Lee Blessing's Black Sheep, which had its premiere earlier this year at Florida Stage, the Palm Beach County theatre devoted to new American works, will win its debut north of the Mason-Dixon line this summer at the Barrington Stage Company in Massachusetts, July 17-Aug. 4.

The new play by the author of Eleemosynary, A Walk in the Woods and Cobb is a dark comedy about family secrets. It had a reading at Florida Stage in January 2001, and summer 2001 reading at the O'Neill Center in Connecticut. Official opening in Florida was Dec. 14, 2001.

Blessing has of late been in the habit of unveiling his latest works at smallish regional theatres. In 2001, the Dolphinback Theatre Company of Chicago opened its eighth season with the premiere of Blessing's Rewrites. Blessing's best known work is A Walk in the Woods, which ran on Broadway. Recent Off-Broadway offerings include Chesapeake and Cobb.

For its 2002 summer season, the Sheffield, MA, company will also offer a new revival of South Pacific (June 19-July 13), just in time for composer Richard Rodgers centennial. Julianne Boyd directs.

The remainder of the season runs as follows: • Falsettos, the musical by William Finn, Aug. 7-24
• Castro's Beard, a political satire by Brian Stewart, July 3-14
• Blanche and Her Joy Boys by Chris Calloway and Sheryl B. Heath on the Stage II

For more information, call (413) 528-8888.

—By Robert Simonson