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April 13–May 14
Talking Heads
By Alan Bennett

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These six short plays by British master Alan Bennett will be presented in alternating programs (three plays at each performance). Patricia Kilgarriff and Helena Ruoti star in tour de force roles, directed by Tracy Brigden.

City Theatre presents Alan Bennett’s Talking Heads from April 13 through May 14, 2006 in City Theatre’s intimate Lester Hamburg Studio. Directed by City Theatre Artistic Director Tracy Brigden, Talking Heads stars New York-based actress Patricia Kilgarriff and Pittsburgh’s own Helena Ruoti. The design team is Anne Mundell (Scenic), Michael McAleer (Costumes), Andy David Ostrowski (Lighting), and Elizabeth Atkinson (Sound).

In each of Alan Bennett’s short plays, one character tells us her story. We see things through the narrator’s eyes of course, but thanks to Bennett’s brilliant craft we are also aware of the characters’ faults and foibles—even if they are not. Bennett’s pieces are richly detailed, sharply observant, often hilarious, and always packed with emotional truth.

Program A

• In A Lady of Letters, Miss Ruddock sees her letter writing as a public service—until a tragic twist brings its own special delivery. Performed by Patricia Kilgarriff.
• Movie-making is skewered in Her Big Chance as Lesley bares her soul, and much more, for her art. Performed by Helena Ruoti.
• Celia thinks she has her finger on the pulse of the antiques business in The Hand of God, but in this case she really misses a beat. Performed by Patricia Kilgarriff.

Program B

• For Rosemary, love blooms in unexpected circumstances in Nights in the Gardens of Spain. Performed by Helena Ruoti.
• She’s always favored a conservative approach, but things really get turned around when Miss Fozzard Finds Her Feet. Performed by Patricia Kilgarriff.
• After the Vicar’s wife Susan takes a tumble while arranging the altar flowers, she knows she has a problem. A solution is found in a Bed Among the Lentils. Performed by Helena Ruoti.

Alan Bennett most recently wrote the acclaimed play The History Boys, which opens on Broadway in April. The History Boys ran at London’s National Theatre in 2004 and received the Evening Standard and Critics’ Circle Awards for Best Play and the Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Play. The History Boys is currently being made into a movie. Bennett’s career began in 1960 when he co-wrote and performed in the satirical review Beyond the Fringe. Since then he has written for stage, film, television, radio and print, and has been described as the most English of English writers. His plays include Forty Years On, Getting On, Habeas Corpus, The Old Country, Enjoy, Kafka’s Dick, A Visit from Miss Prothero, Single Spies (An Englishman Abroad and A Question of Attribution), an adaptation of The Wind in the Willows, and The Lady in the Van. Bennett’s play The Madness of George III was made into the Oscar-nominated movie The Madness of King George. He also wrote the screenplay for the film Prick Up Your Ears. Bennett recently published a book of memoirs called Untold Stories. In 2005, he was also awarded an Olivier Award for Outstanding Contribution to British Theatre.

Preview Week Performance Schedule
Thurs. & Fri. April 13 & 14 at 8 pm
Sat. April 15 at 5:30 pm
Sun. April 16 & Tues. April 18 at 7 pm

Opening Night of Program A is Wed., April 19 at 8pm.
Opening Night of Program B is Fri., April 21 at 8pm.

Regular Run Schedule
Tuesdays at 7 pm
Wednesdays thru Fridays at 8 pm
Saturdays at 5:30 & 9 pm
Sundays at 2 pm

Tickets
$15 to $40
Students and age 25 and younger may reserve $15 tickets in advance.
Senior rush (age 60 and older) begins at the Box Office two hours before showtime.

To buy tickets, call the Box Office at 412.431.CITY or click here to buy online.