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Dear Elizabeth
June 6, 2017 @ 7:30 am PDT
Dear Elizabeth
by Sarah Ruhl
A moving, innovative reading Starring Sylvia Short, John Fink, and Meredith Baxter
A benefit for Center Stage Theater. Reception on the patio pre & post-show.
A play in letters from Elizabeth Bishop to Robert Lowell and back again. Based on the compiled letters between poets Robert Lowell and Elizabeth Bishop, Sarah Ruhl expresses the beauty in simple correspondence. Brought to life by reading Words in Air: The Complete Correspondence Between Elizabeth Bishop and Robert Lowell, Ruhl maps the relationship of the two poets from first meeting to an abbreviated affair and the turmoil of their lives in between. Their correspondence included more than 400 letters shared from shortly after their meeting in 1947 through Lowell’s sudden death from a heart attack in 1977. The play is charming, funny, touching and a beautiful exploration of an enduring friendship.
This reading will be performed by Sylvia Short, John Fink and Meredith Baxter.
The performance is a benefit for Center Stage Theater. All proceeds will support Center Stage’s general operating fund and Rental Subsidy Grants. Join us before and after the show for a reception on the patio.
REVIEWS
“Ms. Ruhl has excerpted [Robert Lowell and Elizabeth Bishop’s] long correspondence…with a fine ear for emotional detail and the glistening phrase.” – The New York Times
“…the language in the piece often soars, with the writing of even routine missives achieving a, yes, poetic quality… thanks to Dear Elizabeth, [Elizabeth Bishop] and Robert Lowell have come back to affecting life.” – Hollywood Reporter,
“Ruhl delicately explores, through nothing more than the letters and her own theatrical imagination, the solitude of the artist, the exactitude of the writer’s craft, the balance between confession and privacy and, in the end, why poetry matters.” – Variety
TIMES: Tuesday, June 6 at 7:30 P.M.
TICKETS: $20 suggested donation, $150 sponsor (includes 2 tickets and VIP seating)
All seating is general admission. All ticket sales are final at the time of purchase. There are no refunds or exchanges. For all performances late seating is on a limited basis, or is not allowed at all once the performance begins. Please plan your arrival time accordingly.
BOX OFFICE: (805) 963-0408 (V/TDD)
or centerstagetheater.org
At Center Stage Theater
751 Paseo Nuevo
Santa Barbara, California