Institute History
Description
Award-winning actress Tyne Daly stars in the world premiere of Paul Selig’s new play. Directed by Doug Hughes, Mystery School was presented to an enthusiastic response at last summer’s Sundance Theatre Laboratory.
Mystery School introduces its audience to five exceptionally different characters who share a powerful hunger for a rich spiritual life. These rebellious oddballs reflect the ways that people struggle to have faith in the resolutely secular world near the end of the twentieth century. Often wildly funny, this compact theatrical pentathlon manages to be both accessible and profound. It also marks the perfect marriage of an extraordinary actress with exceptional material.
Mystery School is currently running at the Long Wharf Theatre in New Haven, Connecticut, through January 25. En Garde Arts will present Mystery School in New York City from February 28 to April 19.
Tyne Daly won the 1990 Tony for her role as Mama Rose in Gypsy. As star of the series “Cagney and Lacy,” Daly set an Emmy record as the award’s most honored dramatic actress.
Paul Selig, Playwright
Paul Selig’s work has been performed throughout the United States and Great Britain. Last season his trilogy of chamber operas, Three Visitations, premiered in Minneapolis, and his play Never Enough was seen at the Joyce Theatre in Manhattan. Other plays include Terminal Bar and The Pompeii Traveling Show, recipient of a New York Drama League Award. Selig’s work has been published in The Best American Short Plays of 1995–96 and Gay Plays 3. He is on the faculty of NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts.
Doug Hughes, Director
Doug Hughes is the artistic director of the Long Wharf Theatre in New Haven, Connecticut. Previously he was director of artistic planning at the Guthrie Theater, associate artistic director of the Seattle Repertory Theatre, and associate artistic director of the Manhattan Theatre Club. Recent productions include David Rabe’s A Question of Mercy, She Stoops to Conquer, Henry V, the critically acclaimed revival of Waiting for Godot with Bill Irwin, and The Grey Zone, which won an Obie Award.