Wednesday, May 30, 2007, 7:00 p.m., marks Opening Night of InterAct Theatre Company's production of SKIN IN FLAMES, a blistering meditation on the mass marketing of war and the darker side of forgiveness. Written by Guillem Clua, one of Spain's most successful Catalan playwrights, critically-acclaimed SKIN IN FLAMES makes its much anticipated east coast premiere as the final production in InterAct Theatre Company's 2006/2007 Season.

ABOUT THE PLAY
Journalists of all kinds have chronicled the births of new democracies from the ashes of brutal wars and crumbled regimes; from Bosnia to the Soviet Union to Vietnam to Chile to Iraq. The journalists who cover these major transformations of country and culture often become participants in the stories they witness, crossing the ethical line between reporting on and influencing events in history. Such is the dilemma facing Frederick Salomon the lead character in Guillem Clua's SKIN IN FLAMES.

A dramatic thriller marked by intriguing mystery and graphic sexuality, SKIN IN FLAMES chronicles the story of Salomon, a famous photojournalist who returns to the country where his career was launched during a brutal civil war. One photograph - of a schoolgirl flying through the air after a bomb explosion - has since become a world-renowned icon of war, violence and the destruction of innocence. Many have credited this photograph as the first step in the country's recent peace efforts and twenty years later, Salomon returns to the now infant democracy to receive a prestigious peace award. First, however, he is to be interviewed by Hannah, an ambitious young journalist, who interprets the image differently. Throughout the interview, Salomon and Hannah debate the mass marketing of images of violence and question the United Nations' role in assisting third-world nations, but most importantly what really happened on that fateful day. Meanwhile, in the same theatrical space, another couple's story unfolds; however, each couple remains unaware of the other's presence. Dr. Brown is making a routine visit with a local woman, Ida, whose daughter is in a comma at a local hospital. Ida trades sexual favors for the medical treatment that may save her daughter and provide the chance to see her little Sara transferred to a hospital in America.

Two contrasting scenes of deceit and desperation slowly shape the plot as the audience pieces together the fragments left behind by the war. Who was the girl in the photo? How did that image change her life, her country, and the world? Filled with gut-wrenching twists, SKIN IN FLAMES takes the audience on an emotional and intellectual journey challenging them to consider and question the fine line dividing those in power and those in need of assistance. With the expertly crafted structure and story elements found in every country's newspaper headlines, SKIN IN FLAMES melds the best of content and form into a hauntingly unforgettable theatrical experience.

Titled LA PELL EN FLAMES in its original Catalan, SKIN IN FLAMES premiered at the Villarroel Theatre in Barcelona, Spain, where it won the 2004 Alcoi Theatre Prize as well as the 2005 Serra d'Or Critics Award for Best Script. It then made its U.S. debut at HotCity Theatre in St. Louis, Missouri, where it earned a place on the Best of 2006 lists in both the Ladue News and Riverfront Times. Each production left audiences and critics mesmerized. "[SKIN IN FALMES] ignites a theatrical wildfire of suspense and surprise that sears the imagination," raved Dennis Brown of The Riverfront Times. Joan-Anton Benach wrote in her La Vanguardia review wrote, "... in the ambiguity of certain facts, and in the intriguing crescendo of the plot, there are hours of reflection packed into the short theatrical experience." KDHX Theatre Review's Daniel Higgins described it as "... a rare opportunity to see a thoughtful and refreshingly different perspective on the relationship between the First World and the Third World in the context of war." Anne Earney of PLAYBACK:stl exclaimed simply, "SKIN IN FLAMES is a complex play for mature, thinking audiences."

DATES & TICKETS
SKIN IN FLAMES runs for 27 performances, May 25 - June 24, 2007, with preview performances May 25 - 29 and Opening Night on Wednesday, May 30. Performances are Tuesday and Wednesday evenings at 7:00 p.m., Thursday through Saturday evenings at 8:00 p.m., and Sunday matinees at 2:00 p.m. Individual tickets are available. Tickets for preview performances are $15.00; Tuesday through Thursday performances are $22.00; Friday & Saturday evenings and Sunday matinees are $25.00. InterAct offers discounts for senior citizens and full-time students (with valid I.D.). Group rates are available, and students with proper I.D. may purchase Rush Tickets for $8.00 five minutes before curtain (based on availability). All performances take place at The Adrienne, 2030 Sansom Street, Philadelphia. Reservations or more information can be obtained by calling 215-568-8079, by dropping by the InterAct Theatre Company box office at The Adrienne, 2030 Sansom St., Philadelphia, PA, or by visiting InterAct Theatre Company's website at www.InterActTheatre.org.

ABOUT THE ISSUES
During the run of SKIN IN FLAMES, InterAct will host several post-performance talk-backs to encourage further discussion on the issues raised. Speaker Sundays, a series featuring invited scholars, community leaders and artists, are scheduled to follow matinee performances on Sunday, June 3, 10 and 17. On Sunday, June 17, the guest speaker will be Salman Akhtar, MD, professor of psychiatry at Jefferson Medical College. For a schedule of other guest speakers, call InterAct at 215-568-8079. Coffee Conversations, an informal discussion with the production's artists and designers, sponsored by Whole Foods, are scheduled to follow performances on Tuesday, June 5, Wednesday 16, Tuesday, June 12 and Wednesday, June 13.

RELEVENT BIOGRAPHIES

Guillem Clua (Playwright) studied journalism at the Autonomous University of Barcelona. He started his theatrical training in 1994 at the London Guildhall University. Afterwards, he participated in writers' workshops at the prestigious Sala Beckett in Barcelona studying with numerous Catalan playwrights. He is the author of seven works for the stage including an adaptation of Death in Venice and the original play Invisibles (Invisible), which won the City of Alcoi Theatre Prize in 2002. In 2004, his third full-length script, LA PELL EN FLAMES (SKIN IN FLAMES), won the City of Alcoi Theatre Prize B before premiering at the Villarroel Theatre in Barcelona. SKIN IN FLAMES was also awarded the prestigious Barcelona Critics Award for Best Script in 2005. In 2006, his newest full-length play, El Sabor De Las Cenizas (Taste of Ashes), premiered in a staged reading at Repertorio Español in New York. Since 2003, Guillem Clua has been on the writing team for the popular Catalan television program El Cor De La Ciutat (The Heart of the City) and is currently head writer for the series.

DJ Sanders (Translator) translated SKIN IN FLAMES (from the original Catalan LA PELL EN FLAMES) and Taste of Ashes (from the original Spanish El Sabor De Las Cenizas), in addition to Àngel Guimerà's 1896 classic The Lowlands (from the original Catalan Terra Baixa). Sanders is also the author of more than twenty original stage plays, including Temptations of the Father, Cypher: Variations on Therapy, Sex, and Baseball, and six ten-minute plays published with Brooklyn Publishers. His works have been presented in Australia, India, and coast to coast in the United States. Sanders previously taught advanced English for non-native speakers at the University of Illinois, the University of Barcelona, and Washington University in St. Louis. He is currently pursuing further graduate studies at Washington University in St. Louis focusing on the translation of drama. He is a member of the Dramatists Guild.

Seth Rozin (Director) co-founded InterAct Theatre Company in 1988 and has since served as Producing Artistic Director. He has directed over 30 productions for InterAct, including this season's critically-acclaimed productions of Thomas Gibbons' A House With No Walls and Manuel Puig's Kiss of the Spider Woman. He also directed Israel Horovitz's Lebensraum (1999 Barrymore Awards for Outstanding Direction of a Play, Outstanding Overall Production of a Play, and Outstanding Ensemble), It's All True (2001 Barrymore nominations for Outstanding Director and Outstanding Overall Production) and Permanent Collection (nominated for Outstanding Overall Production). He has twice been named "Best Director" by the Philadelphia Inquirer for both the world premiere of Thomas Gibbons' 6221 and for Lebensraum. Other favorite productions with InterAct include the Philadelphia premieres of Blue/Orange, Nixon's Nixon, Aunt Dan and Lemon, Lonely Planet, Seascape, and God's Country. Seth has also directed for the Fountain Theatre in Los Angeles, Blue Heron Theatre and the 45th Street Theatre in New York. His regional credits include work with Act II Playhouse, Venture Theatre, Philadelphia Theatre Company, Philadelphia Young Playwrights Festival, and the University of Pennsylvania.

Buck Schirner (as Frederick Salomon) was Barrymore nominated for Outstanding Supporting Actor for his role in InterAct Theatre's In the Heart of America. Other theatre credits include: A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum (Arden Theatre); Equus (Mum Puppet Theatre); Side Man and The Laramie Project (Philadelphia Theatre Company); The Drawer Boy (Montgomery Theater Company), Indian Ink (Wilma Theater); Taming of the Shrew (Lantern Theater Company); King Lear (Philadelphia Shakespeare Festival); The Passion of Dracula (Bermuda's Off-Broadway cast); Wenceslas Square (Caux, Switzerland's Blue Ridge Theatre Festival), Strange Snow (Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park), Of Mice and Men and many other shows (Boarshead Michigan Public Theater). Buck also narrates audio books for the Brilliance Audio label.

Leah Walton (as Hanna) makes her InterAct debut with SKIN IN FLAMES. Since moving to Philadelphia in 2004, she has appeared with Gas and Electric Arts, the Walnut Street Theatre, Pig Iron Theatre Co, Delaware Theatre Co, Mum Puppettheatre, Theatre Ariel among many others. Leah was most recently seen in Spring Awakening with EgoPo Productions, and continues to work with the company on its upcoming season. She trained at Ithaca College, the National Theatre Institute, and Moscow Art Theatre, and now teaches using the acting technique of Michael Chekhov.

Charlotte Northeast (as Ida) is a native of Canada and a graduate of Circle in the Square Theatre School in New York City. Favorite roles include Juliet at American Stage, Catherine (u/s) in Florida Studio Theatre's Proof, Lady Macbeth at Shakespeare on the Hudson, and Alais in Banyan Theatre's Lion in Winter. Philadelphia theatre: Tape (TOW Theatre), Street of Useful Things (Act II), Fat Pig (GreenLight), Love's Labor's Lost (CCTC). Film: 9.14 Pictures' Headspace, and Cowbell Films' Down with the Boogey. Up next: The Game of Love & Chance with CCTC.

Joe Guzman (as Dr. Brown) will also be featured in the production.

The design team for SKIN IN FLAMES includes Set Design by Matt Saunders, Costume Design by Karen Ledger, Lighting Design by Peter Whinnery and Props Design by Rowen Haigh. The production will be Stage Managed by Michele Traub, Assistant Directed by Paul Jerue and Assistant Stage Managed by Nicole Rolo. Andy Campbell will serve as Technical Director.

ABOUT INTERACT THEATRE COMPANY
Founded in 1988, InterAct is a theatre for today's world, producing new and contemporary plays that explore the social, political, and cultural issues of our time. InterAct's aim is to educate as well as entertain its audiences by producing world-class, thought-provoking productions, and by using theatre as a tool to foster positive social change. Through its artistic and educational programs InterAct seeks to make a significant contribution to the cultural life of Philadelphia and to the American theatre.

WHAT'S COMING UP NEXT AT INTERACT
InterAct celebrates its 20th Anniversary with its 2007/2008 Season. Opening in October 2007, the season will include Steven Dietz's THE LAST OF THE BOYS, October 19 - November 18, 2007; the World Premiere of Seth Rozin's BLACK GOLD, January 25 - February 24, 2008; Bryony Lavery's critically-acclaimed Broadway hit FROZEN, April 4 - May 4, 2008; and a currently untitled World Premiere play by Philadelphia playwright Larry Loebell that will run May 24 - June 23, 2008.

Season subscriptions for InterAct's 20th Anniversary season are currently available ranging from $60.00 - $108.00. Call InterAct's box office at 215-568-8079 or visit www.InterActTheatre.org.

Due to the nature of live theatre, play selection, performance and casting are subject to change.