Directed by Andrew Harris, the Department of Dance and Theatre presents The Misanthrope, a comedy about a man who falls in love with a flirtatious woman entrenched in high society, fashion and everything else he loathes. Performances take place in the RTVF Performing Arts Building at 8 p.m. October 1 – 3, 2:30 p.m. October 4, 8 p.m. October 8 – 10, and 2:30 pm October 11.

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A man falls in love with a flirtatious woman entrenched in high society, fashion and everything else he loathes in Molière’s comic masterpiece The Misanthrope, which opens the 2009-2010 season of the University of North Texas Department of Dance and Theatre. Molière’s misanthropic character Alceste wishes only to whisk away his beloved Célimène to a life of solitude, far from the world of excess that she so enjoys.

“France's greatest playwright acted the leading role of Alceste himself both for comedy and pathos,” said director Andrew Harris, UNT professor of theatre. “We've followed in his footsteps, with a group of high-spirited and talented actors who will make audiences laugh and smile until their sides ache.”

Set in Molière’s time during the period of Louis XIV, the UNT production uses the rhymed couplets of the award-winning Richard Wilbur translation and features dance interludes. Costumes, setting, and original music by senior composition student Cody Forrest represent the classical baroque era.

“This is a feast for the eyes as well as the ears,” Harris said. Performances take place at 8 p.m. Oct. 1-3 (Thursday – Saturday), 2:30 pm. Oct. 4 (Sunday), 8 p.m. Oct. 8 - 10 (Thursday – Saturday) and 2:30 p.m. Oct. 11 (Sunday) in the University Theatre in the RTVF and Performing Arts Building, corner of Welch and Chestnut Streets. Tickets are $10 for adults and $7.50 for students, UNT faculty and staff and seniors. Call 940-565-2428 or Metro 817-267-3731, ext. 2428.

About Andrew Harris

Harris, who joined UNT in 2002, has served as chair of theatre departments at Columbia University, Southern Methodist University and Texas Christian University. His production credits include shows in Chicago, New York and Texas, including “The Life of Galileo” with Laurence Luckinbill and Tennessee Williams’ “Suddenly Last Summer.” He also wrote the book “Broadway Theatre,” which won the Broadway Theatre Institute Award for Excellence in Education. In 2007, he received the Golden Pen Award from the United States Institute for Theatre Technology (USITT) for his book, “The Performing Set: The Broadway Designs of William and Jean Eckart,” published by UNT Press.

The above text is based on a UNT News Service news release available on the web at http://web3.unt.edu/news/story.cfm?story=11591.