Dear Friend,

Have you submitted your question for Lynn Nottage? If not, there’s still time. Remember, the Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright will be joining PBD for a 45-minute virtual conversation, hosted by Producing Artistic Director William Hayes, on Monday, November 9 at 7:30pm. If you’d like to take part in the interview and ask her a question via Zoom, we need you to first email your question to info@palmbeachdramaworks.org no later than 3pm on Thursday, November 5. Someone on staff will call you between Friday, November 6 and noon on Monday, November 9 to let you know if your question has been selected and provide you with instructions. Again, you'll be asking the question directly to her. We apologize in advance for our inability to accommodate all of you, as the event must end at 8:15pm. To reserve your free ticket to the event click here palmbeachdramaworks.org or call the box office at 561.514.4042, x2.

Looking ahead a bit to the holiday season, we have an exciting new series to tell you about. On November 30, we’re launching Home for the Holidays, a three-play series that kicks off with a virtual reading of Horton Foote’s The Trip to Bountiful (1953), directed by J. Barry Lewis. That’s followed on December 7 with Alfred Uhry’s Tony Award-winning The Last Night of Ballyhoo (1996), directed by William Hayes. The series concludes on December 21 with a special presentation of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, a reading of the 1843 novella by artists who have enriched us throughout the years. Lewis directs. All readings are at 7:30pm, and reservations are available now.

“This is going to be a very strange and melancholy holiday season, with so many people unable to spend time with their families,” says Hayes. “We want to be there for you, and share classic works that touch the heart as they explore such ideas as redemption, identity, resiliency, and hope. So, come spend the holidays with us.”

The Trip to Bountiful and The Last Night of Ballyhoo will be performed live. A Christmas Carol will be pre-recorded as it will feature a very large cast and art work; the logistics require that the reading is recorded in advance to assure a fluid performance.
THE TRIP TO BOUNTIFUL
By Horton Foote
Directed by J. Barry Lewis
November 30 at 7:30pm
Carrie Watts lives unhappily with her overprotective son Ludie and his shallow, resentful wife Jessie Mae in their cramped Houston apartment. She longs to make one last trip to her idealized hometown of Bountiful, a place that nourished her soul, but Ludie has repeatedly refused to take her there. One day, she flees and undertakes the journey on her own, in this bittersweet meditation on memory, dignity, and resiliency.

THE LAST NIGHT OF BALLYHOO
By Alfred Uhry
Directed by William Hayes
December 7 at 7:30pm
In this Tony Award-winning comedy-drama, set in Atlanta in 1939, the Freitag-Levy family are well-to-do German Jews who are so assimilated that they know little about and are uneasy with their own heritage. Enter Joe Farkas, newly employed in the Freitag family business, a mensch from Brooklyn of Eastern European descent who is comfortable in his own skin. With insight and humor, the play explores Jewish identity, anti-Semitism, and inter-Jewish prejudice.
A CHRISTMAS CAROL
By Charles Dickens
Directed by J. Barry Lewis
December 21 at 7:30pm
In the tradition of Charles Dickens reading his own work, this presentation will showcase PBD luminaries reading his 1843 novella – from our family to yours. This special performance of the beloved story of redemption will include illustrations. 
Finally, we hope you’ll join us this Friday, November 6, at 7:30pm for Dramalogue: Talking Theatre!, when our guest will be critic and playwright Terry Teachout. PBD commissioned and presented the world premiere of his Billy and Me, and had previously staged Satchmo at the Waldorf. 

PBDonline is sponsored by Louise and Barry Snyder. Dramalogue is sponsored by Marlene and Martin Silver. Tickets to all events are free, but reservations are required. Visit palmbeachdramaworks.org or call the box office at 561.514.4042, x2. And donations to PBD are always welcome.

Stay safe!
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 6 AT 7:30PM

GUEST:
TERRY TEACHOUT

Terry Teachout is the drama critic of The Wall Street Journal, the critic-at-large of Commentary, and the author of “Sightings,” a biweekly column for the Journal about the arts in America. He also writes about the arts on his blog, About Last Night (www.aboutlastnight.com). He has written the plays Billy and Me, which premiered at PBD in 2017, and Satchmo at the Waldorf, which premiered in 2011 in Orlando and has since been produced Off-Broadway and throughout America. He made his professional directing debut with PBD’s 2016 production of Satchmo. Teachout’s books include Pops: A Life of Louis Armstrong, Duke: A Life of Duke Ellington, All in the Dances: A Brief Life of George Balanchine, and The Skeptic: A Life of H.L. Mencken. He has also written the libretti for three operas by Paul Moravec: The Letter (premiered by the Santa Fe Opera in 2009), Danse Russe (premiered by Philadelphia’s Center City Opera Theater in 2011), and The King’s Man (premiered by Kentucky Opera in 2013). A graduate of William Jewell College, Teachout played jazz bass professionally in Kansas City before becoming a full-time writer. He lives in New York City and Connecticut.


Sponsored by:
Marlene and Martin Silver

Tickets are available online or by calling (561) 514-4042 ext. 2
To view the past Dramalogue: Talking Theatre! programs including recent guests

Bruce Linser
John Leonard Thompson
Michael Amico
Patti Gardner
Dennis Creaghan