Theatre Jacksonville opens its Mainstage season on November 7 with the beloved Neil Simon classic Barefoot in the Park. Made famous by the film version starring Robert Redford and Jane Fonda, this romantic comedy about two newlyweds with opposite temperaments has delighted theater audiences for many decades. Straightlaced lawyer Paul and free-spirited Corie learn to work through their growing pains, honor their love for each other and appreciate their differences.

            “Barefoot in the Park was the second play Neil Simon wrote, but it still rings true with its witty and sweet portrayal of love and acceptance,” said Theatre Jacksonville Executive Director Sarah Boone. “This is a timely production that also pays honor to the impeccable portrayal of Paul by the late Robert Redford, who originated the role on Broadway before he was cast in the movie.”
            Barefoot in the Park will be directed by Tyler Leeps and features Brent Mulberry, Paul Neace, Jackson Wesley Vaughn, Gloria Ware and Rebekah Wood. Shows will run from Nov. 7 through 23, with evening performances at 7:30 p.m. and three matinee performances at 2 p.m. on Nov. 16, 22 and 23. The last Saturday performance of each show will be a 2 p.m. matinee.         
            Other Mainstage productions will include:
¨     Packing Up Polly by Leslie Kimbell, opening January 16 – Polly Porter, a famous 1970s gospel singer, has gone on up to heaven – but there’s one surprise for her daughter Caroline: Polly was an extreme hoarder. Many laughs, screams and tears ensue as Caroline and her three best friends attempt to pack up the house.
¨     Ken Ludwig’s Dear Jack, Dear Louise by Ken Ludwig, opening February 27 – Two strangers meet by letter during WWII and fall in love, as Tony Award-winning playwright Ludwig tells the story of his parents’ heartwarming courtship.
¨     Play On by Rick Abbot, opening April 17 – This comedy of a play within a play is a zany love letter to community theater, as a theater group tries and fails while a haughty author keeps revising the script.
¨     Sondheim on Sondheim with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, conceived and directed by James

Lapine, opening June 5 – The genius songwriter Stephen Sondheim is celebrated with his own songs amid a framework of exclusive and in-depth video interviews.
Season memberships and subscriptions are available at three levels:
·      All-Access Memberships include tickets for the entire Theatre Jacksonville season, including Mainstage productions and all Extra productions.
·      Season Subscriptions include one ticket to each of the five Mainstage productions. Tickets will be extra for other special productions.
·      Single tickets are offered on a show-by-show basis and will be $31 each.  
 

Prices are as follows:
All-Access Membership
Individual Adult Member (18-59 years old): $170
Individual Senior/Military Member (60+ or military ID): $150
All individual memberships receive one complimentary All-Access Pass that includes all Theatre Jacksonville season productions including  Seasons Extra. Additional show tickets will cost $22, as available.

Season Subscription
Individual Adult Member (18-59 years old): $140
Individual Senior/Military Member (60+ or military ID): $120
All individual subscriptions receive one complimentary ticket for each of the five Theatre Jacksonville Mainstage productions (does not include Season Extras). Additional show tickets will cost $25, as available.

For more information about Barefoot in the Park or the 106th season, visit www.theatrejax.com.

About Theatre Jacksonville
Theatre Jacksonville was founded in 1919 as The Little Theatre of Jacksonville, with the capital for the 1938 construction of the historic facility donated by Carl S. Swisher. It was reincorporated as Theatre Jacksonville in 1969 and named to the National Register of Historic Places in 1991. Theatre Jacksonville has provided 106 years of uninterrupted community theater in Jacksonville.

Theatre Jacksonville’s mission is to enrich lives and broaden cultural understanding through community participation in theater arts. In addition to providing more than 100 performances each season of outstanding community theater featuring a regional cast of exceptionally talented playwrights, musicians, actors, designers and stagehands, Theatre Jacksonville reaches hundreds of students each year through summer camps, classes, field trips and in-school presentations.  

Theatre Jacksonville also uses art to advance issues of local concern. From supporting veterans to nurturing arts and recreation, it fosters community partnerships to advance the culture, health and well-being of Jacksonville. As Theatre Jacksonville anticipates its future, it also seeks to build a strong operational foundation to ensure that, just as endowed funds support the theater building, endowed funds will support theater operations.

For more information or to donate, visit www.theatrejax.com.
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