for which he received a Tony Award nomination.

"Dial ‘M' for Murder" will be directed by Keefe. She served as artistic director of Westport Country Playhouse, with JoAnne Woodward, in 2008 and as associate artistic director from 2000-2006, also with Ms. Woodward. She co-directed with Ms. Woodward The Westport Country Playhouse production of "David Copperfield," and directed many readings.

In "Holiday," the December Script in Hand, Johnny Case is a promising, brash young man of business engaged to Julia Seton, a girl of great wealth and social standing. Johnny refuses to waste his youth in pursuit of the almighty dollar. He wants to live life while he is young and work when he is older. When he achieves a huge financial success, he announces his intention to do just that. This doesn't sit well with Julia's family. When they attempt to force him into society's accepted mold, only younger sister Linda becomes his potential ally. The play is written by Philip Barry, author of "The Philadelphia Story." Actors will be announced soon.

The Script in Hand Series is sponsored by Michele and Marc Flaster; with additional support from Ann Sheffer and Bill Scheffler. The Series is also funded in part, by the White Barn Program of the Lucille Lortel Foundation and Newman's Own Foundation.

For more information or tickets, call the box office at (203) 227-4177, or toll-free at 1-888-927-7529, or visit Westport Country Playhouse, 25 Powers Court, off Route 1, Westport. Tickets are available online 24/7 at www.westportplayhouse.org. Stay connected to The Playhouse on Facebook (Westport Country Playhouse), follow on Twitter (@WCPlayhouse), view Playhouse videos on YouTube (WestportPlayhouse) or get an insider's peek on The Playhouse Blog (www.theplayhouseblog.org).

About The Playhouse

Reimagining itself in recent years, Westport Country Playhouse is rapidly emerging as a nationally recognized professional theater. Under the artistic direction of Mark Lamos and management direction of Michael Ross, The Playhouse creates five live theater experiences, produced at the highest level, from April through November. Its vital mix of works---dramatic, comedic, occasionally exploratory and unusual---expands the audience's sense of what theater can be. The depth and scope of its productions display the foremost theatrical literature from the past---recent as well as distant---in addition to musicals and premieres of new plays. During the summer, The Playhouse is home to the Woodward Internship Program, renowned for the training of aspiring theater professionals. Winter at The Playhouse, from November through March, offers events outside of the main season---Family Festivities presentations, Script in Hand play readings and a Holiday Festival. In addition, businesses and organizations are encouraged to rent the handsome facility for their meetings, receptions and fundraisers.

As an historic venue, Westport Country Playhouse has had many different lives leading up to the present. Originally built in 1835 as a tannery manufacturing hatters' leathers, it became a steam-powered cider mill in 1880, later to be abandoned in the 1920s. Splendidly transformed into a theater in 1931, it initially served as a try-out house for Broadway transfers, evolving into an established stop on the New England straw hat circuit of summer stock theaters through the end of the 20th century.

Today, the not-for-profit Westport Country Playhouse serves as a cultural nexus for patrons, artists and students and is a treasured resource for the State of Connecticut. There are no boundaries to the creative thinking for future seasons or the kinds of audiences and excitement for theater that Westport Country Playhouse can build.

Westport Country Playhouse's five-play 2011 season: "Beyond Therapy," a wicked, and wickedly funny, look at the days and nights of the young and single, written by comic master Christopher Durang and directed by David Kennedy, Playhouse associate artistic director, April 26 - May 14; "The Circle," the scintillating comedy of manners, written by W. Somerset Maugham and directed by Nicholas Martin, June 7 - June 25; "Lips Together, Teeth Apart," a perceptive comedy about people struggling against their limitations, written by Terrence McNally and directed by Mark Lamos, Playhouse artistic director, July 12 - July 30; "Suddenly Last Summer," the poetic, sensual and evocative drama, written by Tennessee Williams and directed by David Kennedy, Playhouse associate artistic director, August 23 - September 10; and "Twelfth Night, or What You Will," the beguiling comedy/romance, written by William Shakespeare and directed by Mark Lamos, October 11 - November 5.

For more information or tickets, call the box office at (203) 227-4177, or toll-free at 1-888-927-7529, or visit Westport Country Playhouse, 25 Powers Court, off Route 1, Westport. Tickets are available online 24/7 at www.westportplayhouse.org. Stay connected to The Playhouse on Facebook (Westport Country Playhouse), follow on Twitter (@WCPlayhouse), view Playhouse videos on YouTube (WestportPlayhouse) or get an insider's peek on The Playhouse Blog (www.theplayhouseblog.org).

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