People's Light & Theatre Co Presents GOSSAMER 4/29-5/23

People's Light & Theatre Company presents GOSSAMER, by Lois Lowry, from April 29 - May 23, 2010 on the Main Stage. David Bradley directs. People's Light & Theatre is located at 39 Conestoga Road, Malvern. For tickets call 610.644.3500 or visit www.peopleslight.org. This project is supported by PECO and is part of the TARGET Family Discovery Series.

GOSSAMER is based on the book of the same title by children's author, Lois Lowry. Lowry has written over 30 books for children, including two Newbery Award winners (The Giver and Number the Stars). People's Light also produced The Giver with great success in 2007.

Lowry adapts GOSSAMER to the stage in what is her first play. "To take a new look at something already written and published-to go at it again, in a new way, is a chance few writers get," says Lois Lowry. "So this is a treat for me. And a very different sort of experience. Writing fiction is a solitary enterprise. Lonely, sometimes. To turn for the first time to playwriting-a very collaborative act-is invigorating."
GOSSAMER is about a group of Dream-givers who collect memories from belongings important to the individual and then weave them together to create dreams. The story follows a young boy and his mother, both escaping from an abusive past, and an older woman who serves as the boy's foster mother. The boy is haunted by nightmares given to him by the evil Sinisteeds. His Dream-giver, Littlest One, must muster all her courage to weave happy dreams that will strengthen and protect him.
GOSSAMER previews on Thursday, April 29th at 7pm. The play opens on Friday, April 30th at 7pm and runs through May 23rd. Audiences are encouraged to join the artists after each performance to discuss the production.

Lois Lowry will be at two opening weekend performances. On Friday, April 30th following the 7pm performance, and on Saturday, May 1st following the 2pm performance, Lowry will join the cast in a talk-back and sign books in the lobby.

Single tickets start at $20 for youth and $29 for adults, with special discounts available for students and groups of 10 or more. 10am student group performances, discount meal packages, and talk-backs with the artists are also available. For more information or to purchase group tickets, call 610.647.1900, ext. 134 or email group@peopleslight.org.

Subscriptions to the TARGET Family Discovery Series are still available. The two-play subscription package includes GOSSAMER (April 29 - May 23, 2010) and THE EMPEROR'S NEW CLOTHES (June 16 - July 11, 2010). For information, tickets, and subscriptions, please call the box office at 610.644.3500 or visit www.peopleslight.org.

Lois Lowry (Playwright) was born in 1937 and enjoyed a world of books and imagination from a young age. Lowry's father's job in the military prompted their family to move often-Lowry was born in Hawaii and spent time in New York, Pennsylvania, and Tokyo all by the age of eleven. Lowry married a Naval officer and again moved frequently, settling in Maine with her four children. There she earned a graduate degree at the University of Southern Maine and began her career as a freelance journalist and photographer in the early 1970s. Lowry published her first children's book, A Summer to Die, in 1977. Now a grandmother, Lowry divides her time between Cambridge, MA and Maine and continues to write a variety of books, including the Anastasia series and Gooney Bird Greene stories, as well as what she calls "stand alone" books. While her stories vary in content and style, the main theme remains the same: the importance of human connections. Lowry has written more than 30 books for young readers and has twice been awarded the prestigious Newbery Medal for Number the Stars in 1990 and The Giver in 1994. Gossamer is Ms. Lowry's first play. 

WHEN: April 29 - May 23, 2010 at the Main Stage

WHERE: People's Light & Theatre Company, 39 Conestoga Road, Malvern, PA 19355
PRICES: Tickets start at $20, with special discounts available for students and groups of 10 or more.

GROUPS: Meal and ticket packages are available for groups of 10 or more at Places! Bistro, an on-site restaurant. Call Adria Charles for more information at 610.647.1900, ext. 134 or email group@peopleslight.org.

CONTACT: For tickets or information call the box office at 610.644.3500 or visit www.peopleslight.org