2008 - 2009 Season At The Huntington
Offers World Premieres, Stoppard and "Pirates"

Peter DuBois, New Artistic Director, Begins Work July 1

The Huntington Theatre Company has announced its 2008-2009 Season, the first under new Artistic Director Peter DuBois (at left), who begins his tenure July 1. The season will feature two world premiere productions, one American premiere, two reinvigorated classics, and the latest critical smash from Tom Stoppard.

The season includes the following:

“How Shakespeare Won The West"
A world premiere by Tony Award-winner Richard Nelson
Directed by Jonathan Moscone
September 5 - October 5 at the Huntington’s main stage, the Boston University Theatre.
Based on a true story, “How Shakespeare Won the West” is a funny and highly theatrical look at a troupe of 19th century actors who cross the U.S. to perform Shakespeare for entertainment-starved panhandlers caught up in the Gold Rush. DuBois calls it “a celebration of ambition and the human spirit. Richard has written a love letter to the theatre with his latest play.” Nelson’s work has been seen at the Huntington twice before; he wrote and directed an acclaimed adaptation of “James Joyce’s The Dead” in the 2000-2001 season, and wrote a translation of “The Cherry Orchard” in 2007.

“Boleros for the Disenchanted”
By José Rivera
Directed by Chay Yew
October 10 - November 15 at the Huntington’s Calderwood Pavilion
“Boleros for the Disenchanted” is Academy Award-nominated writer José Rivera’s moving portrait of a loving marriage between Flora and Eusebio, two Puerto Rican immigrants whose youthful, whirlwind romance is tested and strengthened over four decades – from their homeland to rural Alabama. DuBois says “Boleros” is “a groundbreaking play and Rivera’s most exciting dramatic work to date.” Rivera was Oscar-nominated for his screenplay adaptation of the book, “The Motorcycle Diaries.”

“Rock ‘n’ Roll”
By Tom Stoppard
Directed by Carey Perloff
A co-production with San Francisco’s American Conservatory Theatre
November 7 - December 7 at the Huntington’s main stage, the Boston University Theatre
Tom Stoppard’s “Rock ‘n’ Roll” is a sweeping, generation-spanning drama of international dissidents who experience political, personal, and musical revolutions. In 1968, Russian tanks roll into Prague; by 1990, the tanks are out and the Rolling Stones are in. Featuring 20+ years of great rock music, “Rock ‘n’ Roll” was a New York and London hit. “Stoppard’s breathtaking language and searing intellect propel this stunning new work.” DuBois says. Ben Brantley of The New York Times called “Rock ‘n’ Roll” "Stoppard’s finest play! It had me hooked."

Kate Burton in “The Corn is Green”
By Emlyn Williams
Directed by Huntington Artist Emeritus Nicholas Martin
January 9 - February 8, 2009 at the Huntington’s main stage, the Boston University Theatre
The sure-fire team of actress Kate Burton and director Nicholas Martin (“Hedda Gabler,” “The Cherry Orchard”) returns to the Huntington with Martin’s critically acclaimed production of Emlyn Williams’ classic, “The Corn is Green.” Burton plays idealistic and hardnosed schoolteacher Miss Moffat, who arrives in a poverty-stricken Welsh coal-mining town to open the community’s first school. She takes illiterate school bully Morgan (played by Burton’s son, Morgan Ritchie) under her wing and points him toward a brighter future in this funny, life-affirming tale. DuBois says “I am thrilled that the Huntington will remain an artistic home for Nicky, and so happy to have Kate and Nicky teamed again for this poignant story.”

“The Hinge of the World”
An American premiere
By Richard Goodwin
Directed by Edward Hall
March 6 - April 5, 2009 at the Huntington’s main stage, the Boston University Theatre
“The Hinge of the World” by historian and former JFK speechwriter Richard Goodwin captures the moment 400 years ago when Galileo raised his telescope to the skies and created theories that shook society to its core. As word spreads from Venice to Rome, the scientist becomes a target for Pope Urban VIII and his Catholic brethren. Brought before the Holy Inquisition, Galileo is forced to choose between his religion and his life’s work in this intelligent, thought-provoking epic drama about the struggle between reason and faith. Director Edward Hall is Associate Director of London’s National Theatre and the son of British director Sir Peter Hall. DuBois calls Hall “one of the most theatrically daring directors in England. Ed and Richard proved to be an amazing team when this play was first produced by Ed’s Propeller Theater Company. It is an honor to present the American premiere.”

“The Miracle at Naples”
A world premiere
By David Grimm
Directed by Peter DuBois
April 3 - May 9, 2009 at the Calderwood Pavilion
“The Miracle at Naples” is David Grimm’s hilarious and bawdy comedy, set in Renaissance Italy and focused on the romantic adventures of a band of commedia players who arrive for the Feast of San Gennaro. The beautiful maiden Flaminia falls madly in love with actor Giancarlo, and it’s up to her nurse Francescina to maintain her virtue -- not easy to do when lovers are displaying their affections all over the piazza. This outrageous sex farce is by the author of “Measure for Pleasure” and “Kit Marlowe.” DuBois says “if Oscar Wilde, Tom Stoppard and Charles Ludlum had a love child, it would be David Grimm. David’s dazzling language skills, romanticism and bawdy imagination make him a truly singular writer. It’s a play about love, appetite, and the role of theatre in a changing world.”

“The Pirates of Penzance"
A Caribbean-style adaptation of Gilbert and Sullivan’s classic musical
Conceived by Gordon Greenberg, Nell Benjamin, and John McDaniel
With additional book and lyrics by Nell Benjamin
Directed by Gordon Greenberg
May 15-June 14, 2009 at the Huntington’s main stage, the Boston University Theatre
A raucous and rowdy Caribbean update of the musical comedy classic – complete with swordfights, sex appeal and all the beloved Gilbert and Sullivan songs. After a hard-of-hearing nurse mistakes the word "pilot" for "pirate," young Frederic is apprenticed to a band of swashbuckling buccaneers. Now a young man with his final days of servitude rapidly approaching, Frederic longs for a respectable life. In true Gilbert and Sullivan fashion, mishaps arise and it takes a fair maiden, a fair amount of double-crossing and the very model of a modern Major General to reach a happy ending. DuBois says, “Gilbert and Sullivan were sophisticated political satirists – the Jon Stewarts of their time – and this new re-imagining is a joyous conclusion to our season!”

Of his first season, DuBois commented, “This upcoming season offers some of the best writing, directing and acting from Boston to New York to London. My goal is this: as audiences journey between our homes at the Boston University Theatre, and the Wimberly and Roberts Theatres at the Calderwood Pavilion, they will encounter some of the most exciting work on stage today.”

Season subscriptions are available now, in 4, 5, 6, and 7 play packages. For information, call the box office at 617-266-0800 or visit www.huntingtontheatre.org.

The sale date for individual performances will be announced soon, as will the attractions in the theater's popular "Huntington Presents" series.

To read about Peter DuBois' appointment as Artistic Director, click here.

-- OnStage Boston