Performance Network Announces Record-Breaking Ticket Sales in 2010 -11 Season

These days, economic survival is top of mind for many non-profit arts organization. But in the midst of announced theater closures, and lay-offs nationwide, Ann Arbor's professional theater has some good news to report. Performance Network, which closed its 2010-2011 season on September 4th, and officially opens its 30th anniversary season this week, happily announced that it has broken box office records with the highest attended season in its history.

Marketing Director Chelsea Sadler said "We're absolutely delighted with the popularity of the season, with both the highest number of season subscribers, and the highest attendance for single tickets. Not only does it build great momentum going into the 30th anniversary, but it means we're touching more lives - and that's what really counts!"

All in all, the theatre saw double-digit percent increases in both single ticket sales and subscriptions, with single tickets up 13%, and subscriptions up 12% over the previous year, bucking the national trend of declining subscription interest.

Sadler notes "We've created a new flex-ticketing subscription, which offers the same discounts as the traditional kind, without committing you to a particular night. People are really loving the flexibility that comes with scheduling a la carte, and we've sold a lot of these new packages."

The theatre will continue its aggressive marketing efforts, geared at a wide range of audiences, to promote the upcoming season, which contains a variety of shows designed to appeal to a broad range of audiences. With three Tony Best Play/Musical winners, two Tony Best Play nominees, two Pulitzer Prize winning playwrights, and a World Premiere that has already won a prestigious National New Play award, PNT anticipates another blockbuster season waiting in the wings.

PERFORMANCE NETWORK'S 2011 - 2012 SEASON:
"Time Stands Still" by Donald Margulies
directed by Kate Peckham
MICHIGAN PREMIERE, 2010 Tony nominee for Best Play!
September 23, 2011 through October 23, 2011

With a passionate romance and two hot careers as war journalists in Iraq, Sarah and James' lives are on fire. But when Sarah is injured in a bombing and a shocking betrayal is revealed, the fabric of their relationship begins to unravel over thorny ethical questions. Grounded in the couple's Brooklyn loft while Sarah heals, they must discover how to move forward, or risk "standing still" forever. Courageous and intelligently funny, this Tony-nominated drama asks the questions that thinking people face today: When does documenting a tragedy become exploiting it? What personal responsibility do we bear when faced with the suffering of others? Is it okay to ignore the misery in the world, in order to have a joyful life? Hot from its Tony-nominated run on Broadway, this riveting play comes exclusively to Performance Network for its Michigan Premiere. Starring Suzi Regan ("The Blonde, the Brunette and the Vengeful Redhead"), John Lepard ("Candida"), Hugh Maguire ("The Seafarer") and Heidi Bennett ("Geoffrey & Jeffrey").

"Ain't Misbehavin'
The Fats Waller Musical Show" conceived by Richard Maltby, Jr. & Murray Horwitz
directed by Tim Rhoze
1978 Tony Award for Best Musical!
November 10, 2011 through January 1, 2012

The prodigious comic and musical soul of 1930s Harlem lives on in this rollicking, finger-snapping revue that is still considered one of Broadway's best. The inimitable Thomas "Fats" Waller rose to fame during the Golden Age of the Cotton Club, honky tolk dives, rent parties and that jumpin' new beat, Swing. "Ain't Misbehavin' " evokes the delightful humor and infectious energy of this American era. Starring James Bowen ("Fences"), Diviin Huff ("Little Shop of Horrors"), Kron Moore, Darrian Ford and K Edmonds.

"God of Carnage" by Yasmina Reza, translated by Christopher Hampton
directed by David Magidson
A co-production with the Jewish Ensemble Theatre
MICHIGAN PREMIERE! TONY AWARD-WINNING COMEDY
January 12, 2012 through February 19, 2012

Boys will be boys, but adults wll be worse! In this 2009 Tony-winner for Best Play, two couples meet at one of their homes to discuss a playground altercation between their young children. Hostility rumbles just under the surface, as their civilizEd Battle of wits and words devolves into a hilariously chaotic evening, where nothing is safe, not even the furniture. This comedy of (bad) manners will change the way you look at polite conversation. Contains adult themes. Starring Joey Albright ("It Came From Mars"), Sarab Kamoo ("9 Parts of Desire"), Phil Powers ("The Drowsy Chaperone") and Suzi Regan ("The Blonde, the Brunette and the Vengeful Redhead").

"Dead Man's Shoes" by Joseph Zettelmaier
directed by David Wolber
A co-production with Williamston Theatre
WORLD PREMIERE COMEDY
March 8, 2012 through April 8, 2012

From the playwright of the smash hit "It Came From Mars" comes a dastardly comedy, based on fact, but steeped in the tone of a good old fashioned outlaw movie. Injun Bill Picote and Army deserter/ camp cook Froggy never were fast friends, and it doesn't look like they're gonna be as they wander the wild west in search of a man who done a truly despicable deed. Filled with true grit and dark humor exploring the real cost of revenge, it's a fast-paced and panoramic journey to the dark side of American history. Contains adult themes. Winner of The Edgerton Foundation New American Play Award. Starring Drew Parker ("Marie Antoinette: The Color of Flesh"), Aral Basil Gribble II ("The Home Team"), Paul Hopper ("Jacob Marley's Christmas Carol") and Maggie Meyer.

"Red" by John Logan
MICHIGAN PREMIERE, WINNER OF SIX TONYS INCLUDING BEST PLAY!
April 19, 2012 through May 27, 2012

One of the great American abstract expressionists, Mark Rothko created paintings called "impenetrable fortresses of color." In this drama, Rothko and his assistant work feverishly on his famous commission to provide a series of murals for the Four Seasons restaurant. Over the course of the two-year commission, the young apprentice challenges his master, causing Rothko to question what he has become, and whether his greatest achievement might also be his undoing. Starring Mark Rademacher ("Circle Mirror Transformation") and Kevin Young ("Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead").

"In the Next Room or the Vibrator Play" by Sarah Ruhl
directed by Suzi Regan
MICHIGAN PREMIERE, 2010 Tony nominee for Best Play
June 14, 2012 through July 15, 2012

Upon the dawn of electricity, the aptly named Dr. Givings begins treating his female patients' "hysteria" with vibration therapy. Oblivious to why it works, the good doctor administers the treatments behind closed doors, while his young wife is left to listen to the connections being made on the other side. When she breaks into his office to try to device for herself, erotic and emotional chaos is unleashed. This provocative look at gender roles and female sexuality in the Victorian age is sure to be the year's most stimulating comedy. Contains adult themes. Starring John Seibert ("Next Fall"), Aphrodite Nikolovski ("The Clean House"), Milica Govich ("Sonia Flew"), Laurel Hufano ("Boston Marriage"), Rusty Mewha ("The Baker's Wife"), Kron Moore and Patrick O'Connor Cronin.

"Burn This" by Pulitzer Prize winning playwright Lanford Wilson
directed by Ray Schultz
August 2, 2012 through September 2, 2012

This explosive play, set in 1986 Manhattan, captures the recklessness of that decade. Pale, a coke-snorting, Jersey restaurant manager, and Anna, an up and coming choreographer, meet when her roommate Robbie, Pale's brother, dies. As the passions ignite, Pale's intense and troubled personality emerges. Menacing, profane, dangerous and yet oddly sensitive, Pale is both terrifying and fascinating. When Anna retreats into her work, he pursues her relentlessly, setting off an inferno of rage and desire that threatens to consume them both. Contains adult themes. Starring Quetta Carpenter, Darrell Glasgow ("Take Me Out"), Kevin Young ("Next Fall") and Jon Bennett ("Doubt").