WILLIAMSTOWN, MASS.: Williamstown Theatre Festival (WTF) has announced its 2018 summer season, featuring seven productions (June 26-Aug. 19).
The season will kick off with the world premiere of The Closet (June 26-July 14), by Douglas Carter Beane. Inspired by Francis Veber’s Le Placard, the comedy is about a divorced man who is stuck in a dead-end job in Scranton, Pa., and finds solace in his optimistic female co-worker. Matthew Broderick, Jessica Hecht, and Brooks Ashmanskas will star. Mark Brokaw will direct.
Next up will be the world premiere of Lempicka (July 19-Aug. 1), with book and lyrics by Carson Kreitzer and music by Matt Gould. When an aristocrat flees the Russian revolution, she leaves behind a world of opulence and finds an unexpected muse in her new life. Carmen Cusack will star, and Rachel Chavkin will direct.
Following will be The Member of the Wedding (Aug. 5-19), by Carson McCullers, in which a housekeeper tries to calm the nerves of her two young charges on the eve of a family wedding in 1945 as racially motivated injustices enter their lives. Tavi Gavinson will star, and Lila Neugebauer will direct.
The season will continue with the world premiere of Adam Rapp’s The Sound Inside (June 27-July 8), about an accomplished professor at an Ivy League university who allies herself with a student to tackle a challenge. Mary-Louise Parker will star, and David Cromer will direct.
Next up will be the world premiere of Artney Jackson (July 11-22), by James Anthony Tyler, about a man working at a local cable company for 25 years whose leadership skills are put to the test when he is up for a promotion. WTF associate artistic director Laura Savia will direct.
Following will be Theresa Rebeck’s Seared (July 25-Aug. 4), about a popular chef in Brooklyn torn over his business partner’s wishes to expand the restaurant. Steven Pasquale will star, and Moritz von Stuelpnagel will direct.
The season will conclude with Jen Silverman’s Dangerous House (Aug. 8-19), about an aspiring soccer player from Cape Town who moves to London for a fresh start, and struggles to move forward as the World Cup takes place in South Africa and as she senses her ex-lover is in peril back home.
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.
