Aux Dog Theatre's DARK STARS Opens Tonight

Aux Dog Theatre Nob Hill is thrilled to co-produce the award-winning show DARK STARS for New Mexico audiences. Book now -- don't miss this fascinating, funny and provocative solo show!

Irving Sayles was the most famous black American performer of the Australasian Vaudeville stage. Jonathan Council is an African-American actor who goes to New Zealand to find his big break. Their stories interweave tragicomically to depict the dark price of fame.

Written and directed by Arthur Meek, one of New Zealand's most celebrated young playwrights, DARK STARS is a solo play starring Jonathan Council, who portrays a version of his own life journey.

In seeking his big acting break, Council is propelled by misfortune to a tiny island in the Pacific where he unearths the forgotten story of Australasia's popular Black Minstrel, Irving Sayles.

DARK STARS weaves together the stories of two African-Americans living a hundred years apart in an examination of racist humour and the price paid for lusting after fame at the expense of dignity.

Sayles was an entertainer with one of the largest minstrel companies in the mid-Western US providing audiences with stereotypical presentations of African-American culture. After the Civil War in 1888 and aged just 16, he fled to Australia. He subsequently became a well-loved figure on the Australian stage moving to New Zealand to continue his career in vaudeville until his untimely death on a Christchurch street in 1914.

Performances play tonight, October 9, through October 25, 2015, Fridays and Saturdays at 8 pm & Sundays at 3 pm at Aux Dog Theatre Nob Hill, 3011-3015 Monte Vista Blvd. NE, Albuquerque, NM 87106. Free parking surrounding the theatre. Within walking distance of all bus routes. Handicapped accessible.