AMCHITKA to Make World Premiere at Chester Theatre Company This Summer

Chester Theatre Company will present the world premiere of “Amchitka,” a philosophical thriller play by Mark St. Germain, from July 24 to August 8. The play follows three scientists who, while at a monitoring station at Amchitka — a Volcanic Island 170 miles off the coast of Alaska that was used for underground nuclear testing in the 1960s — find themselves cut off from the outside world as a mysterious event seems to be underway. 

Last season, Chester Theatre Company staged another of St. Germain's plays — “Magdalene," which tells the story of the clash between Peter and Mary Magdalene that altered the course of Christianity. Beyond Chester, St. Germain also has strong ties with Barrington Stage Company in Pittsfield, Massachusetts, where many of his plays — including “Freud's Last Session,” which ran Off-Broadway for two years and was adapted for film in 2023 — premiered. “Amchitka” will be his 20th play to premiere in the Berkshires. 

“Amchitka” is directed by Julianne Boyd, who was the Founding Artistic Director of Barrington Stage Company. A longtime collaborator of St. Germain's, Boyd has also directed the world premieres of his plays “Dr. Ruth, All The Way” (now titled “Becoming Dr. Ruth”), “Dancing Lessons,” and “The Best of Enemies.”