UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Penn State Centre Stage will launch its return to professional summer theatre with “The Last Day,” June 12-22, evenings at 8 p.m., at the Penn State Downtown Theatre, with music by Mike Reid, lyrics by Sarah Schlesinger and book by Reid and Schlesinger. John Simpkins directs, with musical direction by Jennifer Peacock. Reid is a Grammy Award-winning songwriter and former Penn State Nittany Lions defensive lineman.

A Penn State Musical Theatre-commissioned piece in its first-ever production, “The Last Day” is about a young man tormented by a secret he has never shared. As he ends his junior year of musical theatre university training, he is dropped from the program as his secret overtakes him. Over the course of one night, his peers attempt to show him the value of his life and they all discover much they never realized about themselves.

Reid is the writer/composer of more than 30 top-10 country and pop hits, including Bonnie Raitt’s “I Can’t Make You Love Me,” a song that has been recorded by 538 artists, including Adele, and is number eight on the list of the 100 Greatest Songs of All Time. Reid was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2005.

Prior to pursuing his songwriting career, he was an All-American defensive tackle at Penn State; the number one draft pick of the Cincinnati Bengals; an inductee into the College Football Hall of Fame and recipient of the Outland Trophy.

Schlesinger is the chair of the Graduate Musical Theatre Writing Program and associate dean of performing arts at the Tisch School of the Arts at New York University.

For additional show information, visit www.theatre.psu.edu. Tickets are available at Penn State Tickets Downtown, Eisenhower Box Office, Bryce Jordan Center, or by calling (814) 863-0255 or 1-(800)-ARTS-TIX.