A Noise WIthin Announces 2010-11 Season September 25, 2010

2010-11 SEASON:
A NOISE WITHIN,
THE ACCLAIMED CLASSICAL REPERTORY THEATRE COMPANY,
PRESENTS SEVEN MASTERWORKS
THAT REVEAL THE ESSENCE OF ETERNITY
IN AN EVER-CHANGING WORLD

Company's 19th Year Marks Final Season in Current Glendale Theatre Before
2011 Move to Permanent New Home in Pasadena

Fall '10 Begins with Shakespeare's Measure for Measure, Noel Coward's Blithe
Spirit
and Charles Dickens' Great Expectations

Spring '11 Continues with Shakespeare's The Comedy of Errors,
Tennessee Williams' The Eccentricities of a Nightingale and Eugene Ionesco's
The Chairs

Back by Popular Demand is Company's Critically-Acclaimed Production of
Michael Frayn's Noises Off for 10 Performances in January 2011

Season Wraps with Special Retrospective Featuring Play Selections from
Company's 19-Year History in Glendale

Construction of ANW's New $13.3 Million 33,000-Square-Foot
Permanent Home in Pasadena Is Underway

A Noise Within (ANW), the acclaimed classical repertory theatre company led
by Co-Founders/Co-Artistic Directors Geoff Elliott and Julia
Rodriguez-Elliott, announces its 2010-11 season featuring seven productions.
Presented from September 2010 to June 2011 are the West Coast premiere of
Neil Bartlett's new adaptation of Charles Dickens' GREAT EXPECTATIONS, a
reprise of ANW's critically acclaimed and popular staging of Michael Frayn's
NOISES OFF, Shakespeare's MEASURE FOR MEASURE and THE COMEDY OF ERRORS, Noel
Coward's BLITHE SPIRIT, Tennessee Williams' THE ECCENTRICITIES OF A
NIGHTINGALE, and Eugene Ionesco's THE CHAIRS. The season, ANW's 19th and
last in its current Glendale location before moving in Fall 2011 to a
spectacular new Pasadena venue, concludes with three retrospective evenings
of the company's many years in Glendale.

"The Heart of the Matter: Finding the essence of eternity in a changing
world" is the season's title, aptly reflecting A Noise Within's journey from
its modest beginnings in the early 1990s to its long-time dream of attaining
a permanent home, now a reality with the recent groundbreaking for the
company's new 300-seat Pasadena theatre.

"The 2010-11 season's great masterworks all deal with change on some level,"
says Julia Rodriguez-Elliott. "They all have a mystery about them, a veil
that must be lifted or pierced to get at the truth." Geoff Elliott adds,
"All of us are on a constantly changing journey in this ever-changing world.
The plays explore an inner voice telling us there's something more than the
physically changing environment into which we are born. They affirm in some
way that there's a grounding, spiritual essence to life."

A Noise Within is the only year-round classical repertory company in
Southern California and one of only a handful in the entire country
dedicated solely to producing classical dramatic literature in the repertory
tradition of rotating productions with a resident company of professional
artists. It has been hailed by critics as "adventurous," "compelling and
current," "ingenuity at work," "a bona fide class act," and "what great
theatre is all about." Founded nineteen years ago, ANW quickly established
itself as one of the region's key theatre companies, attracting fiercely
loyal audiences and consistently high praise from the media for its
productions and as a leading force in arts education. The company has
presented more than 120 plays from the classics of world literature, each
season producing works from authors ranging from Shakespeare and Molière to
Ibsen, O'Neill and Shaw to Miller and Williams.

A Noise Within's next chapter provides the long-awaited opportunity to sink
deep and lasting roots when the company moves in 2011 from its long-time
base in Glendale to a spectacular, permanent home in a Pasadena mixed-use
development at the corner of Foothill Boulevard and Sierra Madre Villa
Avenue. The facility, hailed as an anchor in East Pasadena's arts growth,
is designed to broaden A Noise Within's artistic possibilities, offer a
greater scope of educational opportunities, meet ticket demand and allow the
company to expand its role as a leader in the presentation and preservation
of classical theatre.

A NOISE WITHIN'S 2009/2010 SEASON

Fall 2010

Measure for Measure
By William Shakespeare
Directed by Michael Murray
Saturday, September 25 - Sunday, December 5, 2010
(previews begin Saturday, September 18)

WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE'S MEASURE FOR MEASURE, which opens Saturday, September
25 and closes Sunday, December 5, 2010 (previews begin Saturday, September
18), is one of two productions directed this season by Michael Murray. In
this stirring and oft-studied play, the Duke of Vienna, realizing that
through his neglect society has become a rotted den of iniquity, transfers
his authority to Angelo, by all accounts an unblemished, morally
uncompromising servant of God. But Angelo's irresistible sexual attraction
to Isabel, a novice nun seeking pardon for her condemned brother, transforms
saint to beast in Shakespeare's timeless case study in lethal hypocrisy. A
Noise Within first performed Measure for Measure in 2003. Penned centuries
ago, it has inspired numerous film and musical adaptations. The production
is part of Shakespeare for a New Generation, a national initiative sponsored
by the National Endowment for the Arts in cooperation with Arts Midwest.

Blithe Spirit
Directed by Dámaso Rodriguez
By Noel Coward
Saturday, October 9 - Friday, December 17, 2010
(previews begin Saturday, October 2)

BLITHE SPIRIT by NOEL COWARD opens at A Noise Within Saturday, October 9 and
closes Friday, December 17, 2010 (previews begin Saturday, October 2).
Dámaso Rodriguez directs this acclaimed comedy in which novelist Charles
Condomine and his wife Ruth get more than they bargained for when during a
"just for the fun of it" after-dinner séance led by local spiritualist and
resident eccentric Madame Arcati, an uninvited guest from the great beyond
crashes the party. So begins a delightfully cosmic clash of personalities
both worldly and otherwise in English wit-master Noel Coward's glittering
comedy of the soul. "Noel Coward is a master of both comedy and works about
relationships," says Elliott. "His extraordinary wit, talent for crafting
an exquisite story and sense of timing dovetail in this comedy that ponders
the eternal essence of what it is to be in a relationship." The play
premiered in London's West End in 1941, setting a run-record for non-musical
British plays of 1,997 performances, and subsequently ran on Broadway for
657 performances. In 1945, Coward himself adapted the play for a film
starring Rex Harrison, and in 1964 directed on Broadway a musical
adaptation, High Spirits. The play has enjoyed numerous revivals including
a 2009 run on Broadway.

Charles Dickens' Great Expectations
Adapted by Neil Bartlett
Directed by Julia Rodriguez-Elliott and Geoff Elliott
Saturday, October 30 - Sunday, December 19, 2010
(previews begin Saturday, October 23)

A Noise Within revisits CHARLES DICKENS' thrilling tale GREAT EXPECTATIONS
with the West Coast premiere of a powerful stage adaptation by Neil Bartlett
opening Saturday, October 30 and closing Sunday, December 19, 2010 (previews
begin Saturday, October 23). Julia Rodriguez-Elliott and Geoff Elliott
co-direct this production based on Dickens' masterful novel about Pip,
orphaned as an infant and thrust into a childhood of cruel poverty, who
clings to the hope of a brighter life. On a rain-swept winter's eve great
tidings arrive. An anonymous benefactor has anointed Pip heir to a
tremendous fortune, setting into motion a life's journey ripe with wonder,
heartbreak and finally triumph. This marks the second time
Rodriguez-Elliott and Elliott have co-directed Great Expectations. "The
play holds a special place in our hearts," notes Rodriguez-Elliott of the
1995-96 season production, which won numerous awards. "It's a marker in our
history because our 1990s production, which reprised over three seasons,
really solidified our reputation for ensemble work. We're doing it again
this season in a different adaptation as a celebration of A Noise Within."
Bartlett was also the adaptor of A Noise Within's 2008-09 season favorite
Oliver Twist. Among the original cast members slated to appear in the new
production are long-time ANW resident actor Jill Hill and Elliott himself.
Great Expectations has spawned numerous films, including several silent
movies and the 1998 motion picture starring Ethan Hawke and Gwyneth Paltrow.
In 2000, the character Pip was even parodied on an episode of the irreverent
television show South Park.

Back by Popular Demand!
Noises Off
By Michael Frayn
Directed by Julia Rodriguez-Elliott and Geoff Elliott
Friday, January 21 - Sunday, January 30, 2011

MICHAEL FRAYN's hilarious NOISES OFF, directed by Rodriguez-Elliott and
Elliott, is back by popular demand for a limited run of 10 performances
opening Friday, January 21 and closing Sunday, January 30, 2011. Presented
last season for the first time in the company's history, A Noise Within's
production garnered rave reviews: "a superb cast hit the banana peel running
and never let up" (Los Angeles Times); "Michael Frayn's delightfully
complicated British farce could hardly have a better rendition than this"
(Backstage); "excruciatingly funny.no one is safe from drowning in the
ensuing tides of hilarity that sweep over the audience" (Edge Magazine);
"The entire production is a riot, some of the most fun you can expect at a
theatrical production" (Stage Happenings); "nothing short of brilliant"
(Urban Man). Chaos reigns both onstage and off in Frayn's joyfully
out-of-control British farce. Under-rehearsed and over-worked, with a
penchant for drama more personal than professional, a bumbling troupe of
veteran thespians ready themselves for the world premiere of a new play with
the auspicious title Nothing On. In the process they bring the house down,
quite literally. Says Elliott, "Presenting this show last season was a true
highlight. I don't know if I've ever had more fun being in a production and
co-directing it." Rodriguez-Elliott adds, "It's fun for the actors and the
audience! Everything about this play is simpatico with A Noise Within's
focus on ensemble work, and people saw it two and three times."

Spring 2011

The Comedy of Errors
By William Shakespeare
Directed by Michael Michetti
Saturday, March 5 - Saturday, May 14, 2011
(previews begin Saturday February 26)

A Noise Within sends in the clowns when the 2010-11 season continues with
WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE's THE COMEDY OF ERRORS, directed by Michael Michetti,
opening Saturday, March 5 and closing Saturday, May 14, 2011 (previews begin
Saturday, February 26). One of the Bard's most beloved comedies, this zany
adventure is an upside/down, inside/out topsy-turvy world of identical
twins, loony lovers, and joyfully inept near misses. The non-stop
freewheeling delightful farce is proof positive that double the Errors is
double the fun. Michetti previously directed ANW's acclaimed productions of
the Bard's As You Like it, Don Juan and Hamlet. The production is part of
Shakespeare for a New Generation, a national initiative sponsored by the
National Endowment for the Arts in cooperation with Arts Midwest.

The Eccentricities of a Nightingale
By Tennessee Williams
Directed by Michael Murray
Saturday, March 19 - Saturday, May 28, 2011
(previews begin Saturday, March 12)

Michael Murray directs TENNESSEE WILLIAMS' classic play about fitting in,
THE ECCENTRICITIES OF A NIGHTINGALE, which opens Saturday, March 19 and
closes Saturday, May 28, 2011 (previews begin Saturday, March 12). Trapped
in the cultural suffocation of a backwater Mississippi hamlet, Alma
Winemiller struggles to dim the unique glow of her soul. Blessed (or
cursed) with a lyric sense of being, she bears a heavy cross of unrequited,
unattainable love for the boy next door. Without a protector, her exquisite
individuality is left vulnerable to the destructive forces of small-town
intolerance in American Master Tennessee Williams' ode to fragile beauty.
Rodriguez-Elliott, notes, "A true American classic, it is an incredible
play, and this will be the first time in three years that we've done a work
by Tennessee Williams."

The Chairs
By Eugene Ionesco
Directed by Julia Rodriguez-Elliott
Saturday, April 9 - Saturday, May 21, 2011
(previews begin Saturday, April 2)

A Noise Within continues to breaks new ground 19 years after its inception
with its final full production in its Glendale location, THE CHAIRS,
directed by Rodriguez-Elliott, which is rarely performed and marks ANW's
first presentation of a EUGENE IONESCO play. Opening Saturday, April 9 and
closing May 21, 2011 (previews begin Saturday, April 2), it's a compelling
work by the "father" of absurdist drama who was one of the 20th century's
leading theatrical innovators. His masterwork The Chairs, first staged in
1952, synthesizes the distorted perceptions that surround the acts of living
and dying through a vision unique and dazzling in its profundity.
Inexplicably hilarious and tragic, The Chairs is an unforgettable
experience. States Rodriguez-Elliott, "Just reading The Chairs is an almost
surreal experience. We were taken by its fundamental theme: the nature of
relationships, the nature of change and how perceptions are always
changing."

A Noise Within:
A Retrospective
Friday, June 3 - Sunday, June 5, 2011

A Noise within caps its 2010-11 season and its final year in its Glendale
before moving to its permanent home in Pasadena with a very special curtain
call. A retrospective evening of theatrical magic for three nights only,
June 3, 4 and 5, 2011, features a champagne reception and a trip down memory
lane with the company's acclaimed resident artists featuring play selections
from A Noise Within's 19 years of remarkable classical theatre in Glendale.

Special Note - Study Guides
A Noise Within offers comprehensive study guides on every production. Each
includes a synopsis, director's notes and detailed information about the
playwright, characters, setting, period, costumes, scenic design, music,
general theatre lore and links to other resources. They are available at
on-line at http://www.anoisewithin.org/education_studyguides.html.

MORE ABOUT A NOISE WITHIN

A Noise Within (ANW) is the only year-round classical repertory company in
Southern California and one of only a handful in the entire country
dedicated solely to producing classical dramatic literature in the repertory
tradition of rotating productions with a resident company of professional
artists. Led by Co-Founders and Co-Artistic Directors Geoff Elliott and
Julia Rodriguez-Elliott, A Noise Within has been hailed by critics as
"adventurous," "compelling and current," "ingenuity at work," "a bona fide
class act," and "what great theatre is all about." Founded nineteen years
ago, ANW quickly established itself as one of the region's key theatre
companies, attracting fiercely loyal audiences and consistently high praise
from the media for its productions and as a leading force in arts education.
The company has presented more than 120 plays from the classics of world
literature, each season producing works from authors ranging from
Shakespeare and Molière to Ibsen, O'Neill and Shaw to Miller and Williams.

A Noise Within's next chapter provides the long-awaited opportunity to sink
deep and lasting roots when the company moves from its long-time base in
Glendale to a spectacular, permanent home in a Pasadena mixed-use
development at the corner of Foothill Boulevard and Sierra Madre Villa
Avenue. The 33,000 square-foot venue is being built in the former Stuart
Pharmaceutical building, a historic, mid-century modern masterpiece designed
by celebrated architect Edward Durell Stone, known for landmark buildings
around the country including the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing
Arts in Washington, DC and Radio City Music Hall in New York. Constructed
in the mid-1950s, the Stuart Pharmaceutical building was listed on the
National Register in 1998. The facility, hailed as an anchor in East
Pasadena's arts growth, is designed to broaden artistic possibilities, offer
a greater scope of educational opportunities, meet ticket demand and allow
the company to expand its role as a leader in the presentation and
preservation of classical theatre. A Noise Within's long history of fiscal
stability is reflected not only by its 18 seasons "in the black" but also by
its ability -- in a challenging economic climate -- to raise more than $10.1
million to date toward its $13.3 million goal for the new venue.
Groundbreaking took place on July 20, 2010, and A Noise Within opens its
20th season there in Fall 2011.

An integral element of A Noise Within's mission is to make the classics
accessible to all audiences, with particular attention paid to leveraging
the company's resources for the benefit of area students and teachers. A
Noise Within has always been committed as a priority to augmenting middle
and high school students' classroom discovery of classic texts with
educational programming designed to complement classroom studies and enable
teachers to promote literacy and cultural awareness. The company's
educational programming serves a diverse population of students from public,
private and parochial schools, from the inner city to the suburbs, from
middle school through college. Approximately 30% of ANW's budget is
dedicated to educational programs.

PURCHASE TICKETS OR MAKE A DONATION

A NOISE WITHIN is located at 234 South Brand Boulevard, Glendale, CA 91204.
To purchase tickets or for a full season brochure, call 818-240-0910 x1 or
visit www.ANoiseWithin.org. To support A Noise Within's capital campaign or
for more information about A Noise Within's new home in Pasadena, call
818-265-7959 or visit www.ANoiseWithin.org.