Contact:
Eric Sloss
412-268-5765

For immediate release:
October 9, 2006

Carnegie Mellon's Class of 1966 Presents Homecoming Production of "Love Letters," Oct. 14

PITTSBURGH—The Carnegie Mellon University School of Drama Class of 1966 will present A.R. Gurney's "Love Letters" at 5 p.m., Saturday, Oct. 14 in the Philip Chosky Theater in the university's Purnell Center for the Arts. The one-night-only performance during Carnegie Mellon's Homecoming and Reunion Weekend is free and open to the public. A reception will take place prior to the show.

For this touching, humorous and revealing story, School of Drama alumni Peter Jason of HBO's "Deadwood" and Caroline McWilliams, who starred on the television shows "Soap" and "Benson," will play Andrew Makepeace Ladd III and Melissa Gardiner, respectively. Alumna Iris Rainer Dart, author of the novel and popular film "Beaches," will produce the performance.

"Love Letters" begins with the characters' first correspondence in second grade — a birthday thank-you card. What transpires is a lifetime of sharing through what is said and what is implied.

Jason, who has been in more than 80 films and hundreds of television episodes, commercials and voiceovers, starred in "Moon for The Misbegotten," "Playboy of the Western World" and "The Threepenny Opera." His Hollywood career began with "The Red Skelton Show," and his first performance in film was in "Rio Libo," starring John Wayne and directed by Howard Hawkes.

McWilliams is no stranger to "Love Letters," having directed back-to-back productions in Los Angeles with Debbie Reynolds and John Saxon, and then with Earl Holliman and JoAnne Worley. As an actress on Broadway, she played Maggie in "Cat On A Hot Tin Roof," Hannah in "The Rothschilds" and appeared in "Boccacio." On television she was a regular on "The Guiding Light" for six years and played the lead on "Beverly Hills 90210" and "Nearly Departed" with Eric Idle. She also had recurring appearances on "Judging Amy" as Amy's lawyer.

For more information on the production, visit www.cmu.edu/cfa/drama/loveletters. For free tickets, contact the School of Drama box office at 412-268-2407 between noon and 5 p.m., Monday-Friday.

For more information on the School of Drama or the College of Fine Arts, visit www.cmu.edu/cfa or contact Eric Sloss at 412-268-5765 or ecs@andrew.cmu.edu.

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