MYTH OF THE FATHER Comes to the Player's Ring, 7/18-27

What does it really mean to be a father? Absolutely nothing, at least according to The Myth of the Father, a new comedy written by Lawrence Hennessy and directed by Deb Barry, scheduled to run as a part of The Late-Night Series at the Players' Ring Theatre in Portsmouth from July 18 through July 27. Based on Hennessy's Doctoral Thesis of the same name, The Myth of the Father takes aim at the theory of, "essentialism," the idea that there are certain parental functions which can only be performed by men or women. But don't worry, whenever the temptation to be taken seriously arises, there is plenty of word play, satire, and slapstick to keep things ridiculous.

Imagine Abraham and Isaac on an overnight camping trip or Joseph trying to convince his idealistic son to take carpentry more seriously. The Myth of the Father takes three father-son relationships, Jesus and Joseph, Abraham and Isaac, and Oedipus and Laius and explores the different styles of parenting exhibited by each of the fathers involved. All of this is held together by the world's oldest talk show, Out of Character, hosted by none other than Tiresius, the blind seer from Oedipus Rex. The Myth of the Father is the second Barry-Hennessy collaboration in as many years; the two having worked together in The Players' Ring Theatre's last season's Late-Night Series on Without Walls, the dark comedy about an alcoholic baseball announcer with more than a few skeletons in his closet.

The Myth of the Father, produced and directed by Deb Barry, features a stellar cast of both newcomers to and veterans of The Players' Ring Theatre's stage, many taking on multiple roles. The fathers and sons of the three highlighted stories are played by Michael Lavoie, Ben Bagley, Tomer Oz, and Alex Pease. Taking on the role of the "all-knowing", blind Greek seer, Tiresius, is Mo Conley. Other not-to-be-missed characters are portrayed by Dominique Salvacion and Robyn Orfield.

The Myth of the Father is sure to provide a laughter-filled evening and leave you with much to think and talk about after leaving the theatre.

Due to adult language and content, The Myth of the Father may not be suitable for young audiences.

For reservations and more information, visit www.playersring.org or call (603) 436-8123.

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