Penumbra Theatre Presents Sleep Deprivation Chamber 9/16-10/10

Penumbra Theatre Company, the nation's preeminent African American theatre, proudly announces the opening of Sleep Deprivation Chamber, by Adam P. Kennedy and Adrienne Kennedy, directed by Robbie McCauley on Thursday, September 16, 2010. The production will run September 16 - October 10, 2010.

An OBIE award-winning drama, Sleep Deprivation Chamber is the harrowing autobiographical story of a mother fighting for her son's life at the risk of her own sanity.

The play is based on a real life incident occurring January 12, 1991, in the early hours of the morning when Adam Kennedy was pulled over by the police in his father's driveway in Arlington, Virginia. What began as a routine traffic stop turned into a nightmare of police brutality as Adam was beaten by a policeman and then charged with resisting arrest and assaulting an officer. Although Adam was eventually acquitted of all charges and won a civil suit against the Arlington Police Department, the impact of that January night reverberated far beyond those dark moments in the front yard.

Sleep Deprivation Chamber, which celebrated playwright Adrienne Kennedy wrote with her son Adam, presents an autobiographical portrait of both the external reality of that night in January and the crushing internal weight of its consequences. Moving freely between past and present, dream and reality, the courtroom and the rehearsAl Hall, the play weaves together a series of surreal scenes focused on a mother and son's struggle to piece together a world fractured by an act of racist brutality.

The play offers an unsettling vision of the racial reality faced by black Americans in the late 20th century, applicable across economic class and education level. Adam's arrest and beating occurred only a few months prior to the Rodney King beating. With its commanding portrayal of family, its fusion of dreams and reality, and its questioning of the legal system, Sleep Deprivation Chamber challenges audiences to reflect upon not only the corporeal, but the spiritual impact of racist acts motivated by racial profiling.

Dates: September 16 through October 10, 2010
Previews September 14 & 15 at 7:30pm
Opening Night, September 16th at 7:30 pm

Performances: Wednesdays through Sundays at 7:30pm
Wednesday morning matinees at 10:00am
Sunday matinees at 2:00pm

Tickets: 651-224-3180 or penumbratheatre.org

Price: Adult single is $38 and Students are $10

Theatre Location: 270 North Kent Street, Saint Paul, MN 55102

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