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PRESS RELEASE
July 1, 2008
Diana Wortham Theatre at Pack Place
2 South Pack Square
Asheville, NC 28801
FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT:
John Ellis, Managing Director
Diana Wortham Theatre at Pack Place
Office Ph#: (828) 257-4512
E-Mail: jellis@dwtheatre com
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
What:
Mainstage Series 2008/2009; the 10th anniversary season
Who:
A fresh Off-Broadway Comedy Series with three nationally touring shows
plus Doc Watson & David Holt, Pilobolus, Christine Lavin, Aquila
Theatre Company's The Iliad, Southern Fried Chicks Comedy Tour, John
Doyle, Kathy Mattea, and more
When:
September 2008 – May 2009
Where:
Diana Wortham Theatre at Pack Place
Tickets on sale: August 21st for all events
Info/Tickets: Box Office (828) 257-4530
Web: www.dwtheatre.com
For a season brochure: Call the box office at: (828) 257-4530
THE DIANA WORTHAM THEATRE AT PACK PLACE ANNOUNCES ITS 1OTH
ANNIVERSARY SEASON, THE 2008/2009 MAINSTAGE SERIES
The Diana Wortham Theatre at Pack Place announces the schedule of performances for
the 2008/2009 Mainstage Series. Celebrating its 10th anniversary season, the Mainstage
Series presents a wide range of top touring artists in music, theater, dance and comedy.
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Tickets for all events are on sale August 21st and are available online at
www.dwtheatre.com as well as from the box office at (828)257-4530.
The 2008/2009 Mainstage Series season opens on September 13, 2008 with Christine
Lavin performing from her delectable album, One Meat Ball, in which the talented
Lavin uses food as theme and metaphor to sing about those aspects of life which, like
food itself, stimulate, obsess, tantalize, comfort and perhaps do us in. This season opener
is part of the 2008/2009 Music/Singer-Songwriter Series, which also includes: one of
country and traditional music’s top female vocalists, Kathy Mattea, presenting a fresh
look at Appalachian music (October 17, 2008); a special Valentine’s Day treat with the
smooth urban-jazz voice of Kellylee Evans (February 14, 2009); and the sassy wit and
classic Midwestern charm of Susan Werner, one of today’s defining artists of the folk
music genre (February 20, 2009).
Continuing a second year is the 2008/2009 Off-Broadway Series featuring three
nationally touring comedies. Late Nite Catechism is a hysterically funny play that takes
the audience back to Catholic school, where the irrepressible Sister teaches her class of
“students” (the audience) in a fun, interactive theatrical twist. A favorite with people of
all faiths and ages, Late Nite Catechism has toured in every state in the U.S. as well as
Canada, the U.K., and Australia (seven performances October 28–November 2, 2008).
The national launch of Dixie’s Tupperware Party brings Dixie, the fast-talking
Tupperware Lady, to Asheville for a good ol’ fashioned Tupperware Party filled with
outrageous tales, free giveaways, and the most fabulous assortment of brightly colored
plastic products. The show is a real Tupperware party – but one like you’ve never
experienced before, for mature audiences only (seven performances March 31-April 5,
2009). And direct from its sold-out, extended Off-Broadway run comes the multi-award
winning show My Mother’s Italian, My Father’s Jewish & I’m in Therapy. One part
lasagna, one part kreplach and two parts Prozac, My Mother’s Italian… stars its author,
Steve Solomon, who combines comic voices, sound effects and astounding
characterizations to personify the wacky side of the human condition through more than
thirty characters (seven performances April 28-May 3, 2009).
The 2008/2009 Special Attractions Series presents audience favorites, including:
legendary Grammy-winning performers and local favorites Doc Watson & David Holt,
with Doc’s grandson Richard Watson (two performances October 11, 2008); world
musicians Al Petteway, Amy White and others sharing music from the Celtic and
American winter traditions in A Swannanoa Solstice (two shows December 21, 2008);
the four original “desperate housewives” of the South performing in the Southern Fried
Chicks Comedy Tour, starring Etta May and featuring Trish Suhr, Beth Donahue, and
Sonya White (two shows January 17, 2009); and the stunning acrobatics of Galumpha
bringing a world of imagination to life through striking visual effects, physical comedy,
and inventive choreography (January 23-24, 2009).
The 2008/2009 Mainstage Dance Series, recognized for its presentation of some of the
nation’s foremost dance companies, presents: the sophisticated repertoire of Aspen Santa
Fe Ballet, blending the culturally rich communities of Aspen, CO and Santa Fe, NM into
one of today’s most energetic and versatile dance companies (November 11-12, 2008);
Eleone Dance Theatre, a Philadelphia-based dance company known for its multicultural,
intergenerational, socially and visually appealing works (one show only February 5,
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2009); the highly unusual dance company Pilobolus featuring a unique weight-sharing
approach to partnering that offers a startling mix of humor and invention (February 2425, 2009); and the sizzling styling of Luna Negra Dance Theater, blending ballet and
modern dance techniques with Latino and Afro-Caribbean flavors (March 20-21, 2009).
The 2008/2009 Mainstage Theatre Series features three varied performances: the
inventive and highly lauded Aquila Theatre Company returns to Asheville for back-toback performances of Homer’s The Iliad, a top-notch stage presentation of one of the
greatest works in world literature, and of Shakespeare’s The Comedy of Errors, a
glorious, farcical romp propelled by Aquila’s imaginative and exuberant production skills
(January 30-31, 2009); and America’s foremost radio theater company L.A. Theatre
Works returns to present The Great Tennessee Monkey Trial, a dramatic work
exploring the trial of Scopes, a high school science teacher who challenged state law by
teaching evolution instead of creationism and set the stage for the ongoing national
debate over the freedom of inquiry and the separation of Church and State (February 1213, 2009).
Presented in partnership with The Swannanoa Gathering, the 2008/2009 Mainstage
Celtic Series presents four of the top touring musicians and groups in the Scots-Irish
traditional music genre: The Tannahill Weavers, a well-traveled dynamic quintet
playing Scottish traditional music at its finest (February 2, 2009); Green Fields of
America featuring fiddler Liz Carroll, button accordion player Billy McComiskey, singer
and folklorist Mick Moloney, and Asheville’s own guitar master and songsmith John
Doyle, forming a remarkable ensemble that showcases the finest in Irish music, culture
and song (March 6, 2009); the staggeringly beautiful voice of Cara Dillon, whose
irresistible personality and mesmerizing ability to relate a great story in song places her
firmly amongst the leading young traditional artists emerging into the mainstream (April
10, 2009); and Téada, one Irish music’s leading exponents on the international world
music stage, deftly capturing the intricacies of the traditional art form within a
contemporary band context (May 22, 2009).
The Mainstage 2008/2009 Young Audience Series, in partnership with The Center for
Diversity Education, features eight performances especially for youth and their families,
but also of general interest to all audiences: And Then They Came for Me:
Remembering the World of Anne Frank, a multimedia play revealing true life
experiences in WWII (October 8-10, 2008); Vote, a dramatic journey through history
exploring freedom and the responsibility of voting (October 15, 2008); Max and
Ruby, a delightful musical about two bunny siblings (October 30, 2008); The Iliad, an
innovative production of this profound story (January 30, 2009); Eleone Dance Theatre,
an exhilarating and soul-stirring multicultural dance company (February 5, 2009); The
Emperor’s New Clothes, full of action, music, magic tricks and audience participation
(March 4-6, 2009); Luna Negra Dance Theater, a memorable and meaningful
introduction to dance and Latino culture (March 20, 2009); and Nate the Great, a new
musical based on the classic children’s book series (May 11, 2009).
Tickets for all shows go on sale August 21st with two cost-saving options for multiple
ticket purchases. The most popular is the theatre’s Pick 5 Series pass – discounted tickets
to any five shows in the season. A Super Saver Series pass, for admission to 16 or more
events at only $23 per event, may be shared among business clients, employees, family
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members and friends. The Pick 5 and the Super Saver Series ticket options offer
substantial savings over the cost of individual performances.
The Diana Wortham Theatre at Pack Place is located in the center of downtown Asheville
on historic Pack Square within walking distance of many shops and restaurants. The
intimate theatre seats just over 500 and boasts exceptional acoustics and sightlines,
making it the premier performance space in all of Western North Carolina. The
Mainstage Series is supported by a grant from the North Carolina Arts Council, a state
agency. The Mainstage Series 2008/2009 season sponsors are Asheville Area Chamber of
Commerce, Asheville Citizen-Times, Creative Energy, Laurey’s Catering and Gourmetto-go, and Renaissance Asheville Hotel. To obtain more information on the Mainstage
Series or to purchase tickets, call the theatre’s box office at (828)257-4530 or visit
www.dwtheatre.com
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