Broadway veteran and screen actor Austin Pendleton will headline Love Drunk as the final offering of a season that includes three world premieres and two New York debuts.
The Abingdon's 2008-2009 season — under the artistic direction of Jan Buttram — follows:
By Robert Brustein
Directed by Daniela Varon
"The murky relationship between great writers and their proclivity to 'borrow' ideas and material is examined in this comedy tracing Shakespeare's relationship with The Earl of Southampton, the Dark Lady of the Sonnets, and Christopher Marlowe during the turbulent months before Marlowe's death." (Sept. 13-Oct. 5)
By Steven Leigh Morris
Directed by Alan Mandell
"This gripping new drama presents us with the story of Nadya, a Ukrainian woman brought to America and enslaved as part of a prostitution ring. A single mother, Nadya becomes squeezed between her Russian mafia protectors and the LAPD detective who arrests her in a sting operation. Contemporary themes of slavery are explored in this compelling tale based on an actual police case." (Oct. 17-Nov. 16)
By Marvin Lifschitz
Directed by Tom Bloom
"Is Sigmund Freud going crazy? Obsessed with a beautiful patient, he dreams of killing her lover, another patient. This happens while he readies himself to face his rival, the mad Dr. Otto Brotto, in a duel for the very survival of psychoanalysis. What's an analyst to do?" (Jan. 24-Feb. 15, 2009)
By Mayo Simon
Directed by Stephen Hollis
"Under the hot blue sky of a Greek island, a married couple makes one last try at reconciliation. He lives in despair with memories of a passionate romance with another woman. She lives in silent fury over being abandoned. Their witty repartee masks fantasies of revenge. Shocking and funny, this scintillating black comedy explores the ache of lost love." (March 6-April 5, 2009)
By Romulus Linney
Directed by Kelly Morgan
"An older man picks up a much younger woman in a bar and brings her to his retreat, an Appalachian palace. Her littered past collides with his need and what follows is an inspired dance of sexual tension." (March 28-April 19, 2009) Complete casting for the Abingdon season will be announced at a later date. Season subscriptions are currently available by phoning (212) 868-4444 or by visiting www.smarttix.com.
The Abingdon Theatre Company is located at 312 West 36th Street in Manhattan.