Tickets go on sale Friday, Feb. 9, for Northern State University's winter theater production of Oscar Wilde's "An Ideal Husband." Performances are 7:30 p.m. nightly Thursday through Saturday, Feb. 22-24, in the Johnson Fine Arts Center theater on the NSU campus.

"An Ideal Husband" premiered in 1895 and is being presented by NSU 100 years after Wilde's death. The dramatic production is a comedy of Victorian pretension, intrigue and scandal that showcases Wilde's shimmering and satirical wit. At once taut, funny and prodigiously smart, Wilde offers a profound observation of the illusions we use to deceive ourselves.

Sir Robert Chiltern, portrayed by Greg Parmeter, Huron, is a successful English politician who is a paragon of virtue. He and his idealistic and adoring wife, Lady Chiltern, played by Amy Heidenreich, Aberdeen, are sabotaged by Mrs. Cheveley, acted by Heather DuChien, Big Lake, Minn. A scheming villainess, she returns to England to blackmail Sir Robert with evidence of an early act of impropriety.

To avoid a scandal that could destroy both his career and his marriage, Sir Robert turns to his friend and ally, Lord Goring, portrayed by Dan Merchant, Bloomfield, Colo. A brilliantly farcical stand-in for Wilde himself, Goring must not only defeat the unscrupulous Mrs. Cheveley but also persuade the couple he genuinely loves to see one another anew.

Characters acting mostly as party guests or those in the social circle of the principal characters are portrayed by Daniel Christensen, Watertown, as the Earl of Caversham; Mandy Eilers, Aberdeen, as Miss Mabel Chiltern; Seth Engel, Watertown, as Vicomte de Nanjac; Chaun Peterson, Huron, as Mr. Montford; Tony Kollman, Jamestown, N.D., as Phipps; Crystal Kozel, Sioux Falls, as Lady Markby; Mary Dodson, Spearfish, as Lady Basildon; Gerta Bardhoshi, Thessaloniki, Greece, as Miss Marchmont; Cody Tesnow, Sturgis, as Mason; Justin Jewell, Sturgis, as James; Michael Novack, St. Paul, Minn., as Mr. Barford; Melissa Kindig, Sioux Falls, as Lady Jane Barford; and Chrissy Fischer, Aberdeen, as the Duchess of Maryborough.

Directing "An Ideal Husband" is Daniel Yurgaitis, NSU assistant professor of theater. Scenery is designed by NSU student Michael Bowser. NSU student Mandy Eilers is costume designer. Larry Wild, NSU assistant professor of theater, is creating the light design with the assistance of the NSU light design class.

Tickets for "An Ideal Husband" will be available at the door or at the NSU Bookstore. Tickets are $6 for adults, $5 for senior citizens and children, and free to NSU students with activity passes. All seats are reserved.