Act II Playhouse follows up its critically acclaimed season opener Stones in His Pockets with the regional premiere of an award-winning new play, Magnetic North. Act II Producing Artistic Director Bud Martin directs this drama by William Donnelly, on stage Oct. 21-Nov. 16 (press opening is Oct. 24).

In Magnetic North, winner of the 2006 Clauder Competition for New England Playwrights, a young husband meets a woman from his past during a period of crisis in his marriage, bringing half-forgotten urges and uncertain intentions to the surface. Between the lure of the past and the need for connection, four very real people struggle to make sense of mixed signals and how much truth they need-or want-to hear.

Sarah Shahinian, who played the young bride in Married Alive!, returns to Act II play the wife; Barrymore nominee Christie Parker, Brad Heikes and Paul Felder round out an all-star cast.

"This play is like an onion", said director Martin. "We keep peeling away new layers throughout the rehearsal process. What 'attracted' me to this play was how well Bill articulated our struggle to resist the temptations and 'tug' of people and events in our lives that pull us away from our true north. It is emotionally engaging, but very subtle, and a wonderful piece for actors as the characters fight to behave the opposite way they feel and yet show the audience all of those layers."

Donnelly, who attended the first rehearsal for Magnetic North earlier this week, said the idea for the play came from a real-life situation in which he met up with woman he dated in college. "I wondered what impact the meeting would have had it it wasn't a completely uncontroversial situation," said Donnelly. Much to his surprise, the play veered off in a direction he wasn't expecting.

Magnetic North had its world premiere this past April at Portland Stage Company, where it was well-received by both press and audience. The Portland Press Herald noted that "Donnelly does a superb job infusing an entertaining dose of wit among serious themes of intimacy, uncertainty, suspicion and fidelity. The combination of poignant drama and laugh-out-loud humor lends a realistic quality to the play that many patrons will easily identify with."

The production team includes set designer Dirk Durossette, costume designer Wade Laboissonnier, sound designer Mark Valenzuela and lighting designer James Leitner, who won a Barrymore Award for Best Lighting for Act II Playhouse's 2004 production of Mary's Wedding.

The final dress rehearsal of Magnetic North, which Act II opens to the public as a fundraiser for a local charity, will be held on Sunday, Oct. 19 at 2 p.m., followed by a talkback. Suggested donation is $10, and all contributions will go to the Abington Chapter of the Compassionate Friends, Inc., which assists area familes with grief resolution following the death of a child.

Three preview performances will be held Oct. 21-23, with tickets discounted at $20. Talkbacks will be held after the first two 8 p.m. previews, as well as on Thursday, Oct. 30 at 8 p.m. and Sunday, Nov. 9 at 2 p.m. Opening night is Oct. 24, followed by a reception.

Tickets are $25 for all Wednesday-Thursday performances and $30 for Friday through Sunday shows, with discounts available for groups of 10 or more. Tickets are available by calling the Act II Box Office at (215) 654-0200, in person at 56 E. Butler Ave., or online at www.act2.org.

ABOUT ACT II PLAYHOUSE
Act II Playhouse, celebrating 10 years of professional theatre in the Philadelphia suburb of Ambler, PA, is committed to creating world-class theatre in a venue whose intimacy draws audiences and actors into dynamic interrelation. Act II produces new, classic, and contemporary plays and musicals that reflect the highest artistic standards, under the direction of Bud Martin (Producing Artistic Director) and Harriet Power (Associate Artistic Director).

ABOUT THE PLAYWRIGHT
Massachusetts-based playwright William Donnelly's plays have been produced by Portland Stage Company (Portland, ME), the Unicorn Theatre (Kansas City), Blue Forms (Columbus, OH), Mad Cat (Miami), Theater Alliance (Washington, D.C), and several Boston-area companies including Industrial Theatre, Rough & Tumble, Mill 6, and Alarm Clock. A number of his short plays have appeared in the Boston Theatre Marathon and are published in Baker's Plays anthologies of the event. He was a contributor to Alarm Clock Theatre Company's Elliot Norton Award-winning play, P.S. Page Me Later. He has twice been named a Clauder Competition Finalist and has had plays read as part of Portland Stage Company's Little Festival of the Unexpected. His play Apocalypso! was published as part of the 2002 Little Fest anthology. In 2005, he was awarded a Playwriting/New Theatre Works grant from the Massachusetts Cultural Council. Magnetic North was named the 2006 Clauder Competition grand prize winner. Bill is a member of the Dramatists Guild.

ARTISTIC PROFILES

CHRISTIE PARKER (Mara) is thrilled to performing for the first time at Act II Playhouse. She was last seen at the Philadelphia Shakespeare Festival last Spring in Pericles (Thaisa). She has also been seen there playing Desdemona in Othello and received a Barrymore Nomination for her performance. Other credits in Philadelphia include: Philadelphia, in Pig Iron's Mission to Mercury, (2006 Barrymore for Best Ensemble in a Musical), Arden Theater's production of Proof (2004 Best Supporting Actress Nominee), Lantern Theater's The Comedy of Errors (Barrymore for Best Ensemble, 2004), Brat production's The Designated Mourner and A Midsummer Night's Dream, and Theater Exile's production of Princess Ivona.

SARAH SHAHINIAN (Leigh) Sarah is thrilled to be back at Act II Playhouse, after having played "Erin" in Married Alive! Credits include: "Ado Annie" in OKLAHOMA! (Fulton Opera House and Broadway National Tour), Picnic at Hanging Rock (Lincoln Center), Oedipus at Colonus (Handcart Ensemble), Beauty & the Beast (Belle), I SING! (Heidi - Philadelphia premiere), and South Pacific (Nellie). NYU Tisch Graduate. www.sarahshahinian.com.

BRAD HEIKES (James) is very excited about working on this incredible script with Bud and the gang, and finally working with Sarah! Broadway: Pygmalion. Other NY: Mister Roberts (Roundabout Staged Reading, with Alec Baldwin); Battle at Nong Son (L./Cpl. Michael O. Harris, The Actors Studio). Favorite Regional: Noises Off (Frederick, C-R Productions); Glimmerglass, World Premiere! (Harry March, SBT); Working (Tom, Emmett Robinson Theater). www.bradheikes.com

PAUL FELDER (Emmett) - This is Paul's first production with Act II Playhouse and he is honored to work with them. Paul is a recent graduate of the University of the Arts, where he received a BFA in Acting. His most recent credits include Dennis in This Is Our Youth with his best friends and colleagues, Theatre Revolution, Raul in Extremities with New City Stage Company. Paul will be playing Barry Champlain in Talk Radio this December, also with New City Stage Company.

BUD MARTIN (Director) taught theatre in high school, college and graduate school and directed plays at Villanova and St. Joseph Universities before embarking on a professional producing and directing career in 1978. He produced and directed Off-Broadway, national tours, (including the late Pearl Bailey's one-woman show), and regional theatre before entering the world of corporate finance in 1982. Bud is thrilled to be back in the theatre and bringing his business and finance experience, along with his creative energies, to Act II Playhouse, where he most recently directed the very successful Married Alive! He produced and directed Michael Friel's highly acclaimed play, The Children of Fatima, for Theatre Catalyst in Philadelphia. Martin also produced George Stiles' (Honk!, Tom Jones, Mary Poppins) new musical adventure, The Three Musketeers at Chicago Shakespeare Theatre, and North Shore Music Theatre is now preparing it for production in London next year. He is a producing partner on Dolly Parton's new musical version of 9 to 5, scheduled to move from Los Angeles to Broadway in the Spring of 2009, and is working on a number of new play development projects for commercial production.