The entire Texas stage complex will shut down Sept. 21 at 6 PM and plans to reopen Sept. 26 at Noon, at which point patrons who have tickets for the canceled performances (Sept. 23-27) may exchange for future dates by phone or at the box office.

Alley Theatre artistic director Gregory Boyd directs de Guzman who stars as Elizabeth Hapgood in the work slated to play at the Alley's Neuhaus Stage through Oct. 23.

Stoppard — scribe of Invention of Love and "Shakespeare in Love" — pens the spy comedy set in London during the Cold War, which follows a female secret service officer who schemes to expose a double agent.

de Guzman, star of Broadway's revivals of Guys & Dolls and West Side Story, appeared last season at the Alley in Arthur Miller's After the Fall and the first-ever Alley Cabaret series last fall.

The production also features Alley Theatre resident company actors Jeffrey Bean, Paul Hope, David Rainey, John Tyson and Todd Waite as well as Chris Hutchinson with young actors Andrew Chennisi and Terran Swonke — who alternate in the role of Joe. Playwright Stoppard has also written Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead, Jumpers, Travesties, The Real Thing, Arcadia, The Real Inspector Hound and After Magritte. He won an Academy Award for his screenplay to "Shakespeare in Love" and was Oscar-nominated for "Brazil."

The design team for Hapgood features Jeff Cowie (scenic), Chris Parry (lighting), Linda Ross (costumes) and John Gramada (sound) — who also provides original music.

The new Alley Theatre season will continue with Dixie Carter and Hal Holbrook in the Ken Ludwig world premiere comedy Be My Baby (Sept. 30-Oct. 23) and A Christmas Carol – A Ghost Story of Christmas (Nov. 22-Dec. 28). The new year brings Culture Clash in AmeriCCa (Jan. 6-29, 2006), Martin McDonagh's The Pillowman (Jan. 27-Feb. 26, 2006), Garson Kanin's Born Yesterday (Feb. 24-March 19, 2006) starring Marisa Tomei, Austin Pendleton's Orson's Shadow (March 31-April 30, 2006), Theatre de la Jeune Lune's production of The Miser (April 7-30, 2006) and Agatha Christie's Witness for the Prosecution (May 12 June 4, 2006).

Tickets and season subscriptions can be purchased at the Alley Theatre Box Office, 615 Texas Ave. in Houston, TX, by phone at (713) 228-8421 or on the web at www.alleytheatre.org .