A combination of old and new plays will be staged by the Department of Theatre and Dance at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point during the 2004 spring theatre season.

A 17th century English comedy, a contemporary drama and an energetic dance concert will be staged in the Jenkins Theatre. The studio theatre will be the venue for a musical by Roger Nelson, coordinator of musical theatre.

"We have selected plays that meet the principal mission of our department, to train students, while providing cultural enrichment for the Stevens Point area community," Chair Ken Risch said.

The first play of the semester will be an English comedy of manners written in 1675, "The Country Wife" by William Wycherley. The play will be performed Friday through Sunday, Feb. 20-22, and Thursday through Saturday, Feb. 26-28, in Jenkins Theatre.

"If you love soap operas, reality TV or romance novels, you will enjoy this 17th century satirical comedy," said Risch, who will direct.

The comedy begins with a recently married, naive country girl who arrives in London with her aging, jealous husband. She is enticed into an affair with a philanderer who tricks her husband into believing that he has not compromised her honor. One of the most significant plays to grow out of the English Restoration, "The Country Wife" has sharp dialog and a keen way of exposing hypocrisy.

A powerful and provocative drama about race relations, "Spinning Into Butter" by Rebecca Gilman, one of America�s most important new playwrights, will be performed Friday through Sunday, April 2-4 and Thursday through Saturday, April 15-17 in Jenkins Theatre. The drama will be directed by Stephen Trovillion Smith, assistant professor of theatre and dance.

"Those who work in group settings will recognize the complications of getting caught up in the language and practice of trying to be politically correct," Risch said. "The play challenges bureaucratic decision making that bogs people down until they begin to sacrifice their personal integrity."

When an African-American student at a small-town college receives racist threats, faculty members and students are forced to confront their prejudices. When responses range from ineffectiveness to overreaction, the campus begins to fragment into ethnic camps as the play reaches its surprising conclusion. Gilman took the central metaphor of the play from the story "Little Black Sambo."

"The white people in the college become so discombobulated by what�s going on and thrown so much out of whack that they chase their own tails and go in circles around and around until they spin into butter," Gillman said.

The final main stage production of the season, "Danstage 2004: A Dance Concert," is choreographed by theatre and dance faculty members Susan Gingrasso, Joan Karlen and Beth Megill. Their entertaining and provocative choreography will be performed by student dancers on Friday through Sunday, April 30 to May 2 and Thursday through Saturday, May 6-8.

A studio theatre production "Lisa and David" features a musical score by Nelson with the book and lyrics by John Driver. It will be presented on Wednesday through Sunday, March 10 through 14, in the Studio Theatre.

The musical is based on a famous story by psychiatrist Dr. Theodore I. Rubin. Two young patients in a psychiatric treatment center have a mutual attraction that motivates their first steps toward healing. This sensitive, uncompromising adaptation of the story is a poignant exploration of the need for contact and the power of connection.

All of the plays have some adult content and are not suited for young children, but are appropriate for students in junior high and high school.

Tickets for main stage productions are $12 for the general public, $11 for seniors and $7 for youth. Tickets for "Lisa and David" are $9 for adults and seniors and $5 for youth. A minimal ticketing charge is added to each ticket purchase.

Tickets are available at the UWSP Box Office in Room 103A of the University Center, by calling 715-346-4100 or 800-838-3378. Visa, MasterCard or Discover cards are accepted. Tickets also will be available at the door if performances are not sold out in advance. Tickets also can be purchased on the Internet at https://tickets.uwsp.edu/Wt3/.