North Coast Rep's "Travels With My Aunt" Promises an Inventive, Unforgettable Adventure

Solana Beach, CA, March 25, 2017 --(PR.com)-- North Coast Repertory Theatre continues Season 35 with "Travels With My Aunt," a 2015 New York Times Critic’s Pick that was hailed as “a triumph of theatrical style.” Giles Havergal adapted the Graham Greene novel about eccentric Aunt Augusta who swoops in and shakes up the life of her staid bourgeois nephew. The result is a life-changing, offbeat odyssey created by four astonishingly versatile actors who tackle more than 20 roles. Hang on to your umbrella and book passage now for this truly wondrous journey.

David Ellenstein directs James Saba,* David McBean,* Richard Baird,* and Benjamin Cole. The design team includes Marty Burnett (Scenic Design), Matthew Novotny (Lighting), Melanie Chen (Sound), Elisa Benzoni (Costumes), and Andrea Gutierrez (Props). Aaron Rumley* is the Stage Manager.

*The actor or stage manager appears through the courtesy of Actors’ Equity Association, the union of professional actors and stage managers in the United States. For background information and photos, go to www.northcoastrep.org/press.

Busy director David Ellenstein and his talented cast are available for interviews by phone, in person, and in- studio. For more information and to arrange interviews or press tickets, please contact Nancy Richards at nancy@northcoastrep.org, or 917-873-6389 cell.

"Travels With My Aunt" previews begin Wednesday, April 12. Opening Night on Saturday, April 15, at 8pm, includes a post-show reception. There will be a special talkback on Friday, April 21, with the cast and artistic director. It will play Wednesdays at 7pm, Thursdays through Saturdays at 8pm, Saturday and Sunday matinees at 2pm with Sundays at 7pm, through May 7, 2017. (See Schedule below.) North Coast Repertory Theatre is located at 987 Lomas Santa Fe Drive, Solana Beach, CA 92075. Tickets: Previews- $39, Week Nights - $46; Sat. Eve. & Sun. Mat.- $50; Sat. Mat. & Sun. Night - $43. Student Rush tickets available 15 minutes before curtain at $15 tickets, Military - $20 with active Military ID & Seniors $3 off admission. Call 858-481-1055 or visit www.northcoastrep.org to purchase tickets.

Bios:
Graham Greene (Playwright) was one of the most celebrated English novelists of his generation. His novels include The Man Within, Orient Express, Brighton Rock, The Power and The Glory, The Heart of the Matter, The End of the Affair, The Quiet American, Our Man in Havana, A Burnt-Out Case, The Comedians and Travels With My Aunt. He also wrote the travel books Journey Without Maps and The Lawless Roads, in addition to the screenplay for the film noir classic, The Third Man. Many of his books have been adapted into films, including a 1959 film adaption of Our Man in Havana starring Alec Guinness and two adaptations of The Quiet American, one in 1958 and again in 2002 with Michael Caine in an Oscar-nominated role. Born in 1904 and died in 1991, his life spanned almost the entire 20th century. He was awarded a Companion of Honor in 1966 and the very prestigious Order of Merit in 1986 for his contributions to our language's illustrious literary tradition.

Giles Havergal (Adaptor) was Director of the Citizens' Theatre Glasgow with Philip Prowse and Robert David MacDonald from 1969 to 2003. He acted and directed with the Citizen's Company. His adaptions include Travels With My Aunt which started at Citizens' and later played in London, where it won an Olivier Award, in New York, David Copperfield for Steppenwolf Theatre Company, Chicago, Les Liasons Dangereuses and The House of Mirth for American Conservatory Theater San Francisco (of which he is an associate artist). He has played his one man adaption of Death in Venice in Glasgow, New York and San Francisco. His work in opera includes productions for Welsh National Opera, Scottish Opera, Minnesota Opera, Vancouver, Wexford and Buxton. In October 2010 he directed a new version of The Merry Widow for Opera North.

David Ellenstein (Director) Born into a theatrical family, David has worked in theatres across the country. Before joining North Coast Rep in 2003 he served as Artistic Director for the Los Angeles Repertory Company and the Arizona Jewish Theatre Company (AJTC). A veteran of over 250 theatrical productions, directorial favorites include: North Coast Rep – The Illusion, Hedda Gabler, Way Downriver: William Faulkner’s ‘Old Man’, Sherlock Holmes and the Adventure of the Great Nome Gold Rush (World Premiere), Freud’s Last Session, Side by Side By Sondheim, Words By Ira Gershwin, Faded Glory (World Premiere), Mandate Memories (World Premiere), Becoming Cuba (World Premiere), Time Stands Still, Words by: Ira Gershwin and the Great American Songbook (World Premiere), Two by Pinter: The Lover and The Dumb Waiter, HENRY IV Part 1, Heroes, My Name is Asher Lev, The Drawer Boy, Becky’s New Car, Ghosts, The Tempest, Talley’s Folly, Over the Tavern, Old Wicked Songs, The Dresser, Jacques Brel is Alive and Well and Living in Paris, Madagascar, A Shayna Maidel, The Honky Tonk Angels, Rashomon, A Moon for the Misbegotten; Tuesdays With Morrie; Collected Stories; Halpern and Johnson; Romeo and Juliet; Amy’s View; Einstein Comes Through (also co-author); The Chosen; A Life in the Theatre; Story Theatre and Charley’s Aunt. Other theatres: Coconut Grove Playhouse, Papermill Playhouse, Portland Stage. Renaissance Theatre, Actor’s Theatre of Phoenix, Alabama Shakespeare Festival, Laguna Playhouse, Southwest Shakespeare Company, AJTC, Meadow Brook Theatre, Portland Rep and Gaslamp Quarter Theatre.