Dessa Rose makes its West Coast Premiere at TheatreWorks, opening Oct. 7 with performances through Oct. 29.
Composed and written by Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty, (Ragtime, Once On This Island, and My Favorite Year) Dessa Rose is a powerful tale of pride, perseverance, and the unlikely friendship forged between an abandoned southern belle and a rebellious slave girl escaping the antebellum South. Called "a soulful hymn to ancestry and sisterhood" by Variety, this compelling musical based upon the best-selling novel by Sherley Anne Williams captures the rhythms and roots of 19th century
Photos by David Allen
l-r, Dessa Rose (Carly Hughes), Dorcas
(C. Kelly Wright), and Ruth (Linda Mugleston)
l-r, Harker (Brian Yates Scharber), Dessa Rose (Carly Hughes),
and Nathan ( John Eric Parker) gaze at the stars
The cast of Dessa Rose at TheatreWorks
Dessa Rose (Carly Hughes) and Kaine
(Carmichael Blankenship) share an embrace
Ruth (Linda Mugleston) and Nathan
(John Eric Parker) share a moment
l-r, Kaine (Carmichael Blankenship Blankenship)
and Dessa Rose (Carly Hughes),Ruth (Linda
Mugleston) and Nathan (John Eric Parker)
Dessa Rose (r, Carly Hughes) scolds Ruth (c, Linda
Mugleston) as Oscar (l, Brian Frutiger) watches
Nehemiah (r, Ian Leonard) preaches to Rose
(l, Cathleen Ridley), Annabel (c. left, Dawn
Troupe), and Dorcas (c, C. Kelly Wright)
Nehemiah (Ian Leonard) chats with Dessa (Carly Hughes)
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