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Ensemble Theatre Presents Old Wicked SongsA Play of Joy and SorrowIn An International Co-Production(Santa Barbara, CA) Ensemble Theatre Company of Santa Barbara (ETC) completes its stellar 2007-08 season with Old Wicked Songs, a compelling drama suffused with joy and sadness. A Pulitzer-Prize finalist, this dynamic play by Jon Marans will open Thursday, May 29 and play through Sunday, June 22, 2008. Opening night is Saturday, May 31. Old Wicked Songs is produced in association with Vienna’s English Theatre. Stephen Hoffman, a young American piano prodigy, has lost his love of music … and of life. In an attempt to reclaim his passion, he travels to Vienna to study with a master. It is a fierce and humorous clash of wills between the brash, brilliant American concert pianist and the older eccentric Austrian music teacher with a mysterious past. Profound and profoundly moving, filled with insight and humor, Old Wicked Songs is suffused throughout with the gorgeous music of Robert Schumann. The haunting song cycle “Dichterliebe” by Schumann is integral to this richly and emotionally charged story. Directed by Ensemble Theatre’s Executive Artistic Director, Jonathan Fox, Old Wicked Songs opened at Vienna’s English Theatre in Austria on March 31. After a six-week run in Vienna, this production comes to Santa Barbara. “Directing the Austrian Premiere of Old Wicked Songs in Vienna was an enormously gratifying experience,” said Mr. Fox. “My grandparents escaped persecution in Austria in 1938, and a great part of this play is their story. The play is witty, touching, and intelligent and Austrian audiences responded with both laughter and tears. I am sure that Santa Barbara audiences will find the play equally moving.” The New York Times called this immensely popular drama “deeply satisfying, remarkably assured,” and The New York Post named it “one of the best plays of the year, a fascinating exploration of art, guilt, compassion and identity.” Playing the charming and eccentric Professor Josef Mashkanis Kenneth Tigar, who has appeared in hundreds of film and television roles. His credits span the distance from the groundbreaking TV show Barney Miller to the popular Lethal Weapon movies to numerous Law and Order episodes. During the last few years, this award-winning actor has returned to the stage appearing in a variety of productions at some of the countries most prestigious regional theatres and off-Broadway venues. He directed the national tour of The Gin Game with Kim Hunter and is also an accomplished opera director. Playing the brash young musician Stephen Hoffmanis Denis Butkus, who made his Broadway debut in The Caine Mutiny Court Martial and then spent nine months in Tom Stoppard’s Tony-winning production of The Coast of Utopia at Lincoln Center Theater. He has worked extensively off-off Broadway, off-Broadway and at numerous regional theatres. A graduate of The Juilliard School, he is an Artistic Associate of Rising Phoenix Repertory, winner of three 2007 New York Innovative Theatre Awards. The Ensemble Theatre Company of Santa Barbara was founded in 1979 and is housed at the intimate Alhecama Theatre located in the historic Presidio District in downtown Santa Barbara at 914 Santa Barbara Street. ETC is Santa Barbara's longest running, most award winning professional resident theatre company, now in its 28th anniversary season under the stewardship of Executive Artistic Director, Jonathan Fox. Special thanks to our sponsors Stephen and Carla Hahn, Gelson's, Northern Trust and the Jewish Federation of Greater Santa Barbara. Performances run Tuesdays through Saturdays at 8:00 pm and Sundays at 2:00 and 7:00 pm. Ticket prices for Old Wicked Songs range from $27.50 to $40.00. ETC offers discounts to students, seniors and groups of 10 or more. Low cost previews are Thursday and Friday, May 29 and 30, 2008. Subscriptions, single tickets and group tickets are available through the Ensemble Theatre Box Office at (805) 962-8606 or online at www.ensembletheatre.com. ### Calendar Listing — STAGEProduction: Dates: Schedule: Producer: Where: Admission: Tickets: Description: ### |