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<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-outline-level: 1"><B><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt; TEXT-TRANSFORM: uppercase; FONT-FAMILY: Arial">For
Immediate Release<BR></SPAN></B><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Arial">January 13, 200<SPAN
class=110424521-13012009>9<BR><BR></SPAN></SPAN><B
style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 19pt; FONT-FAMILY: Arial">Great Lakes Theater Festival
Launches<BR></SPAN></B><B style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 19pt; FONT-FAMILY: Arial">FREE Touring
Production<BR></SPAN></B><B style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 19pt; FONT-FAMILY: Arial"><FONT size=2><BR></FONT>TWO BY
CHEKHOV:<BR></SPAN></B><B><I style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 16pt; FONT-FAMILY: Arial">The Harmful Effects of Tobacco
</SPAN></I></B><B><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 16pt; FONT-FAMILY: Arial">and<I
style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal"> The Brute</I><?xml:namespace prefix = o ns
= "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" /><o:p></o:p></SPAN></B></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><B><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 3pt; FONT-FAMILY: Arial"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></B><B><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial"><FONT size=3>The pair of comedies will visit
twenty-seven venues <BR>throughout northern <?xml:namespace prefix = st1 ns =
"urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" /><st1:State w:st="on"><st1:place
w:st="on">Ohio</st1:place></st1:State>.<BR><BR></FONT></SPAN></B><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%; FONT-FAMILY: Arial; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold">Great
Lakes Theater Festival (GLTF) will <B>launch a free outreach touring production
of two Chekhovian comedies, entitled <I style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal">TWO
BY CHEKHOV: The Harmful Effects of Tobacco </I>(Tobacco)<I
style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal"> </I>and <I
style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal">The Brute</I> (Brute) </B>scheduled to visit
twenty-seven neighborhood venues throughout northern Ohio, to kick off the
company’s 2009 series of <I style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal">Surround</I>
programming<B>.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes">
</SPAN></B></SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%; FONT-FAMILY: Arial">The production
features <B>a touring company of three actors</B> and is directed by <B
style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal">GLTF’s Associate Artistic Director Andrew
May</B>.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>The tour <SPAN
style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold">commences<B> February 17<SUP>th</SUP>,
continues through March 18<SUP>th</SUP> </B>and is designed<B> </B>to support
the Festival’s upcoming main stage production of Chekhov’s <I
style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal">The Seagull </I>at the <st1:place
w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Hanna</st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceName
w:st="on">Theatre</st1:PlaceName></st1:place>, <B>PlayhouseSquare.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN></B></SPAN><B
style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal">All performances of the touring production
are free and open to the public</B>, with the exception of performances at area
high schools, which are private.</SPAN><I
style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 10.5pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%; FONT-FAMILY: Arial"><BR><BR></SPAN></I><B><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%; FONT-FAMILY: Arial">“Now more than
ever, we believe it is important to share free, professional theatre with people
out in their own communities,”</SPAN></B><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%; FONT-FAMILY: Arial"> remarked
<st1:PersonName w:st="on">Daniel Hahn</st1:PersonName>, Great Lakes Theater
Festival’s Director of Education, when asked about the Festival’s annual
tour.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>“These two comedies give a
fascinating context for viewing Chekhov’s <I
style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal">The Seagull</I>, and will afford our
audience a rich theatrical experience, right in their own
backyard.<BR><BR></SPAN><B style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%; FONT-FAMILY: Arial">The Festival’s
2009 touring production features a pair of one act comedies.</SPAN></B><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%; FONT-FAMILY: Arial"><SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>In the first, Chekhov’s <I
style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal">The Harmful Effects of Tobacco</I>, Ivan
Ivanovich Nyukhin’s wife has insisted that he give a speech on the dangers of
tobacco, and although he himself is a smoker, he relents. However, his speech
quickly devolves from the intended topic into a series of revealing personal
confessions, as the psyche of Nyukhin is laid bare to great comedic effect. This
short play is a rarely produced gem highlighting Chekhovian humor at its
quirkiest.<BR><BR></SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%; FONT-FAMILY: Arial">The tour’s second
play, <I style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal">The Brute, </I>focuses on Yelina
Ivanovna Popova, a widower who is visited by one of her late husband’s creditors
seeking repayment. But Smirnov’s attempt to reclaim his old debt is waylaid when
he unexpectedly falls in love with the hostile widow. Perhaps Chekhov’s funniest
farce, <I style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal">The Brute </I>is an excellent
companion piece to <I style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal">Tobacco</I> and an
excellent bridge to <I style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal">The
Seagull</I>.<BR><BR></SPAN><B style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%; FONT-FAMILY: Arial">The three-actor
touring company features <st1:City w:st="on"><st1:place
w:st="on">Cleveland</st1:place></st1:City> actors Michael Gatto, David Hansen,
</SPAN></B><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%; FONT-FAMILY: Arial">and <B
style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal">Elizabeth Wood.</B><SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>The design trio of<B
style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"> Terry Martin (scenic design), Melanie
Boeman (costume design) and Richard Ingraham (sound design) </B>complete the
play’s production team.<B style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"> <SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN></B>“It has become somewhat of an annual
tradition to bring this team of talented artists together for our touring play,
and I am so excited to have their skills utilized again this year, under the
skilled direction of Andrew May,” Hahn said.<BR><BR></SPAN><B><I
style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%; FONT-FAMILY: Arial">TWO BY
CHEKHOV</SPAN></I></B><B><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%; FONT-FAMILY: Arial"> is a
seventy-minute program that includes an introduction and post-performance
discussion.</SPAN></B><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%; FONT-FAMILY: Arial"> Times and dates
are subject to change.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>Call
individual venues for more information about the performances.</SPAN><I
style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 10.5pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%; FONT-FAMILY: Arial"><BR><BR></SPAN></I><B
style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><I
style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%; FONT-FAMILY: Arial">TWO BY
CHEKHOV</SPAN></I></B><B style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%; FONT-FAMILY: Arial"> is part<SPAN
style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold"> of a series of community programs
surrounding Great Lakes Theater Festival’s upcoming Spring Repertory production
of <I>The Seagull </I><SPAN style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic">by Anton Chekhov
</SPAN></SPAN></SPAN></B><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%; FONT-FAMILY: Arial">(April 8 – May 2,
2009, at the Hanna Theatre, PlayhouseSquare).<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>Held throughout northern <st1:State
w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Ohio</st1:place></st1:State> from February
through May, the 2009 S<I style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal">urround</I> is
designed for audiences of all backgrounds and ages.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN><B
style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal">All <I
style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal">Surround</I> events are free and open to the
public when at non-high school venues.</B><SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes">
</SPAN>For more information, visit the Great Lakes Theater Festival website at
<B style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><A
href="blocked::BLOCKED::BLOCKED::BLOCKED::http://www.greatlakestheater.org/education/surround">www.greatlakestheater.org/education/surround</A>/
</B>or call the Festival’s education department at <B
style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal">(216) 241-5490 x307<SPAN
class=110424521-13012009>.<BR><BR></SPAN></B></SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%; FONT-FAMILY: Arial">#<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>#<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes">
</SPAN>#<BR><BR></SPAN><B><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt; TEXT-TRANSFORM: uppercase; FONT-FAMILY: Arial">Media
Contact:<BR></SPAN></B><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt; FONT-FAMILY: Arial">Todd
Krispinsky<BR></SPAN><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt; FONT-FAMILY: Arial">Marketing
and Public Relations Director<BR></SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt; FONT-FAMILY: Arial">(216) 241-5490 x 317<BR></SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt; FONT-FAMILY: Arial"><A
href="blocked::BLOCKED::BLOCKED::BLOCKED::mailto:tkrispinsky@greatlakestheater.org">tkrispinsky@greatlakestheater.org</A><o:p></o:p></SPAN></P></FONT></DIV></FONT></DIV></BODY></HTML>