The Centenary Stage Women's Playwright Series

If you haven't seen a play from the Women Playwrights Series, you are really missing out on a quality production. Take a break from life and go with some friends or family to see a very well-written and directed play by some exceptional women! Now in its 22nd year, the Centenary Stage Company Women Playwrights Series ( WPS) presents 3-4 new plays each year in rehearsed staged readings throughout the month of April. Led by Program Director Catherine Rust, the WPS is dedicated to providing a working forum for the unique and underserved voice of women writing for the theater today. The Series features the finalists in the Susan Glaspell contest, which offers the winner further development support worth $35,000 in a full production on the CSC professional Equity main-stage season, as well as a cash payment to the author.

Their second play in the line-up will be "In the Car with Blossom and Lent" by Joni Fritz, which will be presented on Wednesday, April 26th at 7:30pm in the Lackland Center in Hackettstown. In this funny and poignant new play, a basket full of unpaid bills for chemical engineer Lenny Gold's laboratory is discovered by one of his adult daughters, unveiling a lifetime of secrets, a mysterious silent partner, and a few other challenges which must be met by this family. "In the Car.." is a delightful family saga about growing up, growing older and .. where you put the keys.

Playwright Joni Fritz has worked in theatre and television as a writer and actress, with appearances in NYC and regional theatre, film, television and commercials. Her writing credits run the gamut from theatre to videos, documentaries , and sketch comedy for USA Network. Most recently, Joni's play "Girl's Room," starring Broadway legends Carol Lawrence and Donna McKechnie, directed by Lynne Taylor-Corbett, enjoyed successful runs in NY and LA. Her work has been seen in several theatres in the NYC area, including Ensemble Studio Theatre, the Women's Theatre Company and Dreamcatcher Rep. She is a member of AEA, SAG-AFTRA and the Dramatist Guild, and resides in Pompton Plains, NJ.

Broadway veteran Lynne Taylor-Corbett helps bring this play to life as director in this Hackettstown presentation. Taylor-Corbett has been nominated for Tony Awards and a Drama Desk Award for Broadway's Swing!, and received Drama Desk and Lortel nominations for My Vaudeville Man and Wanda's World. She recently directed and choreographed a new production of The Seven Deadly Sins for the New York City Ballet with Patti LuPone in the role of Anna. Her choreography can be seen in feature films Footloose and My Blue Heaven and in Disney's stage show, Aladdin, at the Hyperion Theatre in California.

Admission to the "In the Car with Blossom and Len" is by donation and reservations are requested. For reservations and information contact the Centenary Stage Company Box Office at 908-979-0900, or visit online at www.centenarystageco.org.

You can also visit the website for more information on upcoming shows as well as a free writing workshop that will be offered on Saturday, April 26th from 10:00-2:00pm, led by John Pietrowski, of the Playwrights Theatre of NJ. Advance reservations are required, and can be made through the CSC Box office.

The CSC Women Playwrights Series is made possible in part through the generous support of the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation , the NJ State Council on the Arts, The Blanche and Irving Laurie Foundation, Heath Village Retirement Community, and the many CSC members and sponsors.