Denison University Theatre will open its 73rd Subscription Series withApproaching Zanzibarby Tina Howe. The play follows the Blossom family as they travel across America to visit their elderly, eccentric Aunt Olivia, a renowned environmental artist. Visits with other eccentric relatives and encounters with unique characters enliven the trip but hardly prepare them for Olivia's surprising behavior. Performance dates are Friday and Saturday, October 3-4, and October 7-11.

The season continues withRoom Serviceby John Murray and Allen Boretz, a comedy hit from 1937. A nimble-witted producer, living on credit with several actors in a Broadway hotel, has found a good script and an "angel" promising to back the show. But the cash is delayed and the production path becomes a perilous one, strewn with the most ludicrous and unexpected obstacles. Dates of performance are November 13-15 and 18-21.

Wonderful Town, based on the playMy Sister Eileen, will be staged February 27-28 and March 2-6. The music is by Leonard Bernstein, with book by Joseph Fields and Jerome Chodorov, and lyrics by Betty Comden and Adolph Green. This fun-filled play won both the New York Critics' Circle Award and the Tony for Best Musical of 1953. A pair of Columbus, Ohio natives, sensible would-be journalist Ruth and wannabe actress Eileen, land in a seedy Greenwich Village basement apartment where one misadventure follows another as they encounter the quaint and zany locals. Small wonder that they sing, "Why did I ever leave Ohio?" It isn't long before they leave regrets behind and New York City becomes their wonderful town.

Closing the season will be the World Premiere ofThe Death of Ivan Ilychby Donald Freed, Jonathan R. Reynolds Playwright-in-Residence. In his adaptation of Leo Tolstoy's brilliant novella, Freed will bring to the stage one man's epic struggle to come to terms with his own mortality. The production will feature Jon Farris in the title role. A Denison faculty member since 1981, Farris holds the Jonathan R. Reynolds Distinguished Chair in Theatre. Performance dates are April 16-17 and 20-24.

All performances are at 8 p.m. in Ace Morgan Theatre in the Theatre Arts Building at 211 W. College Street in. Season subscriptions are available at the following rates: General Admission $24; Senior $15; and Student $12. Call (740) 587-6527 for more information about the productions or to request a season brochure. Web site: www.denison.edu/theatre.

About Denison:

Denison University, founded in 1831, is an independent, residential liberal arts institution located in Granville, Ohio. A highly selective college enrolling 2,100 full-time undergraduate students from all 50 states and dozens of foreign countries, Denison is a place where innovative faculty and motivated students collaborate in rigorous scholarship, civic engagement and the cultivation of independent thinking.

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