FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Date: October 3, 2003
Contact: Christa Skiles
Public Relations Director
513-345-2242, ext. 232

CINCINNATI PLAYHOUSE PRODUCTION OF THE SYRINGA TREE
WILL PLAY VIENNA’S ENGLISH THEATRE

(CINCINNATI) – As the Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park launches its 2003-2004 Thompson Shelterhouse Theatre season, the final Shelterhouse production of last year’s series, Pamela Gien’s captivating The Syringa Tree, is seeing new life. The Playhouse’s production of the show will be re-mounted at the English Theatre in Vienna, Austria, early next year and will run January 27 to March 6, 2004.

The show will feature Shannon Koob, one of two actresses who alternated performances of The Syringa Tree at the Playhouse. Cincinnati Playhouse Associate Artistic Director Michael Evan Haney, who directed The Syringa Tree, will re-stage the play.

The Syringa Tree was inspired by the playwright’s childhood experiences growing up outside of Johannesburg, South Africa, during the height of that country’s oppressive policy of apartheid. First seen through the eyes of six-year-old Elizabeth Grace, the story of The Syringa Tree spans four generations, from early apartheid through the student riots of 1976 to South Africa’s first democratic elections in 1994. One actress plays all of the 24 characters — black, white, male and female — who populate Elizabeth’s small world. The show was described by The New York Times as “a thoroughly persuasive transport to an exotic time and place… The Syringa Tree stuns.”

The English Theatre in Vienna is celebrating its 40th anniversary season this year. Founded in 1963, it is the longest living English language theatre in continental Europe. In 1976, the theatre presented the world premiere of Tennessee Williams' The Red Devil Battery Sign. The theatre
also presented the 1991 world premiere production of Edward Albee's Pulitzer Prize winning Three Tall Women, directed by the author. Through its international reputation, the English Theatre has attracted a distinguished roster of well-known stage and screen personalities throughout its history, including Princess Grace of Monaco, Joan Fontaine, Anthony Quinn, Rue McClanahan, Linda Gray, Larry Hagman and Dame Judi Dench.

“I’m very proud to introduce Vienna’s audiences to the quality of theatre we produce here in Cincinnati and at the Playhouse in the Park,” said Michael Haney. “This is an exciting opportunity for us and a nice compliment to the many individuals who worked on this production of The Syringa Tree.”

The Syringa Tree continues a tradition of Playhouse productions that have enjoyed success following their Cincinnati runs. The Playhouse production of Nixon's Nixon has been staged in London’s West End at the Comedy Theatre; as part of the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in Scotland (where it earned the Fringe First Award); at the Harborfront Theatre Festival in Toronto, Canada; at London's Bridewell Theatre (the equivalent of an off-Broadway theatre here in the U.S.); at the Tivoli Theatre in Dublin; at the Watergate Theatre in Kilkenny, Ireland; in Australia and New Zealand; and as part of the Hong Kong Arts Festival. The Playhouse’s production of Thunder Knocking on the Door, the electrifying blues musical by playwright Keith Glover, enjoyed subsequent runs in San Diego, Rochester, Cleveland and Stamford, Connecticut.

The production team for The Syringa Tree also included set designer Narelle Sissons, costume designer Elizabeth Eisloeffel, lighting designer James Sale and sound designer Chuck Hatcher. The show was co-sponsored at the Playhouse by Provident Financial Advisors and Turner Construction Company.

Playhouse artists fly to and from Cincinnati on Delta Connection COMAIR, the Playhouse’s official airline.

The Playhouse is supported, in part, by the generosity of the tens of thousands of individuals and businesses that give to the Fine Arts Fund.

The Ohio Arts Council helps fund the Playhouse with state tax dollars to encourage economic growth, educational excellence and cultural enrichment for all Ohioans.

The Playhouse also receives funding from the City of Cincinnati.

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