InterAct Theatre Company proudly announces its 22nd Mainstage Season, which will begin performances in October 2009 and will feature three World Premieres, including a thought-provoking new play set in the larger-than-life world of professional wrestling, a one man tour de force drama compiled from interviews with Philadelphians affected by violent crime, a play commissioned by InterAct from Tony Award-winning playwright Lee Blessing, as well as the regional premiere of a poignant new drama featuring a cappella music.

ABOUT THE 2009/2010 SEASON
InterAct Theatre opens its 22nd season with the World Premiere of THE ELABORATE ENTRANCE OF CHAD DEITY by Kristoffer Diaz. Produced as “theatre in the ring,” CHAD DEITY will be performed at Philadelphia Shakespeare Theatre, marking the company’s first production away from InterAct’s artistic home on the Mainstage at The Adrienne since moving there in 1997. Set in the larger-than-life world of professional wrestling and fueled by rich, urban language, CHAD DEITY pits long-time reigning T.H.E. Wrestling champion, Chad Diety, against Vigneshwar Paduar, a trash-talking, Indian-born athlete recruited from the streets of Brooklyn. Casting the young upstart as an anti-hero extremist from “over there” who intends to catapult himself to fame by overthrowing the “all-American” Chad Deity, T.H.E. Wrestling’s C.E.O. envisions a showdown that will intensify wrestling fans’ fear of terrorism and globalization in order to to mass marketing an epic battle of Good vs. Evil. THE ELABORATE ENTRANCE OF CHAD DEITY will feature Juan Pacheco and will be directed by Seth Rozin and will run October 23 through November 22, 2009.

In January 2010, InterAct will present the World Premiere production of CITY OF NUMBERS: MIXTAPE OF A CITY…. Orginating out of a collaboration between InterAction, InterAct’s education program, and the City of Philadelphia’s Mural Arts program (funded by a grant from the Violette de Mazia Foundation), CITY OF NUMBERS was created by playwright Sean Christopher Lewis as part of an outreach effort in which he interviewed lifetime inmates at Graterford prison about their work as mural artists. From its early beginnings, CITY OF NUMBERS has grown into a dynamic one-man tour de force performance that interweaves the stories of dozens of Philadelphians - from convicted murderers to victims' relatives to physicians to artists to community leaders to Mayor Michael Nutter. As a sobering, moving and, ultimately, uplifting portrait of a city gripped by violent crime, CITY OF NUMBERS reveals both the sharp divisions and deep sense of community that define the City of Brotherly Love. Directed by Seth Rozin, CITY OF NUMBERS begins January 22 and runs through February 21, 2010.

The season then continues with the World Premiere of WHEN WE GO UPON THE SEA, a provocative new play by Tony Award-winning playwright Lee Blessing, which was commissioned by InterAct in 2008 through its 20/20 New Play Commission program. Set in a high-end hotel room at The Hague, WHEN WE GO UPON THE SEA imagines former President George W. Bush on the eve of his trial for international war crimes. Tended to by an inscrutable Dutch butler and an alluring masseuse, the President embarks on a long night of drinking, joking and ruminating, revealing along the way his most deeply held beliefs – that the American people crave a kind of paternal leadership; that we simultaneously love and fear our leaders, and, ultimately, unintentionally deify them. WHEN WE GO UPON THE SEA takes aim at an American populace that has grown strikingly complacent in the wake of extraordinary global challenges, ultimately revealing the world’s most intriguing and influential conflict: the battle between the elected leader of the free world and a democracy of millions. InterAct’s WHEN WE GO UPON THE SEA will be directed by Paul Meshejian and will run April 9 – May 9, 2010.

InterAct’s season concludes with the regional premiere of BLACK PEARL SINGS!, Frank Higgins’ play with music that follows the journey of two extraordinary women – one African American, one Caucasian – each of whom is dependent on the other to gain acceptance in society. In depression-era Texas, Susannah, a song collector for the Library of Congress, tracks down Pearl, a woman imprisoned for murder, hoping to record the treasure trove of spirituals and African folk songs that only Pearl knows. But after Susannah bargains for Pearl’s parole and arranges for her to perform at several public events, the two find themselves walking a delicate line between exposure and exploitation. Featuring beautiful, live a capella renditions of little-known American folk songs, BLACK PEARL SINGS! chronicles a powerful story about being a woman in a man’s world, being Black in a White world, and losing one’s soul in a world where anyone can be a commodity. Directed by Seth Rozin and featuring C. Kelly Wright, BLACK PEARL SINGS! runs May 28 through June 27, 2010.

SHOW TIMES, LOCATIONS, SUBSCRIPTIONS & TICKET INFORMATION
Performances during InterAct Theatre Company's 2008/2009 Season 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. Performances of THE ELABORATE ENTRANCE OF CHAD DEITY will be held at The Philadelphia Shakespeare Theatre, 2111 Sansom Street, Philadelphia, PA. All other performances will be held on the mainstage of The Adrienne, 2030 Sansom Street, Philadelphia, PA.

Early Bird discounts are available now through July 3, 2009 on subscriptions for InterAct’s 22nd Season. For Early Bird Subscribers, 4-show subscriptions for preview performances are $54.00, weekday performances are $86.00, and Opening Night or weekend performances are $101.00. Early Bird subscribers also save the $5.00 handling fee, which is being waived through Friday, July 3. Beginning Monday, July 6, 4-show subscriptions will be regularly priced at $58 for preview performances, $90 for weekday performances, and $104 for weekend performances. Additional discounts on subscriptions for seniors (65 and older) and students (with valid I.D.) are available. Subscription purchases may be made by calling InterAct’s box office at 215-568-8079, visiting InterAct’s website at www.InterActTheatre.org or by dropping by InterAct’s offices at The Adrienne, 2030 Sansom St., Philadelphia.

Individual tickets will go on sale Tuesday, September 8, 2009. Tickets for preview performances will be $16.00; Tuesday through Thursday performances will be $25.00; and Friday & Saturday evenings and Sunday matinees are $29.00. InterAct offers discounts for seniors (65 and older) and students (with valid I.D.). Group rates are also available, and students with proper I.D. may purchase Rush Tickets for $10.00 five minutes before curtain (based on availability).

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.

In addition to the 4-play mainstage season, InterAct Theatre’s major programming includes InterAction, a program of experiential workshops and residencies in area schools that utilize theatre as a tool to illuminate pressing social problems in the community; the 20/20 New Play Commissioning program, an ambitious new initiative that will award twenty new play commissions over six seasons; New Play Development, working closely with playwrights to develop plays that adhere to the company's mission; and the Kaki Marshall Arts and Community Award, an annual fundraising event that recognizes individuals who have made significant contributions to the lively arts in Philadelphia.

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