By Gail Siegel, WSU Performing Arts
PULLMAN, Wash. – When David Bowie received his first American fan letter in 1967, he sat right down in his manager’s office to type a personal response, “even though Ken is shouting at me to get on with a script he badly needs.” When Alec Guinness wrote to a friend from the set of “Star Wars” in 1976, he had trouble remembering his costar’s name: “Tennyson (that can’t be right) Ford – Ellison (? – No!) … Harrison Ford – ever heard of him?”
These and other letters of the famous will be given a public reading when Letters Aloud brings “FAME! (they’re *not* going to live forever)” to Washington State University’s Jones Theatre at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 17.
Backed by live musical accompaniment and a dynamic slideshow, some of Seattle’s most accomplished actors will lend their voices to thought-provoking, poignant and often riotously funny letters written by celebrities as they gained, experienced and reflected on their own fame.
Reserved seating costs $12 adults, $9 seniors (ages 60+) and $6 non-WSU students and youth. WSU students will be admitted free with valid ID. A discounted rate of $7 per person is available for groups of eight or more.
Tickets are on sale at TicketsWest outlets, including online at http://TicketsWest.com, by phone at 800-325-SEAT (7328) and in person at Beasley Coliseum (open 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Monday-Friday) and Rosauers supermarket in Lewiston, Idaho. Free WSU student tickets require WSU ID and are available in advance only at the Beasley Coliseum ticket office. Same-day tickets will be sold at the Daggy Hall box office beginning two hours before the performance, subject to availability.
Letters Aloud (http://lettersaloud.com/) is a reading series founded in 2013 to connect modern audiences to the nearly lost art of written correspondence. Letters are carefully chosen to explore a central theme, in this case fame, and then read out loud in a theatrical setting.
“FAME!” will include a wide range of perspectives from the likes of Bruce Springsteen, Oprah Winfrey, Gene Wilder, Marilyn Monroe, Kurt Vonnegut, Gertrude Stein and Andy Warhol, offering new insight into the thoughts and feelings behind the names and faces we know so well.
Contact:
Gail Siegel, WSU Performing Arts (http://performingarts.wsu.edu/), 509-335-8522, gsiegel@wsu.edu
