FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Date: August 26, 2004
Contact: Christa Skiles
Public Relations Director
513-345-2242, ext. 232

ACCLAIMED PLAYWRIGHT JOSÉ CRUZ GONZÁLEZ COMMISSIONED TO WRITE THADDEUS & ‘TILA, RECIPIENT OF THE LAZARUS-MACY’S NEW PLAY PRIZE FOR YOUNG AUDIENCES AT CINCINNATI PLAYHOUSE IN THE PARK

(CINCINNATI) – The Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park has commissioned nationally acclaimed playwright José Cruz González to write an enchanting fable for children as the winner of this year's Lazarus-Macy’s New Play Prize For Young Audiences. Thaddeus & 'Tila: A Crane and Frog Story will tour to elementary schools throughout the region and enjoy a public performance at the Playhouse as part of the Rosenthal Next Generation Theatre Series this spring. The play is made possible thanks to the generosity of the Lazarus-Macy’s Fund of the Federated Department Stores Foundation.

Thaddeus is a frog who dreams of flying. ‘Tila is a beautiful crane who yearns to swim. One day, ‘Tila, who suffers from bad eyesight, crashes into the quiet marsh where Thaddeus makes his home and he saves her from drowning. Of course, it’s love at first sight. Sadly, the other marsh creatures don’t approve of their budding relationship. Distraught and rejected, ‘Tila and Thaddeus leave their home. But along their journey, they learn of impending danger for their marsh friends — bulldozers are headed there to make way for a new human subdivision. The two must muster all of their resources to devise a plan that will save the other creatures before the bulldozers arrive.

This marks the fifth straight year that a national playwright has been chosen by the Playhouse to create a new work specifically for younger Tristate audiences. Produced by the Playhouse's Skilken/Brown Touring Company, the play complements the not-for-profit theatre’s outreach mission and its commitment to nurturing new plays and new audiences.

José Cruz González is one of the country’s most sought after playwrights for young people. His plays have been produced by theatres including Mark Taper Forum, Actors Theatre of Louisville, Geva Theatre, South Coast Repertory and the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. His works include Lily Plants a Garden, The Red Forest, September Shoes, Always Running, Mariachi Quixote, The Magic Rainforest, Harvest Moon and others.

Mr. González served as project director of South Coast Repertory’s Hispanic Playwrights Project for 11 seasons. He also has written for Paz, a new series produced by Discovery Kids for the Ready Set Learn! block on The Learning Channel. He was a recipient of a 1997 National Endowment for the Arts/Theatre Communications Group Theatre Residency Program for Playwrights and, in 1985, was a National Endowment for the Arts Director Fellow. Mr. González is a graduate of the University of California, Irvine, where he received his Master of Fine Arts degree in directing. He teaches theatre at California State University in Los Angeles and is a member of The Dramatists Guild of America.

Thaddeus & 'Tila will tour area schools for Kindergarten through fourth grade students this spring from March 28 to April 22. The play also will receive two public performances as part of this year’s Rosenthal Next Generation Theatre Series for children. The show will be performed in the Rosenthal Plaza at the Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park on March 26 at 10:30 a.m. and 2 p.m. For more information about the Playhouse's education and outreach programs, contact Education Director Bert Goldstein at 513/345-2242.

The Playhouse is entering its 45th season as one of the nation’s leading professional regional theatres. Earlier this summer, the Playhouse was honored with the 2004 Regional Theatre Tony Award^®, which honors a nonprofit professional regional theatre company that has displayed a continuous level of artistic achievement contributing to the growth of theatre nationally.

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 also 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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