Wilde and Shaw shows to premier in December

The Professional Theatre Training Program will present a pair of performances that take a hard look at exactly what determines acceptable ethical behavior in the worlds of medicine and politics.

An Ideal Husband, Oscar Wilde's timeless and effervescent comedy, concerns itself with the attempted blackmail of a rising politician and the moral code to which all public officials, not to mention blackmailers, are subject. With typical Wildean wit and dazzling repartee, An Ideal Husband has more than its share of dandies, dukes, duplicity and decorum as it continues to delight and enlighten audiences.

Evening performances are scheduled for Dec. 6 and 7 and Feb. 1, 7, 14 and 16. Matinees will be presented on Dec. 9 and 15 and Feb. 3 and 9.

In The Doctor's Dilemma, George Bernard Shaw offers audiences a story of a brilliant physician, Dr. Colenso Ridgeson, who has discovered a cure for tuberculosis but is faced with a medical and moral quandary. Who should be the recipient of the doctor's discovery: a fellow physician who devotes himself to healing the poor, or a brilliant, yet unscrupulous artist who just happens to be the husband of the woman Ridgeson loves?

This wicked satire is a piercing, thought -provoking and shockingly contemporary inquiry into the ethical standards of the medical profession.

All performances will be held in Hartshorn Hall. Evening performances begin at 7:30 p.m., and matinees are at 12:30 p.m. Tickets range from $7 to $17.

For information, call the Hartshorn Hall box office at 831-2204.

Photo by KATHY FLICKINGER