WILLIAMSTOWN, MASS.: Williamstown Theatre Festival has announced its 2016 summer season, featuring a mix of classic and new plays at its two performance spaces on the campus of Williams College.
“The five premiere plays and two revivals we will produce this summer at the Williamstown Theatre Festival bring together some of the most extraordinary theatre artists from around this country and abroad,” said artistic director Mandy Greenfield in a statement. “The stories we will tell and the artists with whom we will tell them are fresh and diverse, bold and funny.”
The main stage season will begin with Tennessee Williams’s The Rose Tattoo (June 28–July 17), about an Italian-American widow who secludes herself in Louisiana after her husband’s death, and expects her daughter to do the same. Marisa Tomei will star, and Trip Cullman will direct.
Next will be the world premiere of Boo Killebrew’s Romance Novels for Dummies (July 20–31), about a mother and daughter who move to New York City to start anew after the loss of their husband and father. Moritz von Stuelpnagel will direct.
Following will be Wendy Wasserstein’s An American Daughter (Aug. 3–21), about a woman who is nominated to be the Surgeon General, but some skeletons in her closet may prevent her from getting the job. Evan Cabnet will direct.
The Nikos Stage season will begin with the world premiere of Martyna Majok’s Cost of Living (June 29–July 10), about four different people and how their lives intersect. Jo Bonney will direct.
Next will be the world premiere of The Chinese Room (July 13–23), by Michael West, a science fiction comedy about a man who builds a humandroid to preserve his wife’s memory. Michael Stuhlbarg will star, and James Macdonald will direct.
Following will be the world premiere of Poster Boy (July 28–Aug. 7), with music and lyrics by Craig Carnelia and book by Joe Tracz. Inspired by the 2010 suicide of college student, Tyler Clementi, the musical explores the effects of cyber-bullying in the gay community. Danny Mefford will choreograph, and Stafford Arima will direct.
Next will be the American premiere of Tom Holloway’s And No More Shall We Part (Aug. 10–Aug. 21), about a woman who becomes terminally ill, and the difficult decisions that she and her husband must make. Alfred Molina and Jane Kaczmarek will star, and Anne Kauffman will direct.
Founded in 1955, Williamstown Theatre Festival brings directors, designers, playwrights, and performers to the Berkshires each summer to produce and develop classic plays and new works. In addition to the productions, the festival programming includes workshops, readings, and cabaret performances.
