Lunchtime Theater Returning

Following the success of Play With Your Food’s debut presentation in Newtown — a holiday offering of A Christmas Memory in December — Newtown Cultural Arts Commission has scheduled two more PWYF Thursday afternoon events this season: February 18 and April 8, from noon to 1:30 pm.

Play With Your Food has brought quality theatrical writing and acting to Fairfield county communities since 2003 with full seasons in Westport, Greenwich and Fairfield. Its signature daytime program combines gourmet lunches with professionally staged readings of one-act plays, written by both emerging and award-winning playwrights.

“The Alexandria Room is a beautiful space for these events,” says PWYF Artistic Director Carole Schweid. “We are thrilled to have Newtown join our family of venues.”

On February 18, in celebration of Valentine’s Day, “Love in the Afternoon” will present love and relationships with a twist: a first date like you’ve never seen in Sure Thing by David Ives; Leslie Ayvazian’s Twenty-Four Years (of marriage, yes!); and the hilarious After the Ball by Fred Stroppel. A buffet lunch before the show will be catered by Mona Lisa Restaurant.

For April 8, as buds begin to appear in the garden, “Rites of Spring” will features those pesky critters in Deer Play by Mary Louise Wilson, a tender and touching pairing in The Betrothal by Lanford Wilson, and a comic look at baseball in Fred Stroppel’s Judgment Call. Lunch will be catered by the Double Eagle Deli & Grill.

Both events will be held in The Alexandria Room at Edmond Town Hall, 45 Main Street in Newtown. Doors open at 11:50 am, and lunch begins at noon. A brief discussion with the actors closes the program at 1:30 pm.

“We were delighted with the response to Play With Your Food in December and knew we wanted to do it again,” said Jennifer Johnston, the president of Newtown Cultural Arts Commission. “Bringing programs like this to Newtown is exactly what NCAA is set up to do. We’re thrilled.”

Tickets for both events are available online at NewtownArtsCommission.org or by phone at 203-364-9844. Mastercard and Visa are accepted. All tickets must be purchased in advance; by February 16 for “Love in the Afternoon” and by April 6 for “Rites of Spring.”

Tickets are $30 for one event or $55 for both events. Tickets will not be sold at the door.