(Chautauqua, NY)  Chautauqua Theater Company (CTC), under the leadership of Vivienne Benesch Artistic Director and Sarah Clare Corporandy Managing Director, is proud to announce MainStage programming for its 2015 season featuring Thornton Wilder’s classic Our Town, directed by Paul Mullins (July 3-12), Intimate Apparel by Lynn Nottage (July 24-August 2), directed by Vivienne Benesch, and Shakespeare’s Henry V (August 14-21), directed by Evan Cabnet.
 
“Our 2015 MainStage line-up is all about imagination,” said Artistic Director Vivienne Benesch.  “Can this cockpit hold the vasty fields of France? Indeed! And much more. Whether the curtain rises on the battlefields of Agincourt, the boudoirs and rooming houses of turn of the 20th century New York City or the moonlit hush over Grover’s Corners, the Bratton Theater will be home to entertaining, thought provoking and above all, theatrical worlds that ignite the imagination and spotlight the struggles we share no matter what our place in society may be.”
 
Recently announced, playwright Zayd Dohrn is the recipient of the 2015-16 Chautauqua Play Commission.  The commission is awarded by CTC in conjunction with the Chautauqua Writers’ Center and will see Dohrn in residence for a period this coming season and next. CTC has previously presented two of Dohrn’s plays, Sick and Muckrakers, as part of The New Play Workshop.
 
“I’m thrilled to be the recipient of the Chautauqua 2015/2016 New Play Commission,“ said Dohrn. “It’s an enormous gift for any writer to have the faith and support of such a talented group of theatre artists and the opportunity to share a new work with the intellectually engaged and dedicated audiences I’ve found at CHQ.”
 
“I believe Zayd Dohrn is one of the truly important writers of our time,” said Benesch.
“He has his eye and ear on the pulse of our times and is unafraid to reflect it back to us with a strong point of view. His profound curiosity about social, political and cultural trends is matched by an acute attention to interpersonal psychology and great storytelling.  We can’t wait to see what Zayd will write next, and are proud to offer him a home at CHQ to steward its development.”
 
Actors and creative teams for the 2015 season to be announced at a later date.
 
Single tickets for the 2015 season go on sale in April. Tickets to Our Town, Intimate Apparel and Henry V are $35; tickets to The New Play Workshop are $20. For more information log onto www.ctcompany.org.

Founded in 1983 as the resident theater company on the grounds of the historic Chautauqua Institution, western New York’s premier summer arts festival, Chautauqua Theater Company’s season runs for eight weeks from July 3 through August 21.

An American Classic
CTC kicks off its 2015 season with Thornton Wilder’s heart-warming and groundbreaking masterpiece. Even as the face of the American Town changes, Wilder’s observations about who we are and what matters most are still as profound and as true today as when he first put pen to paper in 1938. Come spend the Fourth of July week in Our Town – simply one of the best American plays ever written.  Directed by Paul Mullins (CTC’s You Can’t Take It With You), Our Town kicks off the 32nd season from July 3-12 on the Bratton Stage.
 
An Award-Winning Play
Pulitzer Prize winner Lynn Nottage’s beautifully written and intensely personal story weaves a delicate tapestry of the joys and sorrows of an African American seamstress in 1905 New York City. Esther sews elegant intimates for socialites and prostitutes alike as a vibrant cast of characters plays part in her determined search for love and respect in a world that seems to overlook her. Intrigue and romance unravels in this breathtaking play directed by Artistic Director Vivienne Benesch. Intimate Apparel runs July 24-August 2.
 
Shakespeare for the Whole Family
CTC presents one of the greatest war stories ever written by the world’s greatest playwright. Juxtaposing the thrills of heroism with the painful consequences of warfare, Henry V is above all a story about the complexities of leadership and the unease within the head that wears the crown. Watch the talents of our entire 2015 Conservatory company as this relevant masterpiece combines politics, comedy, tragedy and romance on the battlefield and off. Directed by Evan Cabnet (Broadway’s upcoming Therese Raquin, Primary Stage’s The Model Apartment) making his CTC debut, Henry V runs August 14-21.
 
The New Play Workshop July 17-18; August 5-7
Continuing to build on the enormous success of new play development at CHQ, CTC presents two signature staged readings of fresh plays by important new voices in the American theater. Be a vital part of the process: participate in post-show discussions and other related events with playwrights, actors and the creative teams.  Titles to be announced in March 2015.