MR. BURNS Begins Tonight at Stage West

The electrical grid has fallen, and the world is a dark and dangerous place. How is the human race to survive? And what will take the place of all the electronic devices we use to amuse and inform ourselves? One possible set of answers is very entertainingly explored in in Mr. Burns, a post-electric play, by Anne Washburn with score by Michael Friedman, beginning its 6-week regional premiere tonight, August 6 at Stage West.

The play begins in the not too distant future, when a probable EMP has wiped out everything electronic, leading to nuclear meltdowns. A group of survivors huddles around a campfire, passing the time by trying to remember the details of a particularly good episode of The Simpsons called "Cape Feare," which riffs on the second film version of Cape Fear. This collective remembering turns out to be a very good way to keep the darkness at bay. And as the play continues, the group and their pastime evolve into a piece of traveling theatre, keeping their pop cultural ethos (and themselves) alive. And it continues to evolve as the generations pass, finally moving into the realm of cultural mythology.

Society has always defined itself through stories. Whether they are an escape, or something more meaningful, they are always present, changing as time moves forward. Could Homer Simpson someday take the place of Homer's Odyssey? Audiences will have a grand time answering that in this uniquely entertaining play.

The New York Times raved "When was the last time you met a new play that was so smart it made your head spin? ...Anne Washburn's downright brilliant "Mr. Burns, a Post-Electric Play" has arrived to leave you dizzy with the scope and dazzle of its ideas... Not incidentally, "Mr. Burns" also makes a case for theater as the most glorious and durable storyteller of all. I look forward to remembering it for a long, long time."

Anne Washburn's play, Mr. Burns, was produced by Playwrights Horizons, Woolly Mammoth (DC), and The Almeida (London). Other plays include 10 Out Of 12, The Internationalist, A Devil At Noon, Apparition, The Communist Dracula Pageant, I Have Loved Strangers, The Ladies, The Small, and a transadaptation of Euripides' Orestes. Awards include 2015 Whiting Award, 2015 PEN/Laura Pels International Foundation Theater Award, the Guggenheim, a NYFA Fellowship, a Time Warner Fellowship, Susan Smith Blackburn finalist, and residencies at MacDowell and Yaddo. She is an associated artist with The Civilians, Clubbed Thumb, New Georges, Chochiqq, and is an alumna of New Dramatists and 13P. Currently commissioned by MTC, Yale Rep and CSC. Her play Antilia Pneumatica will premiere in March 2016 (Playwrights Horizons) in NYC.

Mr. Burns, a post-electric play is being directed by actor and Stage West Production and Marketing Assistant Garret Storms, who most recently directed Stage West's International Falls. Musical direction will be handled by Aimee Hurst Bozarth, who also served as musical director for Stage West's She Loves Me. The various characters will be brought to life by an exciting cast. Jessica Cavanagh, who appeared as Sue in WaterTower's All My Sons, will play Jenny, with Paul Taylor, seen as Ko-Ko in Theatre Three's Hot Mikado, as Sam. Mikaela Krantz, recently seen as Janann in Manicures and Monuments for WaterTower, will play Colleen, while Amy Mills, last at Stage West in She Loves Me, will play Edna. New to Stage West are: Ian Ferguson, seen as Thomas in Bull at Second Thought Theatre, as Matt; Henry Greenberg, a Baylor University student seen in The Spark at the WaterTower Fringe Festival, as Gibson; Kelsey Leigh Ervi, who appeared as Babette in Echo Theatre's [sic], as Maria; and Caroline Dubberly, who appeared as Mrs. Lambchop in Dallas Children's Theater/National Tour of The Musical Adventures of Flat Stanley, as Quincy.

The set will be designed by Nate Davis, Garret Storms, and Jim Covault, with lighting by Scott Davis, who is the resident lighting designer for Uptown Theatre. Costume design will be handled by Derek Whitener, whose credits include WaterTower Theatre and Amphibian Stage Productions, and Victor Newman Brockwell, who has worked with Amphibian Stage Productions and Runway Theate. Props and set décor will be by Lynn Lovett, while Storms will also handle sound design.

Mr. Burns, a post-electric play will preview Thursday, August 6 at 7:30 and Friday, August 7 at 8:00, and will run through Sunday, September 13. Performance times will be Thursday evenings at 7:30, Friday and Saturday evenings at 8:00, with Sunday matinees at 3:00. The opening night reception will be Saturday, August 8. Ticket prices range from $30 to $34, with discounts for the preview performance, and for students, seniors, and military. Food service is available 90 minutes prior to performances (reservations are necessary), and the Friday Prix Fixe special (dinner and show for $42) will be available beginning August 14. Reservations and information are available through the Box Office (817-784-9378), or on the website, www.stagewest.org.

 

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