Office of External Communications

Houston, TX 77204-5017 Fax; 713/743-8199

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 13, 2004

Contact: Eric Gerber
713/743-8189 (office)
713/617-7130(pager)
egerber@uh.edu

HOUSTON, April 13, 2004 – Never has the theater’s rallying cry been more appropriate – the show must go on. For the first time in 15 seasons, the annual Albee Playwrights’ Workshop will be presented without its founder and namesake, Edward Albee, at the helm.

Albee, the acclaimed dramatist who has taught at the University of Houston since 1989, was unable to meet with his playwriting and production classes this semester due to a family illness. At Albee’s invitation, his esteemed colleague in the theater, Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Lanford Wilson, has taught the courses and is overseeing production of the six original plays. They will be presented at Stages Repertory Theatre April 16-19, 23-25. Admission is free, but there is a $3 parking charge.

“Being involved with talented young people who so passionately love the theater has been invigorating,” said Wilson. “I’ve really appreciated the opportunity to fill in for Edward – but I know he’s eager to return.”

UH School of Theatre Director Sidney Berger confirmed that Albee would be back next year.

“Of course, having Lanford work with us this season has been a rare privilege,” Berger added.

The Playwrights’ Workshop takes the scripts of promising new writers and, after a semester of revision and preparation, mounts the works as actual productions, offering Houston audiences an uncommon theatrical opportunity.

This year’s Playwrights’ Workshop lineup:

• “Jesus and Phoebe,” by Tommy Le Vrier. A lost adolescent finds acceptance from an unlikely stranger. 8 p.m., April 16; 4:30 p.m., April 17.
  
• “Star Flower Sanctuary,” by Ann Stingle. A grieving woman seeks solace at the beach. 7:30 p.m., April 23; 4:30 p.m., April 24.
  
• “Claustrophobia,” by Mary Ellen Whitworth. One woman’s struggle to understand humanity’s need to find peace and order, sort of. 8 p.m., April 24; 3 p.m., April 25.
  
• “Poet,” by Peter Wittenberg. An unhappy salesman discovers he’s a poet. 8 p.m., April 17; 3 p.m.,
  April 18.
  
• “A Private Dance,” Brian Wolf. After an extreme bachelor party, a young man struggles to accept the life choices he’s making. 7:30 p.m., April 23; 4:30 p.m., April 24.
  
• “Wondergirl,” by Rutherford Cravens. Set in a neonatal intensive care unit, the play examines issues raised by medical technology and a young couple’s relationship. 8 p.m., April 16; 4:30 p.m., April 17.
  
• “Biology, 4th Period,” by Lou Amyx. Six teens at high school find their lives disrupted with the arrival of a seventh. 7:30 p.m., April 23; 4:30 p.m., April 24.

For more information about the workshop, visit http://www.class.uh.edu/theatre/Performance/newplays.htm

For information about Stages Repertory Theatre, visit http://www.stagestheatre.com/

About the University of Houston

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For more information about UH visit the university’s ‘Newsroom’ at www.uh.edu/admin/media/newsroom.