MERCURY Comes to Actor's Express in April

 Actor’s Express will continue its 36th season with Mercury by Emmy nominee and American playwright, Steve Yockey.  Three stories cross outside of Portland, OR in a pitch black comedy with an illicit affair, a couple hanging on by a thread, bears at the window, the worst curiosity shop on the west coast, and an adorable missing dog named Mr Bundles. No one's happy, people stop being nice, and blood spills. This mashup of myth, revenge, and "good neighbors'' explores what happens when the mercury rises. 

Performances run April 6th- April 28th, 2024.

Mercury premiered at the Salt Lake Acting Company in 2017 in a co-production with Stray Cat Theatre, directed by Shannon Musgrave. The Salt Lake Tribune raved, “If you’re looking for unique Halloween entertainment that also has some meat and meaning, Mercury is the play for you. It’s guaranteed to make you laugh and wince at the same time.” The production then went on to perform at Know Theatre of Cincinnati, where the Cincinnati CityBeat applauded Mercury for being, “Upbeat, offbeat and bloody funny, Mercury is a dark-horse crowd pleaser featuring an engaging cast and more than a few surprises.”

This ensemble cast features seven Atlanta actors, including AE vets Carolyn Cook (Prayer for the French Republic, Angels In America, Blackberry Winter) and Kate Donadio (Wolves, Maple and Vine, Echoes of Another Man), as well as former apprentice Tyshawn Gooden (Sunset Baby, Desire Under the Elms).  Making their Actor’s Express debuts are Suehyla E. Young (Horizon Theatre’s Support Group For Men), Louis Kyper (Horizon Theatre’s Support Group For Men) and Atlanta newcomer Donna Lobello. The production is directed by Melissa Foulger (AE’S Reykjavík, Pluto, Wolves).

According to Artistic Director Freddie Ashley, “I believe audiences will love Mercury for its savage humor and its cool theatricality. It is a play that manages to be funny, suspenseful and a little bit unexpected all at the same time. Steve Yockey has been one of the most imaginative playwrights working in the American theatre for nearly twenty years. He cultivated his unique theatrical voice right here in Atlanta and now brings that originality to television with shows like The Flight Attendant, Supernatural and the upcoming Dead Boy Detectives. He is one of the great success stories of the Atlanta theatre community.”

Steve Yockey is a contemporary American playwright known for his innovative and often darkly comedic works that explore themes of identity, relationships, and the human condition. Yockey studied playwriting at the University of Georgia and later earned his MFA from New York University's Tisch School of the Arts.

Yockey's writing is characterized by its sharp wit, imaginative storytelling, and penchant for the unexpected. He has written numerous plays, including Blackberry Winter, Wolves, The Thrush & the Woodpecker and Reykjavik. His works have been performed at theaters across the United States, and have been showcased many times on the Actor’s Express stage. Mercury director, Melissa Foulger states, “Audiences should know that Steve’s plays are always a roller coaster ride. They start out as a relatively normal story, but then spiral into a play that takes you beyond anything you could ever imagine. They are thought-provoking, challenging, and jarring. They are the transformative kind of theatre that will leave you talking for days.”

In addition to his success as a playwright, Yockey has also worked as a television writer, contributing to popular series such as The Flight Attendant, for which he received two Emmy nominations. His ability to blend elements of horror, fantasy, and drama has garnered him a dedicated following among audiences and critics alike.

Director of Mercury, Melissa Foulger, has directed many of Yockey’s productions at Actor’s Express including Reykjavik, Pluto and Wolves. According to Foulger, “I was drawn to Mercury for a number of reasons. One, I love working with Steve and his plays. We have a long history of making theatre together and it is a relationship that I truly treasure. Two, Steve’s work is challenging for a director and that’s fun for me. Finally, the magical nature of Steve’s plays taps into my love of what makes theatre so special. These aren’t moments that you experience in your own life. They push you outside of your comfort zone through the use of visually stunning images and highly intricate and poetic language.” 

Melissa Foulger’s Actor’s Express credits include: Reykjavik, The Flower Room, The Thrush and the Woodpecker, Les Liaisons Dangereuses, Pluto, Wolves, See What I Wanna See, Good Boys and True, Suddenly Last Summer. Foulger’s Atlanta credits include: Out Front Theatre: I Wanna F@!king Tear You Apart; Theatre Emory: Transmissions in Advance of the Second Great Dying; Theatrical Outfit: Bright Half Life, Boy; Horizon Theatre: Nomad Motel; Aurora Theatre: Clybourne Park, Lark Eden; Theatre in the Square: Flyin’ West; Dad’s Garage: Large Animal Games, The Weird; 7 Stages: My Left Breast, Far Away, Wizzer Pizzer, Iphigenia Crash Land Falls on the Neon Shell That Was Once Her Heart (a rave fable). Foulger’s national credits include: Island City Stage: I Wanna F@!king Tear You Apart. Touring credits include: At Birth. Foulger received her MFA in Directing from the University of Memphis, M.Ed. in Secondary Education from The George Washington University, B.A. in Theatre from The George Washington University.  More at melissafoulger.com