Trustus Theatre Opens NEXT FALL, 10/26

Trustus Theatre will bring acclaimed director Sharon Graci of Charleston's PURE Theatre to the Capital City to direct the moving and Outer Critics Award-winning Next Fall. The show opens on the Thigpen Main Stage Friday October 26th, 2012 at 8:00pm and runs through Saturday November 10th, 2012.

When Trustus' new Artistic Director Dewey Scott-Wiley decided that the company would produce Geoffrey Nauffts' Tony-nominated serio-comedy Next Fall, she knew the play would require a director who had fine-tuned sensibilities for the human condition. Charleston-based director Sharon Graci was brought in to tell this moving story. "PURE Theatre is a sister company of Trustus if there ever was one," said Scott-Wiley. "We are delighted to have their Artistic Director, Sharon Graci, here to mount this powerful piece. The collaboration infuses our company with new energy, and will hopefully be the first of many to come." While Graci has previously directed Next Fall at PURE Theatre in Charleston, she is enthusiastic about working with Columbia-based actors and designers to bring a truly unique production to the Thigpen Main Stage.

Geoffrey Nauffts' Next Fall was Tony-nominated for "Best Play". This contemporary play explores relationships, faith, family, and the very current topic of same-sex rights in hospitals. The show chronicles the five-year relationship between Luke and Adam. With Luke being devoutly religious and Adam being an atheist – their love and their principles are often tested. However, when an accident changes everything, Adam is forced to examine what it means to "believe" and what it will cost if he doesn't.

Trustus Artistic Director Dewey Scott-Wiley is emphatic that Next Fall is exactly the sort of material that gained respect for the 28 year-old theatre during its origins. "Next Fall asks a lot of important questions about love, family, religion, and civil rights, and how the questions get answered within the context of a same-sex relationship," said Scott-Wiley. "What is most wonderful about Next Fall, however, is that many of the questions are left for the audience to answer. There is nothing predictable or didactic about the