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For immediate release                       Contact: Debbie Selinsky
Oct. 28, 1994                               (919) 681-8055
                                            SelinskyD@
                                                  mail01.adm.duke.edu

Note to editors: Black-and-white and computer scanned photographs
are available by calling Debbie Selinsky at the Duke News Service.


DUKE DRAMA PRODUCTION OF AWARD-WINNING GUARE
PLAY EXPLORES `DARK AND WACKY' ASPECT OF DREAMS


         DURHAM, N.C. -- John Guare's dark comedy "The House of Blue
Leaves" takes the 1965 visit of the Pope to New York City and
tosses in the tale of zoo attendant and aspiring songwriter Artie,
his agoraphobic wife Bananas, his mistress Bunny, his bomb-wielding
AWOL son Ronnie and three nuns.
         The result? A play that is "as crazy as it sounds," but one
that offers an insightful look at following one's dreams and
changing one's life, says Jeff Storer, who will direct the upcoming
Duke Drama Program production.
         "The House of Blue Leaves," which runs Nov. 4-5 and 10-13 at
Reynolds Industries Theater in the Bryan Center, will be
entertaining for audiences -- it received the Critics and Obie
Awards in 1971 as best American play -- and a learning experience
for students, said Storer, a member of the drama faculty. "This is
a good play for students, because of the challenges of comedy,
which are not as easy as some people think.  It also has a nice
historical flavor because it takes place before the students were
born ... And, of course, the whole idea of managing your dreams and
changing your life is one that concerns us all. It's interesting
for them to look at dreams -- past and future -- from the
perspective of people in their late 30s or early 40s," he said.
         The Duke production will incorporate a couple of devices
designed to make the audience feel more a part of the action,
according to Storer, who is also artistic director for the Durham-
based Manbites Dog Theater Co.  For example, audience members will
be seated to the sounds of "Artie" playing and singing some of his
own compositions, and, at times, the play's characters will come
forward and talk to the audience. With those features in mind,
Wenhai Ma of the drama faculty has designed an "extraordinary" set
that a lends itself to the play's "fantastical" finale.
         Drama majors Dwayne Wallace and Tamara Kissane -- both seniors
-- will portray, respectively, Artie and the troubled Bananas. 
Wallace appeared in last spring's "Portrait of Devotion" in the
drama program's New Works for the Stage festival, as well as in
"Our Town" and "Noises Off."  Kissane also appeared in one of last
year's New Works' productions, "Bodies, Sight and Singing" and in
"Noises Off." 
         Because of the strength and number of women players in the
drama program, Storer said, two women are playing Bunny -- Alissa
Tomson and Poppy Greenman -- on alternate nights. David Kneip will
play the role of Ronnie; other principals are Jamie Rosenblatt and
Meg DeFoe.  
         The productions will be staged in Reynolds Industries Theater,
Bryan Center, Nov. 4-5 and 10-12 at 8 p.m. and Nov. 13 at 2 p.m.
Tickets are available at Page Box Office, (919) 684-4444, at $7 for
general admission, and $5 for students.
                                  -----
         For more information, call Duke Drama Program, (919) 684-2306.
                                   ###