The Merchants of Chester Announce the

RIVER REP THEATRE COMPANY N E W S

Contact: Helen Barnett
longriverhcb@sbcglobal.net
860-434-1683

For immediate release: May 24, 2007

RIVER REP THEATRE COMPANY RETURNS TO CONNECTICUT
TO STAGE LARRY SHUE'S COMEDY, THE FOREIGNER , AT
CHESTER MEETING HOUSE JULY 25 TO AUGUST 12

Katherine Houghton to Host the Troupe's Special Opening Night Gala on July 26

Chester, Connecticut - The River Rep Theatre Company, the professional New York repertory troupe that produced nineteen summer seasons in Ivoryton, will return to Connecticut with its 97th production, Larry Shue's delightful comedy, The Foreigner. Tickets are now on sale for this special showcase which will be staged at the historic Chester Meeting House from July 25 through August 12.

An Opening Night Gala fundraising event is planned for Thursday, July 26, following the evening performance. Katharine Houghton, star of stage and screen and one of River Rep's leading ladies, is the Honorary Chair of this event. (Editors: see separate release.)

"River Rep has been in search of a new home since 2005 after contract negotiations with the Ivoryton Playhouse proved unsuccessful. The troupe has been in planning discussions with First Selectman Michael Pace and the Town of Old Saybrook for the Katharine Hepburn Cultural Arts Center which was scheduled to open in time for the 2007 season. Construction delays negated that. River Rep hopes to produce their 20th Premiere Season in 2008 when the Center is scheduled to open.

In the interim, the Town of Chester, Selectman Martin Heft and First Selectman Thomas Marsh came to the rescue, offering River Rep a temporary theater home - the Chester Meeting House, a cherished landmark and popular community venue. "We are very happy to have them here," said Marsh. "We are anticipating an exciting summer season for them and for Chester."

River Rep was pleased not to miss another summer season, according to Warren Kelley, Artistic Director: "This historic and charming theatre is the perfect, intimate space in which to reunite with our loyal audience. Logistics dictate that we can only do an extended run of a single production. So what's the ideal show to celebrate our homecoming? The hilarious romantic comedy, The Foreigner, that has been delighting audiences across the country since it first made a smash-hit off-Broadway in 1984."

The Foreigner wowed River Rep audiences back in 1988, according to their press archives. Kelley (who will reprise his original role) said that it has been one of their most requested revival titles ever since. This year's performance actually marks the first time that River Rep has ever repeated a title in nineteen years.

The Foreigner by Larry Shue (1946 - 1985) premiered in 1983 at the Milwaukee Repertory Theatre where the author was a playwright-in-residence. It moved to a long run Off-Broadway where it was winner of two Obie Awards and two Outer Critics Circle Awards as Best New American Play and Best Off-Broadway Production. The play was still running at the time of Shue's death in an airplane crash in Virginia.

The Village Voice described The Foreigner as "... a constant invitation to relax and laugh at the foolishness of life." Set in a fishing lodge in rural Georgia, the play centers around a visitor, a shy Englishman (Charlie Baker played by Warren Kelley). He pretends not to understand English in order to avoid contact with other guests. The gullible yokels fall for the ruse, spilling some embarrassing details about marital intrigue and shady business deals. It becomes a tour de force for Warren Kelley who also invents an improvised language delivered in high comic style, then emerges a hero thwarting some of the locals' schemes, including a Ku Klux Klan takeover. As it rollicks along, Shue's farce "skewers hypocrisy and bigotry, with inspired nuttiness."

Joining Kelley are River Rep producing partners Joan Shepard as Betty Meeks; Evan Thompson as Froggy LeSueur; Owen Thompson as Owen Musser, with Todd Gearhart as Rev. David Marshall Lee and Ashley West as Catherine Simms. River Rep's Jenn Thompson is the director.

Performances of The Foreigner: Previews, Wed., July 25, 2 and 7:30pm, $25; Wed/Sat/ Sun. matinees, 2pm; and Wed/Thurs.7:30pm, $35; Sun.6pm; and Fri/Sat 8pm $37. Opening Night Gala Reception (includes the performance) are $125. Tickets can be ordered at 860-767-2954, by FAX: 212-780-0814 or online at www.riverrep.com. Box office opens Monday, July 9. Chester Meeting House is located at 2 Liberty St., Chester, off Route #9.

River Rep, a non-profit Theatre Company, was founded in 1987 when director Jane Stanton invited New Yorkers Joan Shepard and her husband, Evan Thompson who had their own touring company, Fanfare Productions, to start a summer stock company in Ivoryton, Connecticut. The pair were joined by their son, Owen and daughter, Jenn and Warren Kelley. Stanton serves as Artistic Director Emeritus; Kelley was appointed Artistic Director in 2003. A true repertory company, they all double in brass, directing as well as appearing in various roles in comedies, dramas and musicals.

The troupe has produced more than 95 successful mainstage productions during the past 20 years. Their performances have been lauded by David Auburn (Proof) and Rupert Holmes (Mystery of Edwin Drood) who called their productions "equal to the best of productions all over the world, including on Broadway and in the West End of London." River Rep has been nominated for numerous awards by the Connecticut Critics Circle. In 2005 Owen Thompson won the Outstanding Director Award for The Mikado.