For Immediate Release: April 17, 2006
Media Contact: Kelly Connor, for Luna Theater Company, 856.223.9567

Luna Theater Company concludes their fourth season with a revival of the hit Broadway play, Agnes of God by John Pielmeier, featuring four-time Barrymore Award nominee and 2002 winner, Hazel Bowers, and including the talented Christine Mascitti and Melissa Lynch.

Agnes of God will be performed at the Walnut Street Theatre’s Studio 5 located at 825 Walnut Street in Philadelphia, previews May 3rd and 4th, opens Friday May 5th and runs through May 28, 2006. Tickets range from $10 to $27 and can be purchased by calling Luna Theater Company’s Box Office at (215) 704-0033 or by visiting www.LunaTheater.org. Media interviews, actor bios and digital photos available upon request.

Story Summary
Following a mysterious death in a religious community, a court-appointed psychiatrist has been assigned to test the competency of a young child-like woman who has no recollection of the crime. Things are not necessarily what they seem as the doubting, faithless doctor is forced to confront her own past while trying to save the young girl with whom she is convinced to be innocent. Doubt and Faith come face to face in this psychological mystery which will leave everyone guessing until the very end.

About the Playwright
John Pielmeier was born in Altoona, Pennsylvania on February 23, 1949 .Pielmeier earned a B.A. from Catholic American University in 1970. A Shubert Fellowship allowed him to study playwriting at the Pennsylvania State University, from where he earned an M.F.A in 1978. Following his graduation from Penn State, Pielmeier began working on his most famous play, Agnes of God. He also worked as an actor in regional theaters in Kentucky and Louisiana while he worked on his writing. In 1982, Agnes of God was performed on Broadway, following performances and revisions in Connecticut and Kentucky. The run on Broadway lasted more than a year, and made Pielmeier a recognizable name. The author adapted his play for the screen, and in 1985 it was made into a movie starring Jane Fonda, Anne Bancroft and Meg Tilly. His most recent work to appear on the Broadway stage was Voices in the Dark, a thriller. Pielmeier has won several awards for his work, including a prize from the Festival of New American Plays held by the Actors Theater of Louisville for Agnes of God, a National Endowment for the Arts grant in 1982, a Humanitas award in 1984 for Choices of the Heart, and a Christopher award for the same play, also in 1984. The playwright lives with his wife in Garrison, New York.

About the Producing Artistic Director
Gregory Scott Campbell is Founder and Producing Artistic Director of the Luna Theater Company. Previously with the Luna, Gregory performed in The Zoo Story, Oleanna, No Exit and Waiting for Godot. He has also directed DMV Tyrant, Do Not Feed the Animal, The Flip of It and Fool for Love, The Turn of the Screw and Burn This. Next season he will be directing the Philadelphia premiere of Doug Wright’s Unwrap Your Candy, and the revivals of Lebensraum by Israel Horovitz and True West by Sam Shepard. Gregory is proud to have been recently appointed to the Board of Directors of the Theatre Alliance of Greater Philadelphia and Chair of the Spark Small Theatre Committee.

About the Featured Actor - Hazel Bowers (Mother Superior)
Chestnut Hill resident, Hazel Bowers is delighted to be making her first appearance with Luna Theater Company. She has been very active in the local theatre community for many years both as a performer and as a dialect coach. She has received four Barrymore Award Nominations, winning one for her performance in The Birthday Party at Lantern Theater. She has worked with almost all the major theatres in the Philadelphia area including the Walnut Street, Wilma, Philadelphia Theatre Co, Arden, and InterAct among many others. Favorite roles: Wit (Professor Ashford) at Philadelphia Theatre Company; Romeo and Juliet (Nurse) at Bristol Riverside; and Lettice & Lovage (Lotte) at Hedgerow Theatre. Originally from England, Ms. Bowers was trained at the prestigious Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London.

About the Luna Theater Company
Founded in 2002, the Luna Theater Company is a professional theater company dedicated to presenting thought-provoking works by contemporary and classical playwrights to audiences in both Philadelphia and South Jersey. By producing intense drama that crosses cultural, ethnic and social lines, Luna seeks to attract open-minded theatergoers by delivering performances that are challenging, educational and entertaining. Luna Theater Company is the only professional theater company based in South Jersey and Philadelphia and is a member of the Theater Alliance of Greater Philadelphia. Funding for Luna’s 2005-2006 season has been provided in part by the Phoebe W. Haas Charitable Trust B. For more information on Luna Theater and its upcoming performances, please visit www.LunaTheater.org.

2006-2007 Season Announced
The Luna Theater announces their upcoming award winning 5th Season which will consist of a Philadelphia premiere and two notable revivals. Kicking off the season will be the Philadelphia premiere of 2005 Tony Award winning playwright, Doug Wright’s Unwrap Your Candy (An evening of one-act plays) in October. This will be followed by the revival of 1999 Barrymore Award Winner, Lebensraum by Israel Horovitz in January. The season will conclude in May with the revival of Sam Shepard’s Obie Award winning, True West.

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