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February 9, 2007

UMBC Department of Theatre Presents Lecture by Lee Breuer

Prize-Winning Writer and Director
Friday, March 9, 7 p.m., UMBC Theatre

Contact: Thomas Moore
Director of Arts & Culture
410-455-3370
tmoore@umbc.edu

Note: You may view or download this release as a pdf file.

Lee BreuerThe UMBC Department of Theatre presents a lecture by writer and director Lee Breuer on Friday, March 9, 7 p.m., at the UMBC Theatre.

Lee Breuer was founding artistic director of Mabou Mines theatre company in New York City, which he began in 1970 with colleagues Philip Glass, Ruth Maleczech, JoAnne Akalitis, David Warrilow, Frederick Neuman and Bill Raymond. He is a writer, director and lyricist who also works outside the company in film, on Broadway and on a variety of theatrical projects in Europe, Africa, Asia and North and South America.

Breuer’s most recent work with Mabou Mines is the puppet opera Red Beads, created in collaboration with puppeteer Basil Twist and composer Ushio Torikai. Of the September 2005 New York City premiere, The New York Times said, “...theater as sorcery; it is a crossroads where artistic traditions meet to invent a marvelous common language. It is a fairy tale, a puppet play and a chamber opera...amazing work.”

Breuer’s best known work is The Gospel at Colonus, a Pentecostal Gospel rendering of Sophocles’ Oedipus at Colonus created with composer Bob Telson and starring Morgan Freeman and Clarence Fountain and the Blind Boys of Alabama, which premiered at The Brooklyn Academy of Music's Next Wave Festival, and was performed on Broadway at the Lunt-Fontanne Theater in 1988 for which he was nominated for a Tony Award. The Gospel at Colonus was televised on the PBS series Great Performances. The production received numerous awards, including a Pulitzer Prize nomination (1988), the Obie for Best Musical (1984), and an Emmy Television Award.

In 1988 Lee Breuer was awarded the prestigious John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation Fellowship, popularly referred to as the “Genius” grant. He has also been awarded playwriting grants and fellowships from CAPS, the National Endowment for the Arts, the Rockefeller Foundation, the Guggenheim Foundation, and the McKnight Foundation.

In April and May 2007, Breuer will direct the Arena Stage (Washington, D.C.) production of Mabou Mines’ Peter & Wendy.

Admission
Admission is free, but seating is limited. Reservations are strongly recommended by calling 410-455-2476 or visiting www.umbc.edu/arts.

Telephone
Public information: (24 hour recorded message): 410-455-ARTS
Media inquiries only: 410-455-3370

Directions
• From Baltimore and points north, proceed south on I-95 to exit 47B. Take Route 166 toward Catonsville and then follow signs to the Theatre.
• From I-695, take Exit 12C (Wilkens Avenue) and continue one-half mile to the entrance of UMBC at the roundabout intersection of Wilkens Avenue and Hilltop Road. Turn left and follow signs to the Theatre.
• From Washington and points south, proceed north on I-95 to Exit 47B. Take Route 166 toward Catonsville and then follow signs to the Theatre.
• Visitor parking is available in the Commons Garage. Visitor parking regulations are enforced on all University calendar days. Hilltop Circle and all campus roadways require a parking permit unless otherwise marked.
Online campus map: http://www.umbc.edu/aboutumbc/campusmap/

Images for Media
High resolution images for media are available online:
http://www.umbc.edu/newsevents/arts/hi-res/
or by email or postal mail.

Lee Breuer

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Posted by tmoore at February 9, 2007 4:34 PM