Brighton Beach Memoirs at The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis

For media information, contact
Becky Hadley, Public Relations Manager
(314) 968-4288
bhadley@repstl.org

For release on or after August 17, 2012

An amusing salute to family life, Brighton Beach Memoirs plays on The Rep’s Mainstage September 5–30, 2012

ST. LOUIS, MO – The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis (The Rep) presents Brighton Beach Memoirs by Neil Simon and directed by Steven Woolf. This intriguing and semi-autobiographical play will be performed on the Browning Mainstage of the Loretto-Hilton Center for the Performing Arts, 130 Edgar Road (on the campus of Webster University), Webster Groves, September 5–30, 2012.

Curtain times are Tuesday at 7 pm; Wednesday–Friday at 8 pm; selected Wednesday matinees at 1:30 pm; Saturday matinees at 5 pm; selected Saturday nights at 9 pm; Sunday matinees at 2 pm; and selected Sunday evenings at 7 pm.

Ticket prices start at just $16 (previews) and $19.50 (regular performances). To purchase, visit The Rep Box Office, located inside the Loretto-Hilton Center, charge by phone by calling (314) 968-4925, or visit The Rep’s Online Box Office at http://www.repstl.org.

Major sponsorship for this production is provided by The Boeing Company and Ann & Hugh Scott.

There’s liver for dinner, holes in his shoes and a war on the horizon, but 15-year-old Eugene Jerome would rather think about baseball…and girls. Surrounded by his overworked mother and father, his wayward brother and a whole houseful of relatives always in the way, Eugene navigates the minefield of adolescence. Hilarious and touching, Eugene’s chronicles of his misadventures growing up in 1930s New York remind us that family is the one constant in the crazy journey of life.

Born in 1927 in the Bronx, New York City, Marvin Neil Simon and his family often suffered financial and emotional difficulties throughout the Great Depression. Simon enlisted in the Army when he graduated high school. He started writing at the encouragement of his older brother, who soon became his writing partner. Together the two penned comedy revues and radio shows before moving on to television where they worked alongside future legends Woody Allen, Mel Brooks, Carl Reiner and Larry Gelbart on America’s weekly favorite, Your Show of Shows. Simon made the leap to the stage with his first play, Come Blow Your Horn. Soon after, he had a genuine hit with Barefoot in the Park and a theatre legend was born.

The original stage presentation of Brighton Beach Memoirs premiered on Broadway at the Alvin Theatre on March 27, 1983 starring the American film and stage actor Matthew Broderick, who won a Tony Award for his featured role in the performance. Following the opening of Brighton Beach Memoirs, the Alvin Theatre was renamed the Neil Simon Theatre in honor of his great successes as an American playwright, and in the same year Brighton Beach Memoirs won the New York Drama Critics’ Circle Award for Best Play. In 1986 the play was adapted into a movie of the same title directed by Gene Saks.

The cast of Brighton Beach Memoirs at The Rep is Michael Curran-Dorsano as Stanley; Ryan Deluca as Eugene; Adam Heller as Jack; Christianne Tisdale (last seen in Emma) as Blanche; Aly Viny as Nora; Jamey Powell as Laurie; and Lori Wilner (last seen in Hannah Senesh) as Kate.

The Rep’s production of Brighton Beach Memoirs is directed by Rep Artistic Director Steven Woolf.

The creative staff also includes Michael Ganio, set designer; Elizabeth Covey, costume designer; Phil Monat, lighting designer; Rusty Wandall, sound designer; Glenn Dunn, stage manager; and Shannon B. Sturgis, assistant stage manager.

Brighton Beach Memoirs is a co-production with Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park.

For more information about The Rep’s production of Brighton Beach Memoirs including a guide introducing the characters, plot and background on the play; photos related to the production; and more, visit The Rep’s comprehensive public website at http://www.repstl.org.

Founded in 1966, The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis is a fully professional theatrical operation belonging to the League of Resident Theatres, The League of St. Louis Theatres and is a constituent member of Theatre Communications Group, Inc., the national service organization for the not-for-profit professional theatre. It operates independently of, but under a mutually beneficial agreement with, Webster University. The Rep operates under an agreement between the League of Resident Theatres and Actors' Equity Association, the Union of Professional Actors and Stage Managers in the United States. The Rep hires directors and choreographers who are members of the Society of Stage Directors and Choreographers and stagehands who are members of the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees. Financial assistance for this theatre has been provided by the Arts and Education Council of Greater St. Louis; the St. Louis Regional Arts Commission and the Missouri Arts Council, a state agency. This project is supported in part by an award from the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency, which believes that a great nation deserves great art. The Rep is also grateful for support by more than 1,100 generous individuals, families, corporations and foundations throughout the communities we serve. Thank you.

ONLINE MEDIA MATERIALS: Additional related materials may be found in The Rep's Online Media Center at http://media.repstl.org/, including photographs, other news releases and play guides.