We got a little Horton Foote (The Trip to Bountiful), we got a little Steven Dietz (about people in a New York bar discussing 9/11), we got a little Ann Landers (The Lady With All the Answers by David Rambo).

The most exciting thing, or at least the most visually spectacular: The Lieutenant of Inishmore by Martin McDonagh—a black and bloody comedy about Irish paramilitaries, rural bumpkin-drunks, and the trouble a dead cat wrought.

McDonagh has Seattle connections—Inishmore's first director, Wilson Milam, is from Seattle and ACT Theater's US-premiere production of A Skull in Connemara went on to New York.

No word on Inishmore's actors, director, or designer yet. But ACT tech folks are excited about the play—and, no doubt, about its special effects, which have prompted a gory arms race. (A New York production used five gallons of stage blood per night. A subsequent production at the Berkeley Rep used 12 gallons in the play's final 20 minutes.)

As one ACT designer wrote in an email:

Lieutenant of Inishmore! Fuck yeah!

Full season announcement after the jump.

The Trip to Bountiful
by Horton Foote
Allen Theatre
May 7-June 6

In 1947 Houston, the elderly Carrie Watts dreams endlessly of visiting her childhood home one last time before it is too late. But first, before she embarks on a sentimental journey home, she must find a way to escape the suffocating confinement of an over-bearing daughter-in-law and under-serving son. Both heartbreaking and uplifting, this haunting American classic is an unforgettable meditation on the idea of Home and its power to sustain us.

The Female of the Species
by Joanna Murray-Smith
Falls Theatre
June 18-July 18

Loosely based on a true story, this hilarious satire follows the plucky, obstinate, and opinionated feminist writer Margot Mason on her decent into the tortuous territory of writer’s block and the misadventures of a day gone wrong. No feminist doctrine goes unscathed when this sacred monster of the movement is taken hostage by a disillusioned disciple in this viciously funny play about gender politics.

Yankee Tavern
by Steven Dietz
Allen Theatre
August 13-September 12
From the acclaimed playwright who brought us the world-premiere of Becky’s New Car in 2008, comes this astutely funny dramatic thriller brimming with edge of your seat intrigue. In a New York dive bar five years after 9/11, a young couple find themselves face to face with a mysterious stranger who turns what seems like harmless conspiracy theories into a continuous stream of surprising and dangerous revelations in this eye-opening look at the events that forever changed our country.

The Lady With All the Answers
by David Rambo
Bullitt Cabaret
September 10-November 7
David Rambo’s play invites audiences to spend an evening of home truths and delicious dish with renowned advice columnist Ann Landers, as she shares some of her favorite letters and memories while struggling to write the toughest column of her life. An irresistible portrait of the woman who used charm, chutzpah, and “one hell of a Rolodex” to become America’s Therapist ­ and Best Friend Forever!

The Lieutenant of Inishmore
by Martin McDonagh
Falls Theatre
October 15-November 14

A gleefully gruesome comedy from the Oscar-winning author of In Bruges, about a merciless Irish terrorist and his obsessive love for the thing that matters most to him: his precious black cat, Wee Thomas. Turn off your political correctness meter and wallow in this outrageous, blood-drenched farce. You won’t believe your eyes!

Following the 2010 Mainstage season, ACT will stage its 35th annual production of the Seattle holiday favorite, A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens, adapted by Gregory A. Falls, November 23-December 26, 2009.

Balancing out the Mainstage season is year-round programming presented by The Central Heating Lab at ACT, including after-hour companion pieces inspired by the Mainstage productions, as well as the return of 14/48 (January), Seattle Dance Project (January-February), the 2010 New Play Award and workshop (February-March), the Moisture Festival (March), a dance residency by the sublime KT Niehoff and Lingo Dance (April-May), and much more.