RICHARDSON, Texas (Jan. 17, 2003) - The University of Texas at Dallas (UTD) will present John Guare's The House of Blue Leaves, directed by UTD faculty member Dr. Kelly Gordon, on two weekends next month from Friday, Feb. 14, to Sunday, Feb. 23, in the University Theatre on campus.

This dark comedy by Guare, who also wrote the extremely popular Six Degrees of Separation, involves a family so obsessed with the promise of the American Dream that its members are completely incapable of connecting with each other. The crazy cast of characters includes three nuns, a hearing impaired starlet, a zoo-keeping songwriter, a woman who won't leave the house and a young man who wants to blow up the Pope.

Friday and Saturday performances will begin at 8 p.m. and Sunday matinees at 2:30 p.m. Tickets for The House of Blue Leaves are $15 for general admission and $10 for students. Tickets will be on sale Mondays to Fridays from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. in the Art & Performance Office in the Visual Arts Building on the UTD campus and will be available at the door one hour prior to show time. Tickets also are available for purchase by phone during ticket office hours by calling 972-883-2982 and charging with Visa or MasterCard.

The House of Blue Leaves has enjoyed critical acclaim and has won four Tony Awards, the Los Angeles Drama Critics Award (Obie) and the New York Drama Critics Award for Best American Play.

For information about the many musical, arts, theatre, dance and other performances and exhibitions held throughout the year at UTD, please call 972-UTD-ARTS (972-883-2787), e-mail utdarts@utdallas.edu or visit the School of Arts and Humanities' web site at http://www.utdallas.edu/ah/. Persons with disabilities needing special accommodations may call 972-883-2982, Texas Relay Operator 1-800-RELAYVV

About UTD
The University of Texas at Dallas, located at the convergence of Richardson, Plano and Dallas in the heart of the complex of major multinational technology corporations known as the Telecom Corridor, enrolls more than 13,000 students. The school's freshman class traditionally stands at the forefront of Texas state universities in terms of average SAT scores. The university offers a broad assortment of bachelor's, master's and doctoral degree programs. For additional information about UTD, please visit the university's Web site at http://www.utdallas.edu/.

About the director...
Dr. Kelly Carolyn Gordon is a senior lecturer at UTD. She holds a Ph.D. in drama from the University of Georgia, a master's in directing from Emerson College and a bachelor's in theatre from Ohio Wesleyan University. Influences on her work include extensive training in improvisation at the Piven Theatre Workshop in Evanston, Ill., and in the Theatre of the Oppressed with Augusto Boal in Boston.

Gordon prefers theatre that is both entertaining and socially relevant. Past projects include: She's a Big Girl Now by Ian Mairs, A Rat's Mass by Adrienne Kennedy and The Zoo Story by Edward Albee.