NT Live: The Habit Of Art

NT Live: The Habit Of Art

A live performance from the UK's National Theatre broadcast to Fairfield University's Quick Center for the Arts and 330 cinemas worldwide

Travelex supports NT Live internationally

'Another absolute cracker, often wonderfully and sometimes filthily funny, but also deeply and unexpectedly moving' - Daily Telegraph on The Habit Of Art

Image: Habit of Art Alan Bennett's highly acclaimed new play The Habit Of Art, directed by Nicholas Hytner, will be filmed live at the National Theatre in London on Thursday, April 22 and broadcast by satellite to cinemas and performing arts centers worldwide. Fairfield University's Regina A. Quick Center for the Arts will present the live screening at 2:00 p.m. The Kelley Theatre will open at 1:30 p.m. to allow audience entry for the pre-show interviews. There will be an encore performance on Thursday, April 29 at 7:00 p.m. The house will open at 6:30 p.m. This presentation is part of the Arts & Minds season at Fairfield University.

The Habit Of Art is the final play in the pilot season of NT Live, following the hugely successful broadcasts of Phèdre, All's Well That Ends Well and Nation (a second season of NT Live is confirmed; titles will be announced shortly).

The Habit Of Art is as much about the theatre as it is about poetry or music. It looks at the unsettling desires of two difficult men - Benjamin Britten and W H Auden - and at the ethics of biography. It reflects on growing old, on creativity and inspiration, and on persisting when all passion is spent: ultimately, on the habit of art.

Benjamin Britten, sailing uncomfortably close to the wind with his new opera, Death in Venice , seeks advice from his former collaborator and friend, W. H. Auden. During this imagined meeting, their first for twenty-five years, they are observed and interrupted by, amongst others, their future biographer and a young man from the local bus station.

Image: Habit of Art The cast is led by Richard Griffiths (W. H. Auden), Alex Jennings (Benjamin Britten), Adrian Scarborough (Humphrey Carpenter) and Frances de la Tour (Kay, the Stage Manager).

The Habit Of Art is Alan Bennett's fifth play for the National Theatre. His last play, The History Boys, opened at the Lyttelton Theatre in 2004, toured nationally and internationally, played in the West End and on Broadway, and was adapted for the screen. Among its many awards were the Laurence Olivier, Tony and Critics Circle Awards for Best Play, and the South Bank Show Award for Theatre.

NT Live performances are filmed live at the National Theatre in high definition and broadcast via satellite to over 330 cinemas and performing arts centers around the world, live in Europe and some US cities, and time-delayed in countries further afield. The pilot season of NT Live began in June with the hugely successful broadcast of Phèdre with Helen Mirren, which was seen by 50,000 people in 19 countries around the globe. NT Live screenings in international venues, including the United States, Canada, Australia, South Africa, Scandinavia and Europe, are supported by Travelex, the world's foreign exchange and business payments specialist.

Please note: The Habit Of Art contains strong language and sexual references.

Tickets for reserved seating are $22 general, $20 seniors, $15 children and students and are available at the Box Office at (203) 254-4010 or online at quickcenter.com. The toll free number is 1-877-ARTS-396. Special offers and discounts are available through the Quick Center's e-mail list. Join, by contacting boxoffice@quickcenter.com. And become a fan of the Quick Center for the Arts on Facebook! Keep up-to-date with the latest performance news, plus special offers and discounts! Find the Quick Center at www.facebook.com/FairfieldQuickCenter.

Directions: Fairfield University is located off I-95, exit 22 at 1073 North Benson Road, Fairfield, CT 06824.

Posted On: 04-05-2010 10:04 AM

Volume: 42 Number: 259