World Premiere by Terrence McNally & More Set for Classic Stage Company's 50th Anniversary Season

Fire and Air, a world premiere play by Terrence McNally, will be part of the 50th anniversary season at off-Broadway's Classic Stage Company. The production, directed by CSC Artistic Director John Doyle, will begin performances in January 2018. Other highlights of the season will include a revival of Shakespeare's Twelfth Night, presented by Fiasco Theater, and Oscar Hammerstein II’s World War II-set take on Bizet’s opera Carmen.

The season will begin with a revival of Shakespeare's As You Like It, directed by Doyle. The production, featuring original music by Stephen Schwartz, will run in September 2017. Twelfth Night will follow in November.

Fire and Air will kick off the new year. The new play explores the rich history of the Ballets Russes, Sergei Diaghilev’s revolutionary ballet company, and the tempestuous relationship between Diaghilev and his lover-star dancer Vaslav Nijinsky.

The new piece will be followed by Tennessee Williams' Summer and Smoke in April 2018. Jack Cummings III will helm this sultry Southern Gothic masterpiece about a local minister’s daughter's love for the neighborhood doctor.

Doyle will also direct Carmen Jones, Oscar Hammerstein II’s World War II setting of Bizet’s opera Carmen. The production, which is scheduled for June 2018, will feature an all African-American cast. This is the first major revival of the show since its debut on Broadway 75 years ago.

Additional information, including exact dates and cast, will be announced later.