Subscribe to our 2008 Season: Celebration Series Part I

We are proud of having been able to celebrate the works of ten remarkable writers since 1997. We've always wanted to give our audiences the opportunity to go back and revisit the works of all of these distinguished playwrights, covering the breadth of the 20th century. Our audiences will get to experience a side of familiar writers that they have not know before from the humble beginnings of legendary writer Tennessee Williams in Candles to the Sun to Lillian Hellman's introspective piece The Autumn Garden. This two-year celebration will honor these writers' artistic contributions to the theatrical world at large in portraying the human condition. For the past ten years, Eclipse Theatre Company has taken you on annual journeys through the works of some of the most powerful and acclaimed storytellers in theater. Join us as we celebrate this milestone as we revisit all ten of our amazing past featured playwrights in the 2008 and 2009 seasons with mainstage productions, staged readings, discussions, films and events that build on the experience of the past ten seasons and dig even deeper into the worlds that each of these distinguished writers have imagined.

Eclipse's 2008 Season: Celebration Series part I begins with a year-long celebration of five of Eclipse's past featured playwrights: Jean Cocteau (1997-1998), Tennessee Williams (1999), Lillian Hellman (2000), Neil Simon (2003) and Lanford Wilson (2005).

The 2008 Season: Celebration Series Part I

Candles to the Sun
A CHICAGO PREMIERE
by Tennessee Williams
Eclipse's 1999 featured playwright
Directed by ensemble member Steven Fedoruk

Eclipse Theatre's 2008 Season: Celebration Series part I begins by honoring the life and work of Tennessee Williams and opens with the Chicago premiere of Candles to the Sun. Before he became famous as Tennessee, Thomas Lanier Williams wrote Candles to the Sun, his first full-length play. This piece first opened on March 18, 1937, and was produced by The Mummers, a semi-professional and socially aware theatre troupe in St. Louis. Set during the great Depression in the Red Hills coal mining section of Alabama, Candles to the Sun deals with both the attempts of the miners to unionize and the bleak lives of their families. About the premiere, the St. Louis Dispatch said, "Williams is revealed not only as a writer of unusual promise but one of considerable technical skill." Recent Jeff-award winning director Steven Fedoruk who directed Eclipse's hit production of Blues for an Alabama Sky will return to direct Williams rarely produced piece!

Plaza Suite
by Neil Simon
Eclipse's 2003 featured playwright
Directed by ensemble member Steve Scott

One of Neil Simon's most popular and celebrated plays, Plaza Suite details the misadventures of three very different couples as they face crucial moments in their respective lives - all in the same hotel room in the world famous Plaza Hotel. Plaza Suite showcases Simon at his best - witty, clever and relentlessly funny. Goodman Theatre Associate Producer and long-time eclipse ensemble member, Steve Scott, will return to direct Simon's rip-roaring comedy!

The Autumn Garden
by Lillian Hellman
Eclipse's 2000 featured playwright
Directed by new artistic director Nathaniel Swift

First produced in 1951, The Autumn Garden is Hellman's most mature and emotionally honest play, with a rich cast of imperfect yet noble characters struggling to find comfort amidst the simple tragedy of being human. In this introspective and rarely produced play, old friends gather in a summer home to rediscover connections, rekindle lost relationships, and find peace - only to find that they can't escape from the choices of their past. Newly appointed and Jeff Award winning Artistic Director Nathaniel Swift returns to direct Hellman's masterpiece!

Also in our 2008 season:

The 2008 playwright scholar series:

The Jean Cocteau festival
Eclipse's 1997 featured playwright

Join us as we explore the films, plays and poems of Jean Cocteau with a series of performances, film showings and discussions focused on the French artist's fascinating life and tremendous body of artistic work. More details about this event will be announced soon!

The Lanford Wilson readings
Eclipse's 2005 featured playwright

Lanford Wilson has been a prolific and powerful writer throughout the second half of the twentieth century, exploring themes of alienation, loneliness and crumbling illusions. Join us for staged readings and discussions of Wilson's works and career. More details about this event will be announced soon! The playwright scholar series is a free program for all Eclipse subscribers!

For additional information concerning our 2008 season, please contact us at 312-738-0704 Subscriptions and individual tickets will go on sale soon. To request a 2008 subscription brochure to be mailed to you, please email us at info@eclipsetheatre.com

Subscribe today to our 2008 season for as little as $42.

• $42 per subscription for a 2 show pass (Your choice of 2 shows in 08 season)
• $42 per subscription for a Preview pass (3 shows on previews)
• $60 per subscription for a Flex pass (3 shows on any date in the 08 season)
• $75 per subscription for an Opening Night pass (3 shows on opening nights!)

Your subscription includes:

• Complete flexibility - Use your pass on any date of your choosing
• Savings - a savings of 20% off regular priced admission to our entire season
• Priority Seating - you'll get the seat of your choice just by reserving in advance
• Ticket/Parking Discounts - want to bring friends or family? They'll receive discounts when they accompany you to an Eclipse production! Enjoy parking discounts at Children's Memorial Hospital just steps away from the theatre!
• A Peek into the Process - You'll be invited to the playwright scholar series and post-show discussions to get the full Eclipse Experience!

Subscribe one of two ways:

• Download and print the Subscription Form (PDF). Fill in your information and mail it along with your check payable to Eclipse Theatre Company to our address: 2000 W. Fulton Ave. Chicago IL 60612.
• Call us at 312-738-0704 and leave your name and telephone number where we can contact you and one of our staff members will be in touch to place your order.