NEWS RELEASE

Office of External Communications

Houston, TX 77204-5017 Fax: 713.743.8199

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 30, 2005

Contact: Contact: Mike Emery
713.743.8186 (office)
713.415.6551 (pager)
pemery@uh.edu

WAR GAMES: UH’S ‘ARMS AND THE MAN’ OFFERS COMIC VIEW OF BATTLEFIELD GLORY

Despite Hurricane Rita forcing the University of Houston’s School of Theatre to postpone its season opener, the show must…and will…go on.

Originally scheduled for Friday, Sept. 30, the UH premiere of George Bernard Shaw’s “Arms and the Man” is now scheduled for 8 p.m., Friday, Oct. 7 in the Lyndall Finley Wortham Theatre.

The play tells the story of Raina, a Bulgarian woman married to a hero in 1885’s Serbo-Bulgarian War. When a Swiss soldier fighting for Serbia bursts into her home begging for sanctuary, her passionate attitudes toward war are turned upside down.

“Shaw balances the romanticism of both war and love,” said Jim Johnson, the play’s director and assistant professor of voice, speech and dialects. “There’s a marvelous blend of commentary and comedy. Shaw’s attitudes toward war are very apparent, but the dialogue is never preachy. For every message, there’s also a punchline.”

“Arms and the Man” debuted in 1894 and has maintained a constant presence on the theater circuit. Johnson attributes the show’s timeless appeal to Shaw’s sharp writing and comic wit.

“His material is so well written, there’s never been a need to update this play or change any aspect of it,” Johnson said.

General admission tickets are $15; $12 for UH faculty, staff and alumni; $10 for seniors or groups of 10 or more, and $7 for students. Ticket information can be obtained by calling the Wortham Theatre box office at
(713) 743-2929. For more information about the UH School of Theatre, visit the Web site http://www.class.uh.edu/theatre/home.html.

WHAT: “Arms and the Man”
WHEN: 8 p.m., Friday, Oct. 7 – Saturday, Oct. 8
2 p.m., Sunday, Oct. 9
8 p.m., Friday, Oct. 14 – Saturday, Oct. 15
WHERE: University of Houston
School of Theatre, 133 Wortham
Houston, TX 77204-4016
WHO: University of Houston School of Theatre

For more information about UH visit the university’s ‘Newsroom’ at www.uh.edu/admin/media/newsroom.