UM Jerry Herman Ring Theatre Announces 2011-12 Season

The University of Miami College of Arts and Sciences' Department of Theatre Arts presents its 2011-2012 Season which kicks off on September 14, 2011 with Night Train to Bolina, a play written and directed by Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright and Miami native Nilo Cruz. Mr. Cruz will be in residence with the Department of Theatre Arts for five weeks, working directly with students. This juncture coincides with his residency as Stanford Distinguished Professor at the UM Center for the Humanities.

Other season highlights include The House of Bernarda Alba in a ground-breaking professional collaboration with the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts of Miami-Dade County, and Forever 54 which was conceived and directed by nine-time Tony Award winner Tommy Tune. Mr. Tune will also be in residence for five weeks at the Department of Theatre Arts. The season is rounded out by the hilarious musical A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, and the American classic Stage Door for a total of five plays that highlight the shining talent of UM's rising stars and its distinguished, world-class guests.

The Ring Theatre 2011-12 season includes:
September 14 - 24, 2011
NIGHT TRAIN TO BOLINA
By Nilo Cruz
Pulitzer-Prize-winning playwright and Miami native Nilo Cruz (Anna in the Tropics) spins this intriguing and haunting tale set in an unidentified, war-torn Latin American country where two peasant youths, Mateo and Clara, create an imaginary world to cope with the starvation and oppression of their daily lives. Bonded by an emotional link that is both innocent and erotic, the couple decides to run away to the Bolina, a mythical city where lost kites "go to die." With its imaginative use of poetic realism, Night Train to Bolina is an adventure in fantasy, mysticism, and love.

October 13 - 30, 2011
THE HOUSE OF BERNARDA ALBA
By Federico Garcia Lorca
New translation by Karin Coonrod and Nilo Cruz
A co-production with the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts; all performances in the Arsht's Carnival Studio Theater
Written by Spain's most acclaimed modern playwright, The House of Bernarda Alba is the devastatingly powerful story of a domineering woman obsessed with maintaining the honor of her family's name against the forces of a brutal society. Bernarda Alba's iron-fisted oppression of her five daughters transforms their rural home into a powder keg of tension, jealousy and fear. In this stunning world-premiere-translation by Karin Coonrod and Nilo Cruz, Lorca's compelling drama paints a bleak portrait of the impending totalitarianism coming to his country as well as the world. Although it is tragic in tone and story, The House of Bernarda Alba ultimately celebrates the enduring human struggle for freedom and happiness in the darkest of times.

November 9-19, 2011
FOREVER 54
Conceived by Tommy Tune; written by Mark Saltzman
Once upon a time in New York City, there was a magical disco that everyone clamored to get into. Passing through Studio 54's velvet ropes were the world's most famous stars, politicians, and athletes - the glitterati of the 1980s. The Jerry Herman Ring Theatre will be presenting the first production of Tommy Tune's exciting and glamorous musical portrait of the world's most famous nightclub. South Florida theatre audiences will be the first to experience this exciting new musical.
February 15- 25, 2012
STAGE DOOR
By Edna Ferber and George S. Kaufman
This 1937 screwball comedy centers around a group of young actresses crammed into a theatrical boarding house in New York while waiting for their big break on The Great White Way. Stage Door showcases love affairs, despair, betrayals, wise-cracks, rejections, tragedy and plenty of delicious comedy. The central plot focuses on Terry Randall (Katherine Hepburn in the 1937 film), a stage-struck actress totally driven by her talent and ambition. What the other young women bring to the play is a veritable carnival of memorable characters. Stage Door is a genuine valentine to the legitimate stage as well as a comic send-up of the Hollywood film industry.
April 11 - 28, 2012
A FUNNY THING HAPPENED
ON THE WAY TO THE FORUM
Book by Burt Shevelove and Larry Gelbart;
Music and Lyrics by Stephen Sondheim
"Tragedy tomorrow, comedy tonight!" begins one of Broadway's greatest farces. Forum is light, fast-paced, witty, irreverent and one of the funniest musicals ever written! It takes comedy back to its roots, combining situations from Roman farces with the slapstick energy of classic vaudeville. The result is a non-stop laugh-fest in which a crafty slave, seeking to earn his freedom, struggles to win the hand of a beautiful courtesan for his young master. What a great way to close out our exciting season!

To receive a free, color brochure, contact the Ring at 305-284-3355. Subscriptions go on sale August 17th. There are discounts for UM faculty, staff and alumni, seniors (65 and older) and students. Visit www.miami.edu/ring for more information.

The Jerry Herman Ring Theatre is located at 1312 Miller Drive on the University of Miami's Coral Gables campus. The theatre is wheelchair accessible, has handicapped parking, and offers free infrared hearing devices. Parking is free and plentiful adjacent to the theatre.

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