Arena Stage Offers ‘Out at the Arena’
Arena Stage will present the first “Out at the Arena” reception night of the 2004-2005 season at 8 p.m. Friday with a presentation of “M. Butterfly.”
Out at the Arena nights are held on select Fridays and provide the gay and lesbian audience with a post-performance discussion with the cast and a reception.
David Henry Hwang’s play was inspired by the opera “Madama Butterfly.” “M. Butterfly,” which won the 1988 Tony Award for Best Play of the Year, is based on a true story of international espionage and an affair between a French diplomat and a Chinese opera star.
The second Out at the Arena reception night is the Oct. 29 showing of Nilo Cruz’s “Anna in the Tropics.” The play is set in South Florida in the 1920s. It follows Cuban cigar factory workers whose lives become entwined with the story of “Anna Karenina.”
“M. Butterfly” will be at the Arena Stage through Oct. 17. “Anna in the Tropics” will be at the Arena Stage from Oct. 1 through Nov. 21.
Other Out at the Arena reception nights scheduled for the 2004-2005 season are “The Importance of Being Earnest” on Dec. 10; “Hallelujah, Baby!” on Jan. 21, 2005; “Intimations for Saxophone” on Feb. 18, 2005; “The Goat or Who is Sylvia?” on April 8, 2005; “The Piano Lesson” on April 29, 2005; and “Anna Christie” on June 10, 2005.
Arena Stage is located at 1101 Sixth St. SW. Ticket prices range from $45 to $66. The Out at the Arena reception is an additional $10.
For more information, go to www.arenastage.org or call (202) 488-4377.
— Sarah Goldstein