Playwrights Horizons Now Accepting Lottery Entries to THE QUALMS' First Preview

Playwrights Horizons is now accepting entries for its popular LIVEforFIVE online lottery for up to two $5 tickets each to the New York premiere of THE QUALMS, a new play by Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award winner Bruce Norris (Clybourne Park and The Pain and the Itch at PH, Domesticated). Directed by Tony and Obie Award winner Pam MacKinnon (Clybourne Park and Completeness at PH; Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?; this season's A Delicate Balance and The Heidi Chronicles), the play is the final production of the theater company's 2014/2015 Season.

The LIVEforFIVE lottery for THE QUALMS will be for tickets to the first preview on Friday evening, May 22 at 8PM at Playwrights Horizons' Mainstage Theater (416 West 42nd Street). The production has an Opening Night set for Sunday, June 14 and will play a limited engagement through Sunday, July 12.

A ticketing initiative created in 2007 as part of Playwrights Horizons' Arts Access program, LIVEforFIVE makes a limited number of $5 tickets available for the first preview performance of each Playwrights Horizons production through a lottery via the company's website (www.PHnyc.org).

Details for the LIVEforFIVE lottery are as follows: beginning today, Wednesday, May 13, theatergoers can enter the lottery by filling out an entry form at www.PHnyc.org. Entries will be accepted until Tuesday, May 19 at 12 Noon. Winners of the lottery will be notified via email no later than 3PM on Tuesday, May 19 with instructions on how to book their $5 tickets. Unclaimed tickets will be offered via email to a limited standby list starting at 12 Noon on Wednesday, May 20 on a first-come, first-served basis. One or two tickets may be purchased for $5 each.

The cast of THE QUALMS features Kate Arrington (the recent The Iceman Cometh at BAM, Grace, The American Plan, Everett Beekin and Steppenwolf Ensemble Member, including the world premiere of The Qualms there last season), Obie and Drama Desk Award winner Donna Lynne Champlin (My Life with Albertine and James Joyce's The Dead on Broadway for PH; The Dark at the Top of the Stairs, Working, Sweeney Todd, Birdman), Noah Emmerich (Agent Stan Beeman on "The Americans," Fault Lines, A Streetcar Named Desire, A Few Good Men, Super 8, The Truman Show, "The Walking Dead"), Sarah Goldberg (The Great God Pan and Clybourne Park on Broadway for PH; The Unavoidable Disappearance of Tom Durrin, Look Back in Anger), Julian Leong (Here Lies Love, disOriented, "The Slap"), Andy Lucien (The City of Conversation, Clybourne Park at Barrington Stage), Chinasa Ogbuagu (The Overwhelming, Nothing But the Truth, Deirdre Mitchell on "The Following"), John Procaccino (An Enemy of the People, Blood and Gifts, Art, An American Daughter, "The Good Wife") and Tony Award nominee, Drama Desk and Obie Award winner Jeremy Shamos (Clybourne Park, 100 Saints You Should Know, Miss Witherspoon at PH; Dinner with Friends, Engaged).

Thou shalt covet thy neighbor's wife. And thy neighbor, too, at this suburban get-together for partner-swapping couples. Drawn in by The Lifestyle's promise of freedom and titillation, newly-married Chris (Mr. Shamos) and Kristy (Ms. Goldberg) attend an alcohol-fueled party for swingers, only to find themselves at odds with the idea of free love and, suddenly, each other. Idealism devolves into chaos in this sharp, sardonic assault on the struggle for power, and the sexual politics of getting laid.

The production features scenic design by Todd Rosenthal, costume design by Jessica Pabst, lighting design by Russell H. Champa and sound design by Rick Sims. Production Stage Manager is Cole P. Bonenberger.

The performance schedule for THE QUALMS will be Tuesdays and Wednesdays at 7PM, Thursdays and Fridays at 8PM, Saturdays at 2:30 PM & 8PM and Sundays at 2:30 PM & 7:30 PM. The Wednesday evening, June 3 performance has an 8PM curtain and the Thursday evening, June 4 performance (a special performance for those age 30 and under) has an early 7PM curtain. Single tickets, $75-95, may be purchased online via www.TicketCentral.com and www.Facebook.com, by phone at (212) 279-4200 (Noon-8pm daily) and in person at the Ticket Central Box Office, 416 West 42nd Street (between Ninth & Tenth Avenues).

Through the ticketing program launched last season, FIRST ROW SUNDAYS, Playwrights Horizons makes available front row tickets for all Sunday evening performances. Tickets, $25 each, will be available for those age 30 years and younger and can be purchased in advance online via www.PHnyc.org, by phone at (212) 279-4200 (Noon-8pm daily), or in person at the Ticket Central Box Office, 416 West 42nd Street (between Ninth & Tenth Avenues). Tickets are limited to one per customer and are subject to availability. Purchased tickets for FIRST ROW SUNDAYS can be picked up one hour before curtain on the day of the performance, with proof of age required at the door.

Also reflecting Playwrights Horizons' ongoing commitment to making its productions more affordable to younger audiences, the theater company will offer HOTtix, $25 rush tickets, subject to availability, day of performance only, starting one hour before showtime to patrons aged 30 and under. Proof of age required. One ticket per person, per purchase. Cash only.

LIVEforFIVE, FIRST ROW SUNDAYS and HOTtix are three of Playwrights Horizons' popular Arts Access initiatives, which allow the institution to reach out to those who may not be able to afford the cost of a full-price theater ticket. This program is supported, in part, by the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, McGraw Hill Financial and an Anonymous Individual Donor.

Ticket packages to Playwrights Horizons' 2014/2015 Season are still available: FlexPass (4+ tickets, $50 per ticket); and Membership ($60 membership fee + one ticket at $45 or less for each show, as desired). In addition, the company will continue to offer 30&Under Membership ($20 membership fee + one $20 ticket for each show, as desired); and Student Membership ($10 membership fee + one $10 ticket for each show, as desired). In addition to discounts on all Mainstage season attractions, subscribers receive priority booking and seating, ticket exchange privileges, parking and dining discounts, and exclusive mailings of Playwrights Horizons Bulletins. Packages are available at www.PHnyc.org.

Patron Program Memberships begin at $1,500 (all but $550 is tax-deductible) and include two reserved house seats and personalized concierge service to all six Playwrights Horizons productions, and as well as a variety of exclusive benefits including invitations to attend special events with artists, staff and board members. Complete benefit list at www.PHnyc.org.

Playwrights Horizons recently announced the six productions of its 2015/2016 Season. In season order, they are: THE CHRISTIANS, the New York premiere of a new play by Lucas Hnath, directed by Obie Award winner Les Waters; HIR, the New York premiere of a new play by Obie Award winner Taylor Mac, directed by Niegel Smith; 2015 Pulitzer Prize finalist MARJORIE PRIME, the New York premiere of a Playwrights Horizons commission by Jordan Harrison, directed by Obie Award winner Anne Kauffman; FAMILIAR, the New York premiere of a new play by Danai Gurira, directed by Rebecca Taichman; ANTLIA PNEUMATICA, the world premiere of a Playwrights Horizons commission by Anne Washburn, directed by two-time Obie Award winner Ken Rus Schmoll; and INDIAN SUMMER, the world premiere of a Playwrights Horizons commission by Gregory S. Moss, directed by Carolyn Cantor.

Subscription Packages to Playwrights Horizons' 2015/2016 Season are now available: 6-show Subscription package ($270, four Mainstage and two Peter Jay Sharp Theater productions); FlexPass (4+ tickets, $50 per ticket); and Membership ($60 membership fee + one ticket at $45 or less for each show, as desired). In addition to discounts on all season productions, subscribers receive priority booking and seating, ticket exchange privileges, parking and dining discounts, and exclusive mailings of Playwrights Horizons Bulletins. Packages are available at www.PHnyc.org now.

Playwrights Horizons' season productions are generously supported in part by The Harold and Mimi Steinberg Charitable Trust and the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs.

Playwrights Horizons is supported in part by public funds from the National Endowment for the Arts, the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Andrew Cuomo and the New York State Legislature and the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs. In addition, Playwrights Horizons receives major support from The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, The Shubert Foundation, the Peter Jay Sharp Foundation and the Time Warner Foundation.

Photo Credit: Rochelle Torres