Dear Friends, 

Welcome to Seattle Rep! We’re delighted to raise your spirits this holiday season with one of the most popular comedies of the past century, Blithe Spirit. Written in 1941 by the legendary playwright-composer-actor-singer Sir Noël Coward, this play showcases his signature razor-sharp dialogue and a high-concept comic plot that’s made it an enduring classic. Eighty-plus years since Coward was at the height of his career and popularity, audiences today may only know his work for its superficial trappings: clipped British accents, dry martinis, shimmering gowns, and smoking jackets. But his plays are also wickedly smart and express ideas that were ahead of their time, each containing a subversive streak. 

I’m fascinated and inspired by the fact that Coward wrote Blithe Spirit in the throes of Britain's involvement in World War II, while his country was living through the sustained nightly horror of German bombings during the Blitz. Yet the play contains no reference to the world at war. Even though any performance during those terrifying times could have ended in real-life tragedy, it would seem Coward wanted audiences to laugh together defiantly in the face of fear. He conjures a world with a hilarious afterlife, where spirits make deadpan quips and carry on. We are lucky to be in this theater today in relative safety, but the need to laugh together—and the need to connect as a community during the best and worst of times—remains timeless. 

_{Director Allison Narver with Gin Hammond and Arlando Smith in rehearsal for Blithe Spirit. Photo by Sayed Alamy}

Today’s production of Blithe Spirit was created especially for you, our local audience, and exemplifies Seattle Rep’s more than sixty-year mission as a professional regional theater. In alignment with our new three-year strategic plan, it also reflects Seattle Rep’s commitment to explore and develop a new producing model that increases our artistic impact and invests more of our resources in building world-class, locally made theater. Every element was #BuiltBySeattleRep here on site in collaboration with extraordinary artists and artisans who call Seattle home. With nationally renowned Seattle director Allison Narver (Boeing Boeing, The Hound of the Baskervilles, Three Tall Women) at the helm, an acclaimed all-local cast graces the stage in Cathy Hunt’s lushly detailed period costumes and on Carey Wong’s grand English country house scenic design. The countless creative choices they made together have been brought to life here in this theater for a one-of-a-kind interpretation of this classic built just for our community. 

_{Set design model for Blithe Spirit by scenic designer Carey Wong. Photo by Sayed Alamy}

We’re so glad that you made plans to join us at Seattle Rep today. As we look to the future, another key element of our strategic plan reflects our commitment to building stronger relationships with audiences and delivering a thoroughly enjoyable theatergoing experience from start to finish. With every performance we share together, we hope to inspire you to return again and again to Seattle Rep to connect with local artists and your local community for a limitless variety of stories and shared theater experiences. Today, let’s laugh together. Cheers! 

Until next time,

Dámaso Rodríguez
Artistic Director