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Mum Puppettheatre's 2003-2004 season comes to a close with The Visit, May 4 through May 29, 2004

For Immediate Release: April 20, 2004

Philadelphia, PA – Mum Puppettheatre's THE VISIT takes us to the remote and destitute village of Güllen, where the world's wealthiest woman returns home after being thrown out as a young and pregnant girl. She promises everyone great riches and asks for only one thing in return: that her ex-lover MUST die. The innocent inhabitants find their moral principles put to severe test in this tale of greed, revenge and salvation. THE VISIT runs May 4th through May 29th, 2004. Opening night is Wednesday, May 12th at 7pm. Ticket prices range from $1 to $25. Performances are Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday at 7pm, Friday and Saturday 8pm, and Saturday at 2pm. To reserve your tickets, call (215) 925-7686 or log onto www.mumpuppet.org.

Local favorites Frank X and Sally Mercer make their Mum Puppettheatre debut with internationally acclaimed puppeteers, Bonnie Periale and Andrew Periale, in this new adaptation of the rarely performed play directed by Robert Smythe. THE VISIT blends a tragicomic post-war German script with elements of traditional (bunraku) and contemporary (manga) Japanese culture. Andrew Periale's excellent translation communicates great humor while capturing the darkness of the play. "It's one of the few, true tragic comedies," states Frank X, veteran Philadelphia actor who portrays Alfred Ill and is enjoying the process of mounting an original Mum creation. Sally Mercer is also joining Mum for the first time, "this is a role that I never thought I'd play in." An admirer of Robert's work, Sally is the voice of Claire Zachnassian and will be working at the side of the stage in the style of Japanese joruri recitative with three manipulators handling Claire, the Japanese bunraku-style puppet. Enjoying the challenge, Sally admits that Robert, "gives you a lot of freedom, you aren't bound by the rules of theater." THE VISIT continues Mum's mission to collaborate with artists of a diverse disciplines and backgrounds in the exploration of the interdisciplinary nature of puppetry.

Join us, if you can, for our moderated Coffee and Conversation nights on Wednesday, May 5, 19th & 26, 2004. Complete with coffee and snacks, our Coffee and Conversation evenings are generously sponsored by Whole Foods Market. Our May 5th Coffee and Conversation will include moderators Marion Faber and Norm Roessler.

Marion Faber, Professor of German at Swarthmore College, has publications on Kafka, Nietzsche, and Weimar film. She has translated several books, including Wolfgang Hildesheimer's Mozart, which was a finalist for the American Book Award in 1982. Recently she co-authored a biography of the Austrian-American pianist Rudolf Serkin. She has regularly taught The Visit in her second-year German classes.

Norm Roessler works at Temple University where he teaches courses in Western Culture, Philosophy and Language, and Theater. His research interests include Modern German and American Theater, Friedrich Nietzsche, and Bertolt Brecht. He regularly writes theater reviews for academic journals and has reviewed productions in Germany, New York, Washington D.C., and of course, Philadelphia. Recently he has reviewed Permanent Collection (InterAct Theatre) and A Man's a Man (Arena Stage/D.C.).

Now the works of artists and performers at Mum are to be experienced by everyone! Thanks to the Theatre Communications Group's Audiences of Tomorrow objective, Mum now has Live Theater Captioning. That means that EVERY performance at Mum is accessible. Captioning is available upon request, so please make a reservation at least 24 hours prior to your performance date. If you are an organization interested in renting the Live Captioning System for your venue, please contact (215) 925-8686.

Tickets for THE VISIT are now available by contacting the Mum Puppettheatre box office at (215) 925-7686 or by going online to www.mumpuppet.org.

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