LAWRENCEVILLE, NJ -- Renowned playwright William Mastrosimone, one of Rider University's most prestigious alumni, will return to the Lawrenceville campus on Sunday, November 24 for the first public reading of his new play, Benedict Arnold.

The reading, which is the first step in the process of production, will be held in the Fine Arts Theatre at 2 p.m. and be presented with a cast of Rider students and faculty. The reading will be followed by a question and answer session with Mastrosimone.

This is the third formal visit to the campus for Mastrosimone, a 1974 Rider graduate and former Trenton resident who first returned in February, 1995 for a theatre festival in his honor. His works performed at the festival included Shivaree, a drama of an unlikely love story between a young hemophiliac and an exotic dancer, and Extremities, a powerful story about an attempted rape which brought him instant international recognition. Mastrosimone last returned to campus in August, 1995, for a world-premiere reading of his play, Burning Desire.

Tickets for the reading are $10 for the general public, faculty, and staff, and $5 for students. All proceeds will go toward the renovation of the theatre facility.

For more information on the event, contact the Rider University Fine Arts Department at 896-5168.

Rider University's Lawrenceville campus is located five miles south of Princeton and three miles north of Trenton on Route 206 in Lawrence Township. The campus is one-half mile south of exit 7A of Interstate 95.