Fences to play at the Rep

by August Wilson, directed by Timothy Bond
A 25th anniversary celebration of August Wilson's
beloved story of baseball and family

Seattle, WA – Seattle Repertory Theatre celebrates the 25th anniversary of August Wilson's beloved story of baseball and family, Fences. The play is being staged in a number of notable productions across the country, including on Broadway next month. Seattle Rep's production, which plays March 26-April 18, 2010, is proud to include Wilson's widow Constanza Romero as the costume designer.

Tickets are available now through the Seattle Rep Box Office at (206) 443-2222 as well as online at www.seattlerep.org.

Set in 1957, Fences is the story of Troy Maxson, a garbage collector who abandoned his dreams of a baseball career. As black athletes finally begin to be accepted into the major leagues, Troy's son wants to pursue his own ambitions of becoming a professional athlete—but his father has other ideas.

The play won Wilson both a Pulitzer and a Tony, and shows the playwright at his best: challenging the American dream through a poetic, powerful, and deeply personal story.

Seattle Rep had a long relationship with Wilson, who lived in Seattle for 15 years and passed away here in 2005 from cancer. Seattle Rep is the only theatre in the world to have produced all of Wilson's work: every play in his 10-play Pittsburgh Cycle, as well as his one-man show How I Learned What I Learned.

This production is a co-promotion with Syracuse Stage. Director Timothy Bond (former artistic director of the Seattle Group Theatre) is now Producing Artistic Director for Syracuse Stage. He will take the Seattle production to Syracuse after its run here.

Special Event: Fences Community Day, Saturday, April 3, 2 p.m.
Seattle Rep is opening its doors to partner organizations from across the city for this special matinee to bring new and alternative audiences to the theater. Participating organizations can receive complimentary tickets to the performance and join a special Fences 25th Anniversary reception. As part of the festivities, the Seattle Rep will honor sports legend Floyd Little, who was recently elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame and will be enshrined in August. Participating organizations include Big Brothers Big Sisters, Boys & Girls Club, Central District Forum, Solid Ground, and YMCA Black Achievers. If your organization would like to participate, contact Kiki Abba at 206-443-2210. Community Day is generously supported by KPMG.

Performance Details: Performances of Fences are at 7:30 p.m., Wednesday through Sunday, with 2 p.m. matinees on most Saturdays and Sundays. There is a Captioned Performance on Thursday, April 1 at 7:30 p.m.; an Audio-Described performance Saturday, April 17 at 2 p.m.; and an American Sign Language (ASL)-interpreted performance on Sunday, April 18 at 2 p.m. Post-play discussions will be held after the performances on Sunday, April 4 at 2 p.m.; Thursday, April 8 at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, April 11 at 2 p.m. The Pay-What-You-Can Performance is March 30, 7:30 p.m.