Washington, DC – GALA continues its 34^th season, Under the Dome….¡A todo corazón! with Beauty of the Father/La belleza del padre by award-winning Nilo Cruz.  The production is performed in English with Spanish surtitles and will run February 4 through February 28, 2010 at GALA Theatre, 3333 14^th Street, NW.  Discounted parking is available at the Giant Food garage on Park Road, NW with GALA validation.

Beauty of the Father/La belleza del padre explores alienation, reconciliation, and romantic rivalry as  a father and daughter forge a familial bond.  Set by the seaside in Granada, Spain, Beauty finds Emiliano, a painter, visited by his long-estranged daughter Marina. Father and daughter become entangled in some intense relationships with Karim, a Moroccan immigrant, and Paquita, a free-spirited Spanish woman.  Deeper needs are revealed as the legendary poet Federico García Lorca and family secrets come to life. Poetry and imagery become acts of seduction.

“I was drawn to this play,” states director Abel Lopez, “because of the stunning beauty of Nilo’s language and his exploration of the possibilities and impossibility of love in the context of a nontraditional love story.  Through his characters, we see that love is complicated and difficult, but possible.  And through the tale he spins with the gentleness of the waves of the Mediterranean Sea, we redefine our notions of family and relationships based on love, sacrifice and acceptance.”

Performances of Beauty of the Father are Thursdays through Saturdays at 8 pm, and Sundays at 3 pm in English with Spanish surtitles.  Noche de GALA and Press Night is Saturday, February 6, and is made possible with support from Keystone Plus Construction, a Perdomo Group company.  A discussion with Nilo Cruz will be held Sunday, February 7 after the 3 pm performance.  The production is supported in part by the The Dramatists Guild Fund.

About the Playwright

Nilo Cruz is the author of Anna in the Tropics, which was presented on Broadway and received the 2003 Pulitzer Prize in Drama. His other works include Lorca in a Green Dress, Night Train to Bolina, A Bicycle Country, Dancing on Her Knees, A Park in Our House, Two Sisters and A Piano and Hortensia and The Museum of Dreams. Cruz is one of this country’s most produced Cuban-American writers; his work has been developed and performed at McCarter Theatre Center, NYSF/Public Theater, NY Theatre Workshop, New Theatre (Coral Gables), South Coast Repertory (Costa Mesa), Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Florida Stage, Alliance (Atlanta), Studio Theatre (Washington, D.C.), Magic Theatre (San Francisco), Victory Gardens (Chicago), Coconut Grove Playhouse (Miami), Children’s Theatre of Minneapolis, Lee Strasberg Theatre (L.A.), and Salt Lake Acting Company.  He has held residencies at the McCarter, the Public and the New Theatre in Miami. An alumnus of New Dramatists, Cruz has taught playwriting at Brown University, Yale School of Drama and the University of Iowa.  Cruz’s other awards include the 2003 American Theatre Critics/Steinberg New Play Award, TCG Artist in Residence Grant, Alton Jones Award, AT&T Award, Kesselring Prize, Barrie Stavis Award, and the Kennedy Center Fund for New American Plays. Beauty of the Father received its world premiere at Miami’s New Theatre. Mr. Cruz was born in Cuba and lives in New York City.

About the Production

Featured in the cast are Monalisa Arias, who appeared in La edad de la ciruela last season at GALA, and Norman Aronovic, who performed at GALA in Elliot, A Soldier’s Fugue, and in King of the Jews at Olney Theatre Center and The Heavens are Hung in Black at Ford’s Theatre.  Making their first appearance at GALA are Kerry Waters, who appeared in Elizabeth Rex at the Keegan Theatre and The Mai at Solas Nua; Dan Istrate, who most recently appeared as Dracula in Synetic Theater’s production of Dracula; and Lucas Beck, who recently was seen in Three Days of Rain and The Game of Love and Chance at 1^st Stage.

Abel López (Director) is GALA’s Associate Producing Director. He has helmed over 70 productions at GALA, including El Canuto del Rock, La edad de la ciruela, Agustin Lara: Boleros & Blues; Tu ternura molotov; Elliot: A Soldier’s Fugue, Los pecados de Sor Juana; Real Women Have Curves; Mexico: Noches bohemias; and El beso de la mujer araña. His productions have appeared at the In Series, Kennedy Center, Public Theater in New York, the Arizona Theatre Company, and Costa Rica, Venezuela, Cuba, and El Salvador.  He is the president of the board of directors of the National Association of Latino Arts and Culture, and past president of Theater Communications Group (TCG), Performing Arts Alliance, and the Helen Hayes Awards.

Set design is by Elizabeth J. McFadden, who designed sets for La edad de la ciruela and El mejor alcalde, el rey last season. Light design is by Jason Cowperthwaite, who designed El Canuto del Rock and Tu ternura molotov, and costumes are by Martin Schnellinger, who designed for La edad de la ciruela, El mejor alcalde, el rey and Momia en el closet~The Return of Eva Perón.  Sound design is by Brendon Vierra, who designed for Lucido and The True History of Coca-Cola in Mexico; and Properties Design is by Tessa Grippaudo.  Mel Bieler is Stage Manager, and Cecilia Cackley is Assistant Director; Mariana Osorio is Production Manager, Eric Lucas is Technical Director, and Hugo Medrano is Producer.

Ticket Information

Single tickets are $32 on Thursday and Sunday and $36 Friday and Saturday. Tickets for students, senior citizens (65+) and military are $20 (Thurs/Sun) and $26 (Fri/Sat). Additional discounts are available for groups of 10 or more. Tickets for Noche de GALA and Reception are $50.00 per individual, $90 per couple.

FOR TICKETS:  Call (800) 494-8497, (202) 234-7174, or visit www.galatheatre.org