Released on: January 22, 2008, 12:57 pm

Press Release Author: Ginny Richardson Public Relations

Industry: Entertainment

Press Release Summary: Theatre of Western Springs presents \"Blue Yonder,\" featuring
Patty Duke.

Press Release Body: The Theatre of Western Springs annual winter benefit features
Patty Duke, returning to the TWS stage, along with eight actors from the TWS family
in Kate Aspengren\'s highly acclaimed Blue Yonder. There will be four performances,
each followed by an exclusive private reception (separately ticketed) with Patty
Duke and cast. All events take place at the Theatre of Western Springs, 4384 Hampton
Ave., Western Springs, IL.

. 8 p.m. Friday, Feb. 1
. 2:30 and 8 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 2
. 2:30 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 3

. Private on-stage reception after each
performance: $25 in addition to ticket
price

Blue Yonder features a series of fascinating monologues, and Patty Duke will perform
three of them while the rest are performed by Actives of the Theatre of Western
Springs: Dorothy Attermeyer of Hinsdale, Tricia Boren of Darien, Linda Cunningham of
La Grange, Bonnie Hilton of Western Springs, Karen Holbert of Western Springs, Patti
Roeder of Oak Park, Charron Traut of Hinsdale, and Marilyn Weiher of Downers Grove.

The eight characters of Blue Yonder are mesmerizing and eccentric women including a
flight instructor, a firefighter, a stuntwoman, a woman who donates body parts, an
employment counselor, a professional softball player, a surgical nurse, and more.

Patty Duke and her husband have a long history with Jack Phillips, TWS artistic
director and his wife Debbie. The two couples have been close friends for many
years. Artistically they have a bond as well since Phillips directed Patty Duke in a
"masterful portrayal" of Amanda in The Glass Menagerie at Spokane Civic Theatre in
1999. The four-week run of that production was one of the most successful in that
theatre's history.

Besides their friendship and actor/director relationship, Patty Duke and Jack
Phillips have acted together and performed Love Letters several years ago at Theatre
of Western Springs.

"We are so honored to welcome Patty Duke back to our theatre," said Phillips.

Tickets are $55. The private reception with Patty Duke following each performance is
an additional $25. Reception tickets are very limited.

In addition to Blue Yonder, Patty Duke will participate in a live
discussion/interview at 7:30 p.m. Monday, Feb. 4, 2008, at the Theatre of Western
Springs, 4384 Hampton Ave.
Admission is free to those who saw Blue Yonder; $20 to others.

For all tickets and information, visit: www.theatrewesternsprings.com or call
708-246-3380.

###

-Patty Duke bio-

Patty Duke is a multi-award-winning actress and author, best known for her
performance as "Helen Keller" in The Miracle Worker, a role that made her a Broadway
star at the age of 12.

Walter Kerr of the New York Herald Tribune wrote of her, "Miss Duke is not an
accomplished child actress, she is an accomplished actress who happens to be a child
at the moment."

In 1962, she recreated her role on film and earned an Academy Award as "Best
Supporting Actress," the youngest performer at the time to have done so. She has
starred in eleven feature films, appeared in more than 73 made-for-TV movies, made
countless radio and television appearances, including her own series, "The Patty
Duke Show," and recorded six albums.

To date she has won three Emmys and two Golden Globes, including awards for her work
in My Sweet Charlie (one of the first TV movies to enjoy a theatrical release), the
mini-series Captains and the Kings, and The Miracle Worker (in the adult role of
Helen's teacher, "Annie Sullivan," opposite Melissa Gilbert.) She co-produced and
starred in a TV adaptation of her best-selling autobiography, Call Me Anna, and went
on to write A Brilliant Madness: Living with Manic-Depressive Illness. Both books
topped the New York Times best-seller lists.

In 1985, she became the second woman to serve as president of the Screen Actors
Guild, the fifth largest labor union in the United States. During her tenure, SAG
developed strategies to deal with the newly identified AIDS crisis. She is active in
a number of political and humanitarian causes including famine relief, nuclear
policy, the Equal Rights Amendment and the Muscular Dystrophy Association. She
organized the West Hollywood Walkathon and 10K Marathon to benefit the AIDS Project
Los Angeles, and was named "Woman of the Year" for her efforts.

In 1999, she returned to the stage with a masterful portrayal of "Amanda" in Spokane
Civic Theatre's The Glass Menagerie, directed by John G. Phillips. The four-week
run of that production was one of the most successful in the theatre's history.

Miss Duke is married to Michael Pearce, whom she met while preparing for a role in
the TV movie A Time to Triumph. They make their home in northern Idaho with their
son, Kevin.
###


-Bio - Kate Aspengren, playwright-

In addition to Blue Yonder, Kate Aspengren has authored Flyer, Rule of Nines,
American Smooth, Too Fast to Fall, Our Lady of Route 52, House of Wonders, Mother's
Day, Dear Mrs. Martin, and a stage adaptation of Madeleine L\'Engel\'s A Wrinkle in
Time.

Several of Aspengren's plays have been published by Samuel French and are produced
regularly throughout North America. Her work has also been translated for European
production. Aspengren's plays have been produced at the West End Theatre in New
York, Actors Theatre of Louisville, The Loft Theatre at the Tampa Bay Performing
Arts, and the New American Comedy Festival.

She is a founding member of the Kingston Springs Writers Group and is on the theatre
arts faculty at the University of Iowa. She received her MFA in playwriting from the
University of Iowa Playwrights Workshop and has taught playwriting at Grinnell
College, Coe College, and Cornell College.




Web Site: http://www.theatrewesternsprings.com

Contact Details: Ginny Richardson Public Relations
Contact: Ginny Richardson
grichardson@gr-pr.com or 630-789-8555