China's Shanghai Theatre Academy will host 10 members of CSUN's performing troupe from Oct. 26 through Nov. 5 while they give three performances of "Pterodactyles."

Students Raymond Pratt (actor, a junior), Gina Valona (actor, a senior), Marjorie Gaines (actor, a graduate student), Christian Catlin (actor, a junior), Madigan McGillicuddy (actor/alternate, a senior), Eran James (stage manager, a senior) and Adam Levine (lighting designer, a senior) will be accompanied by play director Peter Grego, costume designer Garry Lennon and CSUN theatre manager William Taylor.

Themed "The New Look of Drama in the New Century," the festival will bring together 12 theatrical companies from around the globe to exchange ideas and learn from each other. This year, the United States will be represented by CSUN and the University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee. They will be joined by five European companies as well as six Asian companies.

CSUN's production of "Pterodactyles" by Nicky Silver is a dark comedy about a dysfunctional American family.

Prior to the Shanghai appearance, the play will be performed at CSUN's Campus Theatre from Friday, Sept. 14, through Saturday, Sept. 22. The days and times are: Thursday, Friday and Saturday at 8 p.m., Wednesday at 7 p.m. and Sunday at 5 p.m.

For tickets, call (818) 677-2488.

For more than a decade, the university and the Shanghai Theatre Academy have cultivated a relationship through cultural and intellectual exchange programs with students, professionals and works of art.

A theatre company from the academy recently performed "Dream of Butterfly" at the university's Campus Theatre, providing an opportunity for workshops and cultural exchanges.

California State University, Northridge has more than 30,000 full- and part-time students and offers 63 bachelor's and 51 master's degrees. Founded in 1958, it is the only four-year university in the San Fernando Valley and the third largest in the 23-campus CSU system. The Western Association of Schools and Colleges recently said CSUN "stands as a model to other public urban institutions of higher education..."