The Bay Theatre Company, Inc.
P.O. Box 5201 Annapolis, Maryland 21403 Tel. 410-268-1333 Fax. 301-261-1865 www.baytheatre.org

NEWS RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Lucinda Merry-Browne 410-268-1333
DATE: March 10, 2006

Annapolis, MD – The Bay Theatre Company, the professional theatre of Annapolis, is pleased to announce a benefit for the theatre, April 7, 8 and 9, 2006. Through the generosity of actors Rena Cherry Brown and Paul Danaceau, and director Lucinda Merry-Browne, three benefit performances of The Gin Game by D.L. Coburn will be offered for one weekend only. A donation of $20 per person is suggested.

The Gin Game, by D.L. Coburn, paints a clever and powerful portrait of two lonely people in an old age home who become friends and adversaries at the card table. This poignant, humorous play is all about “the game.” It deals with the role of luck, competition, power, and deception, in life and in cards. As Weller and Fonsia engage in an unending gin contest, their nature and their past are revealed, and they begin to affect each other. At times the duo sparks, at times they melt for one another, but the tension of the game is inescapable, and leads them to an explosive final power play.

Rena Cherry Brown has appeared in Washington/Maryland/Virginia area theatre for over thirty years. Rena performed The Gin Game in July 2005 at the Avalon Theatre in Easton, Maryland, and played Catherine in The Bay Theatre’s Arms and the Man last spring. She won a Helen Hayes Award for her portrayal of Claire in A Delicate Balance with American Century Theatre in Washington, D.C. Rena is an associate member of The Washington Shakespeare Company, where she played Blanche Dubois in A Streetcar Named Desire, Mother in Metamorphosis, Mother in Blood Wedding, Maria in Twelfth Night, Elizabeth in Richard III, and Meg in The Birthday Party. She has also appeared at Arena Stage in Orpheus Descending, at Olney Theatre in Blithe Spirit, and at Rep Stage, Wooly Mammoth Theatre, The Shakespeare Theatre, Keegan Theatre, SCENA Theatre, Horizons Theatre and The Actor’s Theatre of Washington. Rena has done radio commercials and was the regular radio voice of Stella in an American Academy of Arts and Sciences radio broadcast for children. She was in Pride and Prejudice on The Learning Channel and holds a degree in theatre from the University of Maryland. She coaches theatre for local theatre groups on the Eastern Shore where she works and lives.

Paul Danaceau is a Washington, D.C.-based actor who returned to acting full-time when he retired several years ago. Paul played Weller Martin last summer in The Gin Game at the Avalon Theatre in Easton, Maryland, and has appeared as Dimitri Weismann in Follies (Signature Theatre), Candy in Of Mice and Men (Firebelly Productions), Krapp in Krapp’s Last Tape (Forum Theatre) and Alfred P. Doolittle in My Fair Lady (Shawnee Playhouse). He is an Artistic Associate at the Chesapeake Shakespeare Company where he has performed as Malvolio in Twelfth Night and Leonato in Much Ado About Nothing. He has also worked at The Shakespeare Theatre (Henry V), Olney Theatre Center (Madwoman of Chaillot), and Theatre J (Waiting for Lefty/Still Waiting”). He has been a guest artist at two local college theatres, playing Rabbi Azriel in Catholic University’s production of A Dybukk and the Narrator/Mysterious Man in Montgomery College’s production of Into the Woods. Paul had a lengthy career as a radio and newspaper journalist here and abroad and as a Washington public affairs consultant.

The Bay Theatre Company, Inc.
P.O. Box 5201 Annapolis, Maryland 21403 Tel. 410-268-1333 Fax. 301-261-1865 www.baytheatre.org

Lucinda Merry-Browne is the co-founder and artistic director of The Bay Theatre Company, Inc. For the Bay Theatre, she has directed Beyond Therapy, Oleanna, Here We Are, Marry Me A Little, The Sneeze, Chesapeake, and Arms and the Man and co-directed Fool for Love. She has also produced or co-produced all of Bay Theatre’s productions to date, and recently played Ethel Banks in Bay Theatre’s Barefoot in the Park. She has acted and directed in the Washington, D. C. and Annapolis area for most of her professional career. Lucinda holds a degree in English from Duke University, attended Wellesley College, and is a graduate of The American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York City.

Benefit performances will be held Friday, April 7 and Saturday, April 8 at 8:00 p.m. and Sunday, April 9 at 3:00 p.m. Reservations are recommended, and may be made by phone (410) 268-1333 or email (reserve@baytheatre.org). The theatre has open seating; doors will open 20 minutes before curtain. The theatre space is located on the lower level of the West Garrett office building, 275 West Street, in Annapolis. Complimentary parking is available in the garage adjacent to the building. Directions to the theatre are available on the Bay Theatre website (www.baytheatre.org) or by calling the theatre at (410) 268-1333. Handicapped access is available; please call in advance to make arrangements.

This production is made possible by the generous support of Lou Hyatt, Skip Gardiner, and Roy Morauer, owners of 275 West Garrett LLC, the Arts Council of Anne Arundel County, the City of Annapolis, and the Maryland State Arts Council.

West Garrett Building, Lower Level Ample garage parking
275 West Street
Annapolis, Maryland 21401

The Bay Theatre Company is a non-profit professional regional theatre company and studio in Annapolis, Maryland. Tucked away in the lower level of the West Garrett office building, the intimate, off-Broadway style house is in its fourth season. The Bay Theatre Company’s goal is to offer exciting productions that leave audiences thinking and transformed by the experience of the play. It exists as an artistic force in the community that provides opportunities for artists to work and a source of theatre education for all ages.