Aurora Theatre Company Extends THE HOW AND THE WHY

Due to popular pre-sale demand, a year in advance, Aurora Theatre Company announces that it will extend West Coast Premiere of Sarah Treem's (Netflix's House of Cards, HBO's In Treatment) thought-provoking THE HOW AND THE WHY, the third fully staged production to be performed in the company's second stage performance space, Harry's UpStage. The company will add an additional two weeks of performances to the original run dates. Acclaimed Bay Area actress and director Joy Carlin (Talley's Folly, After the Revolution, Body Awareness, Jack Goes Boating, Awake and Sing!) helms this intimate and keenly perceptive play about which the Washington Post said, "brims with ideas and emotional colors that eddy and refract like rivulets in a lively, plunging stream."

Evolution and emotion collide in THE HOW AND THE WHY. More than science is at stake when two women of different generations clash over what it means to be female. On the eve of a prestigious conference, an up-and-coming evolutionary biologist wrestles for the truth with an established leader in the field. As the two women thrash out their views, they struggle to find the middle ground between research and relationships. Dubbed "a smart, densely textured work about men and women, love and conflict, genes and destiny" by The New York Times when it premiered at the McCarter Theatre in 2011, THE HOW AND THE WHY explores evolution and emotion, and the difficult choices faced by women of every generation. This production will be presented in Aurora Theatre Company's second stage performance space, Harry's UpStage, located in the Nell and Jules Dashow Wing.

THE HOW AND THE WHY will be the third Harry's UpStage production in a row to extend during ticket pre-sale since the space opened in April 2014 with John W. Lowell's political thriller The Letters. The company was not expecting such a response to the Harry's UpStage shows, but THE HOW AND THE WHY is now selling out a year in advance; the production now plays March 18 through May 8, 2016 at Harry's UpStage, located in the Nell and Jules Dashow Wing at the Aurora Theatre in Berkeley. Subscribers can book their tickets now; single tickets on sale for subscribers July 28 and on sale August 4 to the general public. For tickets and information the public can call (510) 843-4822 or visit auroratheatre.org.

Veteran Bay Area actress and director Joy Carlin helms THE HOW AND THE WHY. Carlin attended the Yale School of Drama and is an original member of Chicago's Playwrights' Theatre; she has been a leading actress, director, and teacher in the Bay Area since 1969. Carlin served as the Associate Artistic Director of the American Conservatory Theater from 1987-1992, was an actor and resident director at Berkeley Repertory Theatre from 1981-1984, and served as its Interim Artistic Director from 1983-1984. For Aurora Theatre Company, Carlin most recently directed Lanford Wilson's Talley's Folly, After the Revolution and Annie Baker's Body Awareness, as well as productions of Clifford Odet's Awake and Sing!, Bob Glaudini's Off Broadway hit Jack Goes Boating, Terry Johnson's Hysteria, John Guare's Bosoms and Neglect, Arthur Miller's The Price, Conor McPherson's Dublin Carol, David Mamet's The Old Neighborhood, and Michael Frayn's Benefactors. In addition to starring in Aurora Theatre Company's productions of Our Practical Heaven, Thérèse Raquin, and The Belle of Amherst, she has appeared in multiple stage roles at American Conservatory Theater, Berkeley Repertory Theatre, San Francisco Playhouse, Marin Theatre Company, and San Jose Repertory Theatre, among others. Carlin is the recipient of numerous Bay Area Critics Circle Awards and Dramalogue Awards for both acting and directing.

Sarah Treem is the Golden Globe Winning writer and producer of Showtime's The Affair. In addition to THE HOW AND THE WHY, her full-length plays include Empty Sky, Against the Wall, Mirror, Mirror, A Feminine Ending, Human Voices, When We Were Young and Unafraid, and Vienna's Amazing. Sarah has been in residence at The Sundance Institute and The Ojai Playwriting Conference, and has been commissioned by South Coast Repertory and Playwrights Horizons. Treem is a Writer/Producer on two acclaimed HBO series, In Treatment and Mark Wahlberg's How To Make It In America. She also writes for House of Cards for Netflix. Additionally, Treem is adapting Tom Wolfe's novel I Am Charlotte Simmons for HBO. She graduated from Yale University and the Yale School of Drama.

Located in the Dashow Wing at Aurora Theatre Company, Harry's UpStage is the company's second stage performance space. Longtime Aurora subscriber and supporter Harry Weininger passed away in May 2010; his family, who knew of his dedication to Aurora, wanted to honor him and made a generous donation to Aurora to outfit the Dashow with a new lighting package, curtains, a stage, and furniture. Harry's UpStage is used for live cabaret and second stage events at Aurora.

Aurora Theatre Company opens its 24th season in August with the Bay Area Premiere of Marisa Wegrzyn's MUD BLUE SKY, directed by Aurora Theatre Company Artistic Director Tom Ross, followed by the Bay Area Premiere of Pulitzer Prize-nominee Amy Freed's THE MONSTER-BUILDER, directed by Art Manke. Award-winning Bay Area auteur Mark Jackson returns to Aurora with the World Premiere of his play LITTLE ERIK in January, followed by the West Coast Premiere of Sarah Treem's THE HOW AND THE WHY, directed by Joy Carlin and staged in the company's second stage performance space, Harry's UpStage, located in the Nell and Jules Dashow Wing. The season continues in April with the West Coast Premiere of David Ives' THE HEIR APPARENT directed by Josh Costello. Timothy Near makes her Aurora directing debut with the company's season closer in June, Athol Fugard's modern classic "MASTER HAROLD"... and the boys.

Voted Best Theater Company in 2012 by SF Weekly, Aurora Theatre Company continues to offer challenging, literate, intelligent stage works to the Bay Area, each year increasing its reputation for top-notch theater. Located in the heart of the Downtown Berkeley Arts District, Aurora Theatre Company, declared "one of the best regional theaters around" by 7x7 magazine, has been called "one of the most important regional theaters in the area" and "a must-see midsize company" by the San Francisco Chronicle, while The Wall Street Journal has "nothing but praise for the Aurora." The Contra Costa Times stated "perfection is probably an unattainable ideal in a medium as fluid as live performance, but the Aurora Theatre comes luminously close," while the San Jose Mercury News affirmed Aurora Theatre Company is "arguably the finest small theater in the Bay Area," Stark Insider said "The Aurora excels at smart theatre that takes you out of your world without wasting your time," and the Oakland Tribune stated "it's all about choices, and if you value good theater, choose the Aurora."

FOR CALENDAR EDITORS:

Aurora Theatre Company announces that it will extend West Coast Premiere of Sarah Treem's (Netflix's House of Cards, HBO's In Treatment) thought-provoking THE HOW AND THE WHY, the third fully staged production to be performed in the company's new performance space, Harry's UpStage. The company will add an additional two weeks of performances to the original run dates. Acclaimed Bay Area actress and director Joy Carlin (Talley's Folly, After the Revolution, Body Awareness, Jack Goes Boating, Awake and Sing!) helms this intimate and keenly perceptive play about which the Washington Post said, "brims with ideas and emotional colors that eddy and refract like rivulets in a lively, plunging stream." THE HOW AND THE WHY will be the third Harry's UpStage production in a row to extend during ticket pre-sale since the space opened in April 2014. THE HOW AND THE WHY now plays March 18 through May 8, 2016 at Harry's UpStage, located in the Nell and Jules Dashow Wing at the Aurora Theatre in Berkeley. Subscribers can book their tickets now; single tickets on sale for subscribers July 28 and on sale August 4 to the general public.

Evolution and emotion collide in THE HOW AND THE WHY. More than science is at stake when two women of different generations clash over what it means to be female. On the eve of a prestigious conference, an up-and-coming evolutionary biologist wrestles for the truth with an established leader in the field. As the two women thrash out their views, they struggle to find the middle ground between research and relationships. Dubbed "a smart, densely textured work about men and women, love and conflict, genes and destiny" by The New York Times when it premiered at the McCarter Theatre in 2011, THE HOW AND THE WHY explores evolution and emotion, and the difficult choices faced by women of every generation.

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