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RELEASED: Jan. 23, 2001
DANVILLE, KY – Centre College drama students will offer four performances of Tennessee Williams' The Glass Menagerie. Under the direction of guest artist Padraic Lillis, the shows runs Feb. 7-10 at 8 p.m. in the Weisiger Theatre at the Norton Center for the Arts in Danville. Leading roles include: Patrick Riley as Tom Wingfield, Alison Furlong as Amanda Wingfield, Melinda Crecelius as Laura Wingfield, and David Flora as Jim O'Connor. The Glass Menagerie tells the bittersweet story of an American family in depression-era St. Louis struggling to come to terms with the past, the present, and the uncertain future. This haunting semi-biographical drama first opened in New York in 1945 to critical acclaim. The play was written by Williams in "an effort to explore the beauty and meaning in the confusion of living." Director Lillis reveals, "This play is a classic and has become one of the great myths told in American Theater because it identifies that the world is slowly becoming devoid of illusion. It is a world in which we are clearly aware of the fact that every action causes an equal or opposite reaction." Lillis, a graduate of SUNY New Paltz, directed the national tour of She Loves Me and A Joyous Christmas Concert for Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS featuring Betty Buckley, Cherry Jones, Victor Garber and Julie Harris. He has worked with The Playwrights Center in Minneapolis, Seattle Repertory, Hartford Stage, McCarter Theater, Portland Stage, and Dallas Theater Center. Lillis was awarded The Dayton Hudson Visiting Artist Grant at Carleton College, where he directed Cyrano de Bergerac and created Theatre One on One, a class that teaches all aspects of theater through sports analogies. Most recently, he directed Henry IV, Part 1 for Long Island University, Taming of the Shrew for New Paltz Summer Repertory, and The Clown Family Murders at the Ontological Theater in New York City. He resides in Brooklyn, New York. Tickets may be purchased through the box office at Centre College's Norton Center for the Arts at 859-236-4692.
Communications Office Public information coordinator: Telephone 859-238-5714 |