HOUSTON, April 28, 2009 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Ensemble Theatre proudly announces its 2009-2010 Season lineup, "Majestic Treasures." The season kick off is Seven Guitars by nationally renowned playwright August Wilson. Works by two Texas playwrights will bridge the season from the holidays into the New Year with: Christmas with Great Aunt, by Thomas Meloncon; and American Menu, by Don Wilson Glenn. Award winning playwright, Lydia Diamond's Stick Fly is the spring production. The season finale is Five Guys Named Moe, book by Clarke Peters, and music and lyrics by Louis Jordan, known as "the father of rhythm and blues."
"Our season intertwines comedic elements with familiar themes: the search for humanity, self examination, vindication, determination, and coping with loss," says Eileen J. Morris, Artistic Director. "The lessons we learn through life's challenges become majestic treasures of purpose and fulfillment."
Patrons will notice a change to five plays in the line up instead of six this season.
"We have discussed offering a five play season for several years," says Morris. "This was a good time for us to transition due to the nation's sensitivity to the current economic climate."
The transition to five plays will offer longer running shows while providing the theatre with the necessary time to turnover between performances. Full season ticket packages will include the ticket that would be used for a sixth show as an additional bonus/ guest ticket.
Seven Guitars by August Wilson
September 19 - October 18, 2009
Friends gather to mourn the death of Floyd "Schoolboy" Barton, whose life was cut short before fulfilling his musical dream. Each friend shares heartfelt accounts of his life. Though comedic at times, each flashback gives perspective to a man's fight for his own humanity, self understanding, and self acceptance in the face of personal and societal ills. Seven Guitars represents the 1940s entry in Wilson's Pittsburgh Cycle, a decade-by-decade anthology of African-American life in Pittsburgh during the twentieth century.
Christmas with Great Aunt by Thomas Meloncon
November 21 - December 27, 2009
The proud farmers of Bethlehem, Texas may have lost their 150-year old church in a fire, but they are determined to uphold the tradition of having their annual Christmas play, an event filled with history, song, messages of self-determination and reverence for the coming of the Messiah. While visiting their great aunt in Bethlehem, the Gilliam family experiences an awakening that tests their faith and irrevocably changes their view of Christmas. This contemporary gospel play celebrates family and is infused with traditional and non-traditional music.
American Menu by Don Wilson Glenn
January 30 - February 28, 2010
It's May 1968, just after the murder of Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. and a month before the assassination of Robert F. Kennedy. Five Black kitchen workers in a segregated lunch counter are forced to engage in painful self examination brought about by the senseless death of a young boy. Through passionate conversations, these women face the realities of life on the cusp of change. Jammed in a hot, airless room they must battle prejudice, poverty, ignorance and each other as they search for inspiration.
Stick Fly by Lydia Diamond
April 3 - May 9, 2010
The LeVays, an affluent African American family, gather in their vacation home on Martha's Vineyard. Dr. LeVay, a respected neurosurgeon and hopeless philanderer, has two sons: one has followed in his footsteps, and the other is a struggling novelist. Each son brings along his girlfriend to meet the family for the first time resulting in confrontations about race, the economy and politics. The family ties rapidly unravel as tensions rise when secrets are revealed. Through lively exchanges and simmering wit, they tackle the challenges of family life and the changing world around them.
Five Guys Named Moe -Book by Clarke Peters/
Music and Lyrics by Louis Jordan
June 19 - July 25, 2010
His woman has left him, he's flat broke, and it's almost five o'clock in the morning. Suddenly Nomax finds Big Moe, Four-Eyed Moe, Eat Moe, No Moe, and Little Moe emerging from his 1930s style radio to comfort, cajoles, wheedle and jazz him with the hit songs of songwriter and saxophonist, Louis Jordan, one of the most revered talents of the twentieth century. With more than fifty top ten singles and instantly recognizable classics such as Early in the Morning, Don't Let the Sun Catch You Crying and Is You Is or Is You Ain't My Baby, this great composer brought a popular new slant to jazz that paved the way for the rock-and-roll of the 1950s.
For information regarding subscriptions, tickets and group sales call The Ensemble Theatre Box Office: 713-520-0055 or visit www.ensemblehouston.com.
The Ensemble Theatre was founded in 1976 by the late George Hawkins to preserve African American artistic expression and to enlighten, entertain, and enrich a diverse community. The theatre is known as the only professional theatre in its region dedicated to the production of works portraying the African-American experience. In addition to being the oldest and largest professional African-American theatre in the Southwest, it also holds the distinction of being one of the nation's largest African-American theatres that owns and operates its facility with an in-house production team. Board President Emeritus Audrey Lawson led the capital campaign for The Ensemble's $4.5 million building renovations that concluded in 1997.
The Ensemble Theatre produces a main stage season of contemporary and classic works devoted to the portrayal of the African American experience by local and national playwrights and artists. The theatre's Performing Arts Education program provides educational workshops, Artist-in-Residence experiences and live performances for students both off-site and at the theatre. Through its varied programs, The Ensemble Theatre benefits an audience and artistic constituency of approximately 65,000 people annually.
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