Gulfshore Playhouse Announces 2018-19 Season

Gulfshore Playhouse, Naples' premiere professional regional theatre, recently announced its lineup for the 2018-19 season:

"An Iliad," Oct. 20 to Nov. 4: Passed down from the campfires of Ancient Greece comes a virtuosic one-man performance with a fresh retelling of Homer's soaring epic about the horrors and heroism of war by Lisa Peterson and Denis O'Hare.

"A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum," Nov. 17 to Dec. 30: Written by Burt Shevelove and Larry Gelbert, with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, this hilarious Tony Award-winning musical farce takes guests back to Ancient Rome for an unforgettable production featuring an all-male ensemble.

"The Revolutionists," Jan. 12 to Feb. 3: In the chaos of the French Revolution, anything can happen - especially laughter - when former Queen Marie Antoinette, assassin Charlotte Corday, playwright Olympe de Gouges, and spy Marianne Angelle form an unlikely alliance. Written by Lauren Gunderson, the most popular playwright in America, the comedic production puts a modern twist on history as these women fight for equality and freedom.

"In the Next Room or The Vibrator Play," Feb. 16 to March 10: This poignant and provocative Tony Award-nominated comedy by Sarah Ruhl explores the nature of love, intimacy, and electricity as a well-to-do Victorian doctor's innocent invention to treat female "hysteria" sends a shock wave through the lives of his patients - and his own marriage.

"Holmes and Watson," March 23 to April 21: It's been three years since Sherlock Holmes plunged to his death off Reichenbach Falls ... or so the world believed. When Dr. John Watson receives a mysterious telegram from a doctor who states that three men claiming to be Sherlock Holmes are in his care, it is up to Watson to unravel a web of intrigue, murder, and suspense in this play by Jeffrey Hatcher.

"Skylight," May 4 to 26: On a cold winter night, a schoolteacher is unexpectedly reunited with her former lover, the recently widowed Tom, in her London apartment. Now forced to confront their shared past, the two find themselves entangled in a passionate clash of opposing ideologies and mutual desires in this exhilarating Tony Award-winning play by David Hare.

Gulfshore Playhouse's Education program has also announced the summer production of the Tony Award-nominated musical "The Secret Garden" as part of its Teen Conservatory program. The by-audition only intensive musical theatre conservatory - for students ages 13-18 - provides pre-professional training in acting, voice and movement, and the opportunity to take master classes and work with world-class professional actors. Produced and directed by Broadway veteran and Gulfshore Playhouse Associate Director Jeffrey Binder, with lyrics by Pulitzer prize-winner Marsha Norman and music by Lucy Simon, "The Secret Garden" will be comprised of students from the Teen Conservatory, and culminate with performances on Thursday, Aug. 2 and Friday, Aug. 3. Auditions for the Teen Conservatory are March 4 and 18 at 7 p.m.

"The upcoming season is full of outstanding, provocative productions, many of them with Tony Award-winning credits and written by renowned playwrights," said Gulfshore Playhouse's Founding Artistic Director Kristen Coury. "Coupled with a slate of straight-from-Broadway professional actors, this season will sure to satisfy audiences who are looking for a taste of New York and world-class, professional theater right in their backyard."

Early bird season subscriptions, available for current subscribers and Playhouse Partners beginning Feb. 19 and to the public Feb. 26, include priority seating, exclusive events and discounted pricing. Regular ticket pricing and single tickets starting at $20 will be available starting March 5.

For purchase information, visit www.GulfshorePlayhouse.org or contact 866-811-4111.

Gulfshore Playhouse is committed to enriching and strengthening the cultural fabric of our region by creating and producing professional theatre productions of a national standard that celebrates the diversity of our audiences, draws people together to discover a new understanding of oneself, and gives back in a spirit of outreach and service.

This focus is also at the core of its newest endeavor - the creation of a cultural landmark facility in downtown Naples. Plans are currently underway for Gulfshore Playhouse's new 56,000-square-foot complex at Goodlette-Frank Road and First Avenue South on the northern end of The Shoppes at Naples Square that will include two theaters and an education wing to support programming for children, adults and families.

For more information about Gulfshore Playhouse and the Next Stage Campaign for its new facility, visit www.gulfshoreplayhouse.org or call 239-261-PLAY (7529).