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Yorkshire’s leading role on Broadway
Wednesday, 18 November 2009
YORKSHIRE is playing a starring role on Broadway this winter as the latest Alan Ayckbourn play, My Wonderful Day, transfers direct from Scarborough to New York.
It is the first time an Ayckbourn world premiere has transferred immediately to America prior to its UK tour and it is being eagerly anticipated by New York theatre goers and organisers of the Brits off Broadway festival, where Ayckbourn has played before to critical acclaim.
The play, written and directed by Ayckbourn, is about a girl called Winnie who while off school for the day decides to write her essay assignment entitled, My Wonderful Day. What better source of material than the bizarre and increasingly frenetic comings and goings of adults in the weird household in which she finds herself?
Gary Verity, chief executive of Welcome to Yorkshire, the tourism agency which has helped take the play to New York, said:
“Alan Ayckbourn is one of the UK’s most prolific and successful playwrights. We are proud that he has adopted Yorkshire as his home and that the region has played such an important role in his life. He helps to put Yorkshire on the map for international audiences so we are proud to be able to play a part in taking his latest work to America and look forward to encouraging his many international fans to spend some wonderful days in our wonderful county.”
The premiere in New York is particularly poignant as this year marks the 50th anniversary of the staging of Ayckbourn’s first play, The Square Cat. My Wonderful Day is Ayckbourn’s 73rd play and transfers from the Stephen Joseph Theatre in Scarborough where he was artistic director between 1972 and 2009. The play is being shown at the 59E59 Theatres in New York until 13th December.
The Stephen Joseph Theatre’s relationship with 59E59 Theatres began in 2005 with the transfer of Ayckbourn’s production of Private Fears in Public Places from Scarborough and grew in 2007 with the transfer of Ayckbourn’s eight-play series Intimate Exchanges. Both plays were highly successful, receiving critical and public acclaim and nominations for the prestigious Drama Desk Awards.
- Ends -
• Welcome to Yorkshire is the official tourism agency for Yorkshire and the Humber region. It exists to represent and help generate sustainable business for the region's tourism industry which is worth £6.3bn to the region annually.
Our website
www.yorkshire.com recently won Best Tourist Board website
• Welcome to Yorkshire is supported by Yorkshire Forward, the Regional Development Agency charged with improving the Yorkshire and Humber economy.
For further information please contact:
Andrew Denton - Press Officer
Email:
adenton@yorkshire.com
Direct Line: 0113 3223537
Mobile: 07855 812094
Dee Marshall - Head of Communications
Email:
dmarshall@yorkshire.com
Direct Line: 0113 3223505
Mobile: 07950 325 901
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