Actors Theatre Announces 26th Season; Opens With A Convo With Edith Head

Actors Theatre moves into its next quarter century of thought-provoking, compelling and, at times, controversial shows with six plays during the 2011-12 season beginning with an inside look at Hollywood through the eyes of legendary costume designer Edith Head and including works by playwrights who have made their mark on Valley audiences: Annie Baker, Sarah Ruhl and Donald Margulies.

The 2011-12 season is the company's 26th and includes:
• A Conversation With Edith Head, Sept. 16-Oct. 2: By Paddy Calistro and Susan Claassen, the show offers behind-the-scenes stories about Hollywood's greatest stars from the woman who worked on more than 1,100 films, dressed the greatest stars of Hollywood and won a remarkable eight Academy Awards (she was nominated for 35).
• Next Fall, Oct. 28-Nov. 13: A huge hit both on- and off-Broadway and nominated for a Best Play Tony Award, Geoffrey Nauffts' play takes a witty and provocative look at faith, commitment and unconditional love when an accident changes the relationship between Luke and Adam. The New York Times called the play "a smart, sensitive, immensely appealing and utterly contemporary New York comedy."
• Hunter Gatherers, Dec. 31-Jan. 15, 2012: The first time " A Christmas Carol" won't take center stage in December, Peter Sinn Nachtrieb's sidesplitting dark comedy depicts a comic evening where the line between civilized and primal man is blurred and where not everyone will survive long enough to enjoy brownies for dessert. By the playwright who penned "BOOM" several years ago.
• Dead Man's Cell Phone, Feb. 24-March 11: A captivating new comedy by Sarah Ruhl ("In the Next Room (Or The Vibrator Play)"), the play opens with a ringing cell phone at a coffee shop that goes unanswered because the owner is dead. That doesn't stop Jean at the next table from answering it. Entertainment Weekly called the show a "captivating, dark-edged romantic comedy."
• Body Awareness, March 30-April 15: Annie Baker ("Circle Mirror Transformation") got five stars from Time Out New York for her delicate, moving play that takes place during Body Awareness week on a Vermont college campus. The organizer and her partner are hosting one of the guest artists in their home. He's famous for his nude portraits and when he chooses Joyce to pose, Phyllis blows a gasket. As the two bicker, Joyce's son, who may have Asperger's Syndrome, struggles to express himself physically with heartbreaking results.
• Time Stands Still, May 11-27: Donald Margulies' finest play since his Pulitzer-Prize winning "Dinner With Friends," this Tony Award nominee for Best Play follows a photojournalist and a foreign correspondent trying to find happiness in a world that seems to have gone completely crazy. This partnership, based on telling the toughest stories to make a difference, takes a sudden turn in a flash when the couple confronts the prospect of a more conventional life.
Ticket packages are on sale now through www.actorstheatrephx.org. Six-play packages range from $168-$222; five-play packages are $140-$185; four-play packages are $112-$148 and three-play packages are $84-$111. Single tickets will go on sale during the summer.
For more information about tickets and benefits, visit www.actorstheatrephx.org.