Michael Gotch in the REP production, "I Am My Own Wife."

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9:30 a.m., Sept. 22, 2009----The Resident Ensemble Players (REP), Delaware's professional acting company in residence at the University of Delaware, has opened its 2009-2010 season with the Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award-winning play I Am My Own Wife by Doug Wright.

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I Am My Own Wife is the unique and mesmerizing tale of endurance of Charlotte von Mahlsdorf, a real-life German transvestite, who survived the atrocities of both the Nazis and the East German Communists, while maintaining her unusual sexual identity.

Besides Charlotte, REP actor Michael Gotch portrays a parade of more than 30 characters in the production, including Charlotte's sadistic father, a sympathetic aunt, Nazi officers, East German police, American soldiers, and even the playwright himself. Startling, yet humorously charming, von Mahlsdorf's story is an extraordinary tale of self-preservation.

Performances run through Sunday, Oct. 4. Tickets are $16-$22, with discounts for students, seniors and UD faculty and staff. Tickets can be purchased by calling the REP box office at (302) 831-2204, in person at the Roselle Center for the Arts, 110 Orchard Rd., Newark, or online at the REP Web site.

The production originated at the Milwaukee Repertory Theatre last season. Gotch and the artistic staff from that production have recreated the work at the University of Delaware in the intimate Studio Theatre in the Center for the Arts.

Director John Langs states that, “Our guiding feeling about the show was that Charlotte is such a beguiling character, a figure who is never what she seems to be. 'Beguiling' was also the key word in our design plan, which meant to us that it would contain a series of surprises -- much like Charlotte's story itself.”

The REP, established in 2008, is the professional component of UD's Professional Theatre Training Program (PTTP), the nationally acclaimed graduate conservatory. Featuring some of America's most experienced and respected regional theatre actors and actresses, the REP and the theatre conservatory are similar to interconnected professional companies and training programs found at Harvard and Yale universities, among many others.

The performance schedule is as follows: Sept. 24, 25, 26 and 30, and Oct. 1, 2 and 3, at 7:30 p.m.; Sept. 26 and 27, and Oct. 3 and 4, at 2 p.m.; and Oct. 4, at 7 p.m.

Prior to the 2 p.m. performance on Sept 26 is the REP Prologue, a free and informal 20-minute presentation about the production, designed to enhance patrons' enjoyment and understanding of what they are about to experience.

The Roselle Center for the Arts is located at 110 Orchard Road, on the corner of Orchard Road and Kent Way, in Newark, Delaware. A convenient parking garage is attached to the Center.

Ten, six and four-show subscriptions for the REP's 2009-2010 season are now available. Subscribers enjoy significant savings on tickets, the best choice of seats and a liberal ticket exchange policy.

A complete schedule, directions, and information on purchasing tickets can be found at the REP's Web site or by calling the REP's box office at (302) 831-2204.