World Premiere of Lee Blessing's View of the Mountains Kicks Off Pasadena Playhouse's "Hothouse" Series Oct. 30

By Michael Gioia
October 30, 2012

The world-premiere reading of A View of the Mountains, a new work by A Walk in the Woods author Lee Blessing, kicks off Pasadena Playhouse's 2012-13 season of its "Hothouse at the Playhouse" new play development, staged reading series. 

"It is a pleasure and privilege to look forward to this season of 'Hothouse at The Playhouse' and see authors and actors returning to us having had rewarding prior experiences — work that has started at 'Hothouse,' had life on our mainstage, going on tour after successful Tony-nominated Broadway productions and the brand new authors that are just starting out," said Courtney Harper, "Hothouse" producer and outreach and education manager, in an earlier statement.

Blessing's View of the Mountains, directed by Brian Shnipper, is offered Oct. 30-31 at 8 PM in the Carrie Hamilton Theatre. The cast includes Betsy Brandt, John Getz (M. Butterfly), Jane Kaczmarek (Lost in Yonkers), Josey Montana McCoy and Chris McGarry (Doubt).

Here's how the work is billed: "As enormous forces close in around them, a prominent family is split down the middle in America's liberal-conservative dogfight. 'For keeps' politics dominates in this unsparing look at what we're willing to do for our beliefs."

Here is a look at the remaining 2012-13 "Hothouse" lineup:

Aunt Stossie's Coming for Five Days
By Ellen Simon

Directed by Jonathan Moscone
Jan. 8-9 at 8 PM in the Carrie Hamilton Theatre
With Marsha Mason as Aunt Stossie.
"A comedic drama about what happens when the uninvited enters your life. Set in a Central California beach town, three generations of women and two surfer boys navigate the entanglements of sex, health and family after a tsunami warning sign goes up in their neighborhood."

Title-TBA
Directed by Michael Arabian
Feb. 12-13 at 8 PM in the Carrie Hamilton Theatre
"An exciting new play supported by the Armenian Dramatic Arts Alliance."

Dear Galileo
By Claire Willett

Directed by Courtney Harper

March 12-13 at 8 PM in the Carrie Hamilton Theatre
With Matthew Lillard (The 24 Hour Plays) and Danielle Soibelman.
"Three women wrestle with their identity, the conflict between science and religion, and their fathers' legacies. As their stories move towards a point of convergence, the destinies of each become inextricably bound with the others, linked through time by love, family, grief, faith, the search for identity and the wonder of the stars."

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The Pasadena Playhouse, under the artistic direction of Sheldon Epps and executive direction of Elizabeth Doran, was established in 1917 and is committed to "showcasing the most exciting theatrical entertainment in the state and being an amazing forum for launching new work onto the national stage."

Admission is free, but a reservation is required. For more information and to RSVP, call (626) 356-7529 or visit PasadenaPlayhouse.org.