Theatre Nova to Stage Michigan Premiere of I AND YOU

Theatre Nova, fresh off the well-received comedy Buyer & Cellar and a successful Indiegogo funding campaign, will continue its first season with Lauren Gunderson's I and You, winner of the 2014 Harold and Mimi Steinberg/American Theatre Critics Association New Play Award, which recognizes an outstanding new play produced professionally around the United States but not yet produced in New York City.

Two very different high school students - sickly outsider Caroline (Katie Terpstra) and athletic, popular Anthony (Matthew Webb) - analyze the poetry of Walt Whitman for a class assignment, unaware of a dire secret in Anthony's recent past and how it has drawn them together - and overcome their personal and social differences in the process. On its production at Maryland's Olney Theatre Center, DC Theatre Scene wrote, "Gunderson's appealing characters have not forgotten the joy of being young, notwithstanding the savage circumstances of their lives ... it is a validation of the human experience, and of the triumph of life over death." The play has stimulated extensive discussion in social media, with Gunderson's page on Tumblr (iandyouplay.tumblr.com) serving as a hub for essays and commentary on diversity, gender, perceptions of youth, and other topics.

Actress Terpstra said that much of the joy of I and You comes from seeing the two characters "grow from strangers who are incredibly leery of each other into two people who couldn't be closer. It helps uncover the humor in serious circumstances and is a good reminder of how a first love feels." Associate Artist David Wolber, former Artistic Director of Performance Network Theatre and director of numerous critically acclaimed shows there, will direct the production.

Artistic Director Carla Milarch adds "We are thrilled to have found a show that specifically resonates with high school students, who are often kind of left out of the live theater milieu. Many shows are either 'family friendly' and geared toward younger children, or full of adult content and inappropriate for teens. This show hits the sweet spot for them, accurately portraying the teen experience from their own perspective, while tackling the larger issues we all face - life, death, love, human connection - reminding us that those struggles are amplified tenfold when you are approaching them as a teen for the first time. Plus the venue is alcohol free and the tickets are pay-what-you-can. It's actually a perfect theater experience for teens!"

The first performance will be Friday, May 1, and the show will run through Sunday, May 17. Thursday, Friday, and Saturday performances will begin at 7:30pm, and Sunday performances will begin at 2pm. All performances will be at the Yellow Barn (416 W. Huron, Ann Arbor), which Theatre Nova recently revamped as a professional performance venue. The location offers free parking, as well as quick walking access to downtown; nearby reference points are the Ann Arbor YMCA, the Big City Small World bakery, The Last Word, and the Sun Moon Yoga Studio. The entrance for parking is near the intersection of Huron St. and Chapin St/3rd St.

Theatre Nova has marked all performances as pay-what-you-can, with a suggested donation of $20. The company is also offering annual memberships that include tickets to all six main stage productions, every show in the New Play Readings series, and each children's show.