Signature Theatre in New York City and Westport Country Playhouse in Connecticut will co-produce the world premiere of A.R. Gurney's comedy Love and Money during the 2015-16 season.
Gurney is currently the Residency One playwright at Signature, where his The Wayside Motor Inn has been extended through October 5, 2014. A revival of his Love Letters with Mia Farrow and Brian Dennehy in the initial cast is currently on Broadway.
Mark Lamos, artistic director of Westport Country Playhouse, will direct the world premiere production of Love and Money, first at Westport from July 21 - August 8, 2015, then beginning later in August at Off-Broadway's Signature Theatre (exact dates to be announced).
The Wall Street Journal named Westport Country Playhouse its Theater Company of the Year in 2013, with drama critic Terry Teachout observing that "Mark Lamos…has turned a spotty suburban troupe into an artistic powerhouse" and "Few regional companies are striking so satisfying a balance between familiarity and adventurousness."
Lamos launched that season with Gurney's classic The Dining Room.
For its part, Signature Theatre was awarded the Regional Theatre Tony Award in 2014, the first New York theater to receive that honor. Making the award, Charlotte St. Martin, Executive Director of The Broadway League, and Heather Hitchens, Executive Director of the American Theatre Wing, said: "By dedicating each season to a single playwright, Signature Theatre offers audiences an unmatched explorative experience with the writer's message across multiple bodies of work."
Also in 2014, Signature's productions won no fewer than seven Obie Awards.
Press notes describe the scenario of Love and Money as follows:
"[W]ealthy widow Cornelia Cunningham has led a life of grace and privilege--and she’s making up for it as fast as she can. Determined to donate almost everything she owns before the end, Cornelia's plans are questioned when an ambitious and ingratiating young man, who may be the grandson she never knew she had, arrives to claim his inheritance. The trials of class, family, legacy, and race are pointedly explored."
