Sound Theatre to Bring 5 BY BECKETT to ACT Central Heating Lab, 10/30-11/9

Sound Theatre Company completes its eighth season with "5 By Beckett," an evening of short plays by Samuel Beckett as part of the Seattle Beckett Festival and presented in conjunction with ACT Theatre's Central Heating Lab.

"5 By Beckett" is a cycle of plays exploring the theatrical and playful evolution of silence and language. This evening of rarely produced short plays includes "Act Without Words I and II," "Rough for Theatre I and II" and "Catastrophe" written by Beckett for the late Vaclav Havel. "5 By Beckett" will feature the work of Sound Theatre Company member and movement and clown performer, Ken Michels. "5 By Beckett" is co-directed by Sound Theatre Company Artistic Director, Teresa Thuman and local actor, director and educator Andrew McGinn.

Sound Theatre joins over 40 local theatres in presenting the works of Samuel Beckett that have been performed since August of this year with a wide range of material created or inspired by Samuel Beckett. The creation of the Beckett Festival offered a unique opportunity to present lesser known work of Samuel Beckett and to select pieces that reflect the core mission at STC of presenting a diverse range of takes on language in theatre.

"I have thought for a while that producing Beckett would reflected ideally on our mission but would also present a challenge for our small company," says Sound Theatre Artistic Director Teresa Thuman. Previous Sound Theatre productions included works by playwrights Stoppard, Shakespeare, Shaw, Kushner and Churchill among others. "Four of these plays in "5 By Beckett" have a silent character and this provided an ideal performance opportunity for company member, physical comedian and movement specialist, Ken Michels." Michels is joined by Seattle actors John Clark, Josè Amador, Robert Bergin and Ashley Banker to complete the ensemble cast.

Just as the festival itself allows the presentation of multiple works to inform each other, this evening of short plays seeks to provide an enhanced theatrical frame for the more familiar works by Samuel Beckett.

Ensemble Cast:

Ken Michels

John Clark

Josè Amador

Robert Bergin

Ashley Banker

Creative Team:

Directors - Teresa Thuman, Andrew McGinn

Lighting Designer - Richard Schaefer

Set Design/Construction - Richard Schaefer, Ken Michels

Sound Designer - Lindsey Morck

Props Designers/Construction/Special Effects - Ashley Banker and Ken Michels

Stage Manager - Ariel Bui

Assistant Stage Manager - Ashley Banker

ABOUT SOUND THEATRE COMPANY - Sound Theatre Company presents highly theatrical work inspired by language and music while showcasing professional and emerging talent in the Seattle area. It has been named an "up-and-coming" theatre company by the Seattle Times, and was granted two of that paper's Footlight Awards in 2013 in recognition of its "breakout year." STC received six nominations for the 2014 Gregory Awards including Theatre of the Year, 5 Gypsy Rose Lee Awards out of 14 nominations from Seattle Theatre Writers and Broadway World nomination for Theatre of the Year. For more information, visit www.soundtheatrecompany.org.

ABOUT THE SEATTLE BECKETT FESTIVAL - Sound Theatre Company joins Seattle Shakespeare Company and Theatre Puget Sound, in conjunction with over 40 Seattle based arts organizations make up the Seattle Beckett Festival. The festival, which runs from August through November, 2014 features not only the plays (such as Waiting for Godot, Endgame, Krapp's Last Tape, Act Without Words parts I & II, Rough for Theatre I & II, Catastrophe, etc.), but also readings of Beckett's poetry and prose, screenings of his films, master classes on Beckett, pop-up performance events, new works inspired by Beckett, presentations of the radio plays, and more.

This community event brings together Seattle theatre companies, both large and small, to produce and perform a wide range of Samuel Beckett's work in various venues around Seattle. Beckett's works are a tremendous challenge for artists as they are like poems or pieces of music in their subtlety and intricacy. With humor and pathos, his works capture the human spirit at its most base and most spiritual moments.

Learn more about upcoming events and participating theatres at www.seattlebeckettfest.org.

ABOUT THE CENTRAL HEATING LAB AT ACT - Launched in 2007, The Central Heating Lab at ACT serves as an incubator and catalyst for new works. ACT cultivates, produces, and presents artists working in all performance genres and provides an artistic home for a variety of local performance groups and artists. Relationships develop daily with individual actors, performers and playwrights while established partnerships with groups in Seattle to grow and develop. New programs are added throughout the year. With year-round programming produced by The Central Heating Lab at ACT alongside ACT's Mainstage plays, ACT offers its patrons a unique opportunity to maximize their theatre experience - the ACTPass: all you can see for only $30 per month. ACTPass Members can attend nearly all ACT produced performances throughout any given month, provided tickets are available. It is the new, more flexible, more affordable way to see more performances for one low price, and is the first of its kind in the region. ACTPass members may cancel at any time, and there is no limit to the number of times a Pass Member can attend.

DETAILS:

WHAT: "5 By Beckett"- Five Short Plays by Samuel Beckett for the Seattle Beckett Festival

WHO: Sound Theatre Company and ACT Theatre Central Heating Lab

WHERE: Eulalie Scandiuzzi Space, ACT Theatre, 700 Union Street, Seattle, WA 98101

WHEN: October 30 to November 9, 2014Preview: Thursday, October 30 at 8:00pm

Opening Night: Saturday, November 1, at 8:00pm

Other performances: November 6, 7, 8 at 8:00pm, November 2 and 9 at 2:00pm

Tickets: General $25, Seniors $20, Students $15; (206) 292-7676 or www.acttheatre.org