Players Workshop announces a season of ‘Love, Life and Laughter’

Players Workshop of Burlington is pleased to announce its 2019-20 regular season of shows, called Love, Life, and Laughter, which will be coming to the theater at 1431 Grove St., Burlington, beginning in September.

Opening the season will be a tribute to the late, great playwright Neil Simon, when the Workshop presents his comedy Prisoner of Second Avenue, under the direction of Matt Poling. The show is about a high-powered Manhattan advertising executive, who has to learn how to adapt to his altered lifestyle, when he loses his job, due his company's financial difficulties. According to the critic at The New York Post, Simon had 'A gift for taking a grave subject and, without losing sight of its basic seriousness, treating it with hearty but sympathetic humor... A talent for writing a wonderful funny line... full of humor and intelligence. Fine fun.” The production will be performed Sept. 27-19 and Oct. 3-6, 2019, with Linda Garwood producing

Coming up in December will be the classic holiday comedy, The Best Christmas Pageant Ever by Barbara Robinson. Libba Flores will direct, and Mary Fox will produce. Everyone is familiar with the concept of the annual church Christmas play. In Robinson's delightful comedy, an ordinary housewife/mother is roped into directing the annual church Christmas pageant, a job made more difficult when those 'awful” Herdman kids decide they are going to be in the show. Production dates are Dec. 6-8 and 12-15.

In February the Workshop will present Shirley Lauro's historical docudrama, The Radiant. Set in Paris a hundred years ago, The Radiant centers on the life of Madame Murie Curie, following the death of her husband, Pierre. Caught up in a 'scandalous” affair and fighting the bias against female scientists, she proves to be a survivor who goes on to discover and isolate radium, winning two Nobel Prizes and revolutionizing the world of science forever. Steve Poling will direct, with Robbin Poling producing. The show will be presented on Feb. 21-23 and Feb. 27-Mar. 1.

Closing the season on April 24-26 and April 30-May 3 will be Ken Ludwig's farce, A Fox on the Fareway, which takes audiences on a 'hilarious romp” as the Quail Valley Country Club prepares to take on arch-rival Crouching Squirrel in the annual country club golf tournament. With a sizable wager at stake, things get frantic with disappearing diamonds, love affairs/triangles, objectionable sweaters, and an exploding vase. Bonnie Downes will direct; Mary Krohlow will produce.

All shows for the season of Love, Life, and Laughter are presented with special permission from Samuel French, New York.

Season tickets will be mailed out Aug. 5, to previous season ticket holders; anybody wishing to purchase new season tickets or get more information about the season should contact Mary Krohlow at 319-752-8501. All shows Players Workshop is a 501(c)3 charitable, nonprofit organization. Information is also available on the Players Workshop Facebook page or at playersworkshoptheater.com.