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Oct. 8, 2007/FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Media Contact: productionpr@ncarts.edu, Kathryn Pugh, 336-734-2924 TONY-NOMINATED “BEST PLAY” TO BE PERFORMED AT NCSA August Wilson’s “Gem of the Ocean,” Oct. 18-21 and 24-27
WINSTON-SALEM -- Gem of the Ocean, the first installation in a 10-play series by August Wilson about the African-American experience in the 20^th century, will open the 2007-2008 season at the North Carolina School of the Arts on Oct. 18. Nominated for a Tony Award for Best Play in 2005, Gem of the Ocean will be performed at 8 p.m. Oct. 18-20 and 24-27 and at 2 p.m. Oct. 21 and 27 in the Catawba Theatre of Performance Place on the NCSA campus, 1533 South Main St., Winston-Salem. Tickets are $12 for adults and $10 for students and seniors. For more information or to order tickets, call the NCSA Box Office at (336) 721-1945 or visit www.ncarts.edu/performances.	Michele Shay and Kristopher Alexander
In Gem of the Ocean, Aunt Ester, a family matriarch, possesses 285 years of wisdom and is said to be able to “wash people’s souls.” The play’s conflicted character, Citizen Barlow, seeks Aunt Ester’s help after finding himself distraught over the death of a co-worker. Citizen also has a secret to reveal. Together he and Aunt Ester venture to the City of Bones to confront his “secret” head on. The story concludes with a stirring scene of anticipation, dismissal, and tragedy. Tony-nominated and Obie Award-winner Michele Shay was first invited by NCSA to guest direct Blues for an Alabama Sky and Seven Guitars. *She now returns to both direct and perform in Gem of the Ocean.* Shay is a graduate of Carnegie Mellon University and has performed in film, television, regional theatre, and on and off-Broadway productions. Before his untimely death in 2005, August Wilson received numerous awards including two Pulitzer Prizes for his plays Fences and The Piano Lesson, a Tony Award for Fences, and numerous New York Drama Critics Circle Awards. Wilson was also a Guggenheim Fellow, Rockefeller Fellow, and a Heinz Award recipient. The North Carolina School of the Arts was the first state-supported, residential performing arts school in the nation. Today, it is a leading conservatory of international renown, offering professional training for careers in the performing, visual, and moving image arts. ###
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Oct. 8, 2007/FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Media Contact: productionpr@ncarts.edu, Kathryn Pugh, 336-734-2924

TONY-NOMINATED “BEST PLAY” TO BE PERFORMED AT NCSA
August Wilson’s “Gem of the Ocean,” Oct. 18-21 and 24-27

WINSTON-SALEM -- Gem of the Ocean, the first installation in a 10-play series by August Wilson about the African-American experience in the 20^th century, will open the 2007-2008 season at the North Carolina School of the Arts on Oct. 18.

Nominated for a Tony Award for Best Play in 2005, Gem of the Ocean will be performed at 8 p.m. Oct. 18-20 and 24-27 and at 2 p.m. Oct. 21 and 27 in the Catawba Theatre of Performance Place on the NCSA campus, 1533 South Main St., Winston-Salem. Tickets are $12 for adults and $10 for students and seniors. For more information or to order tickets, call the NCSA Box Office at (336) 721-1945 or visit www.ncarts.edu/performances.

Michele Shay and
Kristopher Alexander

In Gem of the Ocean, Aunt Ester, a family matriarch, possesses 285 years of wisdom and is said to be able to “wash people’s souls.” The play’s conflicted character, Citizen Barlow, seeks Aunt Ester’s help after finding himself distraught over the death of a co-worker. Citizen also has a secret to reveal. Together he and Aunt Ester venture to the City of Bones to confront his “secret” head on. The story concludes with a stirring scene of anticipation, dismissal, and tragedy.

Tony-nominated and Obie Award-winner Michele Shay was first invited by NCSA to guest direct Blues for an Alabama Sky and Seven Guitars. She now returns to both direct and perform in Gem of the Ocean. Shay is a graduate of Carnegie Mellon University and has performed in film, television, regional theatre, and on and off-Broadway productions.

Before his untimely death in 2005, August Wilson received numerous awards including two Pulitzer Prizes for his plays Fences and The Piano Lesson, a Tony Award for Fences, and numerous New York Drama Critics Circle Awards. Wilson was also a Guggenheim Fellow, Rockefeller Fellow, and a Heinz Award recipient.

The North Carolina School of the Arts was the first state-supported, residential performing arts school in the nation. Today, it is a leading conservatory of international renown, offering professional training for careers in the performing, visual, and moving image arts.

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