Boston Theatre Works: Press: Angels in America

Press

For press information, please contact:
Kirsten Amann, Dalyn Miller Public Relations
617.733.2791

Angels in America: Part I & II
Millennium Approaches opens January 18
Perestroika opens January 25
For a PDF of this release, click here

Company continues 10th Anniversary celebration with one of the defining works of the 20th century in the Roberts Studio Theatre at the Calderwood Pavilion.

[BOSTON, MA] Boston Theatre Works has announced a revised performance schedule for their upcoming production of Tony Kushner’s 1993 Pulitzer Prize winning Angels in America: Millennium Approaches and Perestroika. The new schedule is designed to increase the opportunity for audience members to see both parts on one weekend day following requests from several ticket buyers who expressed the wish to do just that.

“First and foremost we serve our community,” says BTW Managing Director, Julie Otis. “We were lucky enough to be in a position to make scheduling changes based on audience feedback when it came to this production.” She added that ticket-buyers who purchased before the schedule change are encouraged to exchange their tickets for different performances should the new schedule better suit their needs. They can do so by calling the BTW offices at 617.728.4321.

BTW continues their 10th Anniversary season in January with a staging of Kushner’s epic drama. This six-hour story told in two parts begins performances January 18th and will be presented in repertory in the Stanford Calderwood Pavilion at the Boston Center for the Arts through February 10th (4 weeks). The full performance schedule appears at the end of this release.

Arguably one of the most poignant and pivotal plays of the 20th century, and certainly one of the hottest tickets in Boston’s theatre season, Angels in America will be co-directed by BTW Artistic Director Jason Southerland and Nancy Curran Willis. The two directors previously collaborated on the company’s Elliott Norton Award-winning The Laramie Project. Millennium Approaches and Perestroika (parts I and II) will be presented in repertory allowing audiences to experience the entire story beginning to end over the course of two evenings or see the pair back-to-back beginning at 2pm on Saturdays and Sundays for the last two weeks of the run of the show.

Tony Kushner’s seminal modern epic is a story both intimate and grand, which follows the painful disintegration of two relationships against a backdrop of greed, conservatism and the

discovery of AIDS. The play transports the audience to New York, Washington, the Kremlin, Salt Lake City, Antarctica and even to Heaven. His characters overflow from the American melting pot as the story weaves through fantasy and reality in a powerful exploration of politics, religion and sex that remains as relevant in George W. Bush’s America as it was 15 years ago. Collectively, the two parts of Angels in America won the Pulitzer Prize (1993), two Tony Awards, two Drama Desk awards and more than 200 other awards throughout the world.

“As we celebrate our 10th Anniversary,” says director Southerland, “I wanted to revisit a play that had a major impact on me as an artist. As I read Angels for the first time in over a decade I was struck by how prescient it was when it was written, but more amazed at how poignant it is in today’s world. Although its specifics are about Reaganite politics, the rationing of AZT and the corrupt practices of Roy Cohn, it seems more prophetic than ever in the era of George W. Bush, Halliburton, gay rights battles and the upcoming elections. Kushner understood the importance of forming a ‘community’ to help us cope in our complex society, a message that is gaining ground in our current culture.”

The production features a showcase of Boston stage talent including Susanne Nitter as Hannah Pitt (the role Meryl Streep played in the HBO adaptation) and Richard McElvain as Roy Cohn (played by Al Pacino in the film). Ms. Nitter is well known as the Producing Director at the Publick Theatre where she has played a dozen roles and Mr. McElvain is best known for his Elliot Norton Award-winning performance in St. Nicholas at Sugan Theatre and the American Repertory Theatre. The supporting cast includes Bree Elrod as Harper, Christopher James Webb as Louis, Tyler Reilly as Prior, Maurice Parent as Belize, Sean O’Brien as Joe and Elizabeth Aspenlieder as The Angel.

Tickets range from $25 to $48, with 2-play passes for $80. Single tickets may be purchased via our website, www.BostonTheatreWorks.com, or by calling Boston Theatre Scene at 617.933.8600. You must call to order the two play pass. Tickets and passes are also available in person at the BU Theatre Box Office, 264 Huntington Avenue and the Calderwood Pavilion Box Office, 571 Tremont Street. During performances the box office will remain open 30 minutes after last curtain. Student Rush is available at the box office 2 hours prior to curtain

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