Photo Flash: THE COLOR PURPLE Returns To TUTS 8/18-8/23

The Color Purple will return to Houston and play a limited one week engagement at the Hobby Center for Performing Arts, August 18 - 23, 2009. The return engagement was booked in response to the challenges brought on by Hurricane Ike, which caused the cancellation of a full week of sold out performances.

The Color Purple is a story about hope and joy amongst the often difficult challenges that life can present. With that in mind, Theatre Under The Stars and the producers ofThe Color Purple are particularly pleased to announce the return engagement.

"We are so proud to offer our patrons and the city of Houston an additional chance to see this amazing production. It's truly too special and too important a piece of work to miss," says David Greiss, Director of Marketing.

Subscribers, groups and individual ticket holders from the cancelled performances will be offered the first option to purchase seats for the return engagement. Tickets will be made available to the general public beginning on Sunday, May 3, 2009. Patrons are encouraged to check the Theatre Under The Stars website, TUTS.com, or subscribe to the StarMail weekly newsletter for regular
updates regarding the return engagement.

Nominated for eleven Tony Awards®, including Best Musical, The Color Purple opened on December 1, 2006 at the Broadway Theatre where it continues its record breaking run.  It is based on the classic Pulitzer Prize-winning novel by Alice Walker and the moving film by Steven Spielberg.  It is the unforgettable and inspiring story of a woman named Celie, who finds the strength to triumph over adversity, and discover her unique voice in the world.

With a joyous Grammy®-nominated score featuring gospel, jazz, pop and the blues, The Color Purple is about hope and the healing power of love. As on Broadway, the first North American Tour of The Color Purple is directed by Gary Griffin.

The Color Purple features a libretto by Pulitzer Prize-winner Marsha Norman, music and lyrics by Grammy Award®-winning composers/lyricists Brenda Russell, Allee Willis and Stephen Bray, and choreography by Donald Byrd.  The original creative team of Tony Award®-winner John
Lee Beatty (sets), Paul Tazewell (costumes), Tony Award®-winner Brian MacDevitt (lighting), Jon Weston (sound), Jonathan Tunick (orchestrations) and Kevin Stites (Music Supervisor) was reunited for the tour.

The first North American Tour is produced by Oprah Winfrey, Scott Sanders, Roy Furman, Quincy Jones, Creative Battery, Anna Fantaci & Cheryl Lachowicz, Independent Presenters Network, Lowy
Family Group, Stephanie McClelland, Gary Winnick, Jan Kallish, Nederlander Presentations, Inc., Bob and Harvey Weinstein, Andrew Asnes & Adam Zotovich and Todd Johnson, and is produced in special association with AEG Live.

The original cast recording is available on EMI/Angel Records, and The Color Purple: A Memory Book of the Broadway Musical (Avalon/Carroll & Graf) is available in bookstores now.

Ariel Mutual Funds is a proud sponsor of The Color Purple.

Tickets for The Color Purple will be available beginning Sunday May 3, 2008 to the public by phone at (713) 558-8887 or outside the Houston area at (888)558-3882; or in person at the Theatre Under The Stars Box Office, (800 Bagby at Walker, Mon-Fri 9am-6pm, Sat-Sun 11am-4pm); or on-line at TUTS.com.  Discounts are available to groups of 15 or more to most performances by calling 713-558-8888 or emailing groupsales@TUTS.com. TUTS would like to thanks Ticketmaster for their sponsorship.

TUTS takes wings with Continental Airlines, the Official Airline of Theatre Under The Stars.  Support for the 2008-2009  Wow! What a Season.” also comes from St. Luke's Episcopal Health System, the Official Healthcare partner of Theatre Under The Stars and Spectra Energy.  Media sponsors are Houston Chronicle and ABC-13.

Founded in 1968, Theatre Under The Stars (TUTS) is Houston's acclaimed non-profit musical theatre company and is currently under the direction of President and CEO John C. Breckenridge.

Dedicated to producing new works and classic masterpieces, the 2008-2009 "Wow! What a Season!" celebrates TUTS 41st Season of bringing world-class musical theatre to Houston audiences.  TUTS was the first theatrical organization in Houston to perform free to the public in 1968 at Miller Outdoor Theatre in Hermann Park, and is the only Houston arts organization that has performed there free to the public every year since the building opened.

Since its founding by Frank M. Young, TUTS has produced more than 300 musicals including many local, national and world premieres such as Disney's Beauty and the Beast, as well as International tours including Debbie Reynolds in The Unsinkable Molly Brown, Juliet Prowse in Mame, Robert Goulet in Man of La Mancha, the Tony Award-winning revival of Carousel and the Deaf West Theatre production of Big River.

As a way to continue the tradition of musical theatre, TUTS' Humphreys School of Musical Theatre provides instruction and stage experience for more than 1,700 students annually through both The
Academy and The Studio, which allow students to flourish in a year-round schedule of classes. 

Housed in the Hobby Center for the Performing Arts, TUTS also annually presents the Tommy Tune Awards, honoring the best and brightest in Houston's high school musical theatre programs.For more information aboutThe Color Purple, please visit www.colorpurple.com.

Photo credit Paul Kolnik

Trent Armand Kendall and Bridgette Bentley

Felicia P. Fields and Stu James

Grasan Kingsberry and Sumayah McRae

Rufus Bonds, Jr. and Angela Robinson

Lynette DuPree, Virginia Ann Woodruff, and Kimberly Ann Harris

Felicia P. Fields and Tiffany Daniels

Kenita R. Miller and LaToya London

Rufus Bonds, Jr. and Adam Wade