From the CW's official press release:
The seniors put on a production of the "The Age of Innocence." Sebastian Stan (Kings) returns as Carter Baizen. Monday, March 16. Gossip Girl (8:00-9:00 p.m. ET)
The Constance Billard and St. Jude seniors put on a production of "The Age of Innocence" and find their personal lives mirroring conflicts in the play. Serena (Blake Lively) develops a crush on the play's director, Julian (guest star Harmon Walsh), and enlists Vanessa's (Jessica Szohr) knowledge of theater to help her get the otherwise uninterested guy's attention. Blair (Leighton Meester) receives devastating news about her future that leads her on a witch-hunt for the person responsible. Dan (Penn Badgley) and Rachel (guest star Laura Breckenridge) agree to stay away from each other in the aftermath of being discovered as more than teacher and student, but find it impossible to keep that promise. Chuck (Ed Westwick) enlists help from an unlikely source, his nemesis Carter Baizen (guest star Sebastian Stan). Chace Crawford, Taylor Momsen and Matthew Settle also star. Norman Buckley directed the episode written by Jessica Queller.
Source: The CW
(Image courtesy of The CW)
It's been a long and lonely winter without new Gossip Girl to keep warm the cockles of our wicked hearts--but tonight’s the night! It’s finally back—everyone's favorite fictional snobs, snakes, and celebutantes are back tonight. Let’s refresh what last we saw on the Upper East Side: Dan Hump-rhey and Serena’s ment-whore were hooking up, Chuck was on a hunt to find his mysterious escort dream-girl, and Blair got herself in and out of trouble with Miss Carr, but in the end her acceptance to Yale appeared safe.
Tonight, Gossip Girl welcomes us with some Shakespeare: ‘All the world’s a stage’ on the Upper East Side, she says, and this week it’s quite literal, since the seniors are putting on their (mandatory) class play, “The Age of Innocence”. The sly Chuck Bass (of course) managed to bribe a doctor into diagnosing him with “acute stagefright,” so he’ll be off on his own dramatic adventures tonight.
Blair is playing Lady Oleska, the “stronger, more emotionally complex” female lead (her description), while Serena will grace the stage as “pretty” (but clearly simple-headed) May. Before rehearsal, Blair and Serena chat about Dan and Serena’s new crush on their director Julien. In the background, Dorota sees how she’d look with some curly extensions (Fierce, Dorota!). Blair reminds Serena for us that she should be sick of brooding artists by now, but S is clearly addicted. Then bad news strikes: it seems Nelly Yuki got direct word from the Dean she’s been accepted early to Yale. But only one Constance girl per year gets that spot, and it was Blair. Which means…
Oh yeah, and Penelope is the maid in the play, and she gets caught standing next to Dorota backstage in her matching apron. Hilarious!
Out front, Jenny complains about volunteering to do costumes, and Dan sees Miss Carr walk into the theater. The other teachers gossip like “grown up Mean Girls” (Jenny’s words) as she walks by. We then find out that Vanessa is filming a “documentary” about the production of the play with her camcorder. She explains to Nate how awesome her film is going to be because of the irony and bad acting, and they make out. Blah blah.
Meanwhile, Chuck, who apparently doesn’t go to class anymore ever, walks into a restaurant and sees his father’s friend Mr. Campbell, who apologizes for missing the funeral. He then sees, at a different table, Carter Baizen (Ooh, Sebastian Stan, how I love your wicked ways! Any Stan-fans out there, be sure to catch him on Kings