Photo Flash: NAATCO's A NUMBER

The OBIE Award-winning National Asian American Theatre Company (NAATCO) - now in its 21st season - presents A NUMBER, OBIE Award-winner and 2010 Theatre Hall of Fame inductee Caryl Churchill's acclaimed play about human cloning and identity, starring James Saito and Joel de la Fuente, with previews set to begin March 12 prior to it official press opening March 17 at Cherry Lane Studio Theatre (38 Commerce Street) in Manhattan. Christoph Hahner is co-producer. Maureen Payne-Hahner directs.

In A NUMBER, Caryl Churchill explores the human experience, the essence of personality, and nature versus nurture as a man confronts his father after discovering that he has several siblings - each one of his clones.

Since the arrival of Dolly the sheep, the first mammal to be cloned, in the late-90s, the possibility of human cloning has sparked controversy. In recent years, with advances in genetic engineering, the practical and ethical issues regarding cloning continue to make headlines and incite lively debate. "We've got ninety-nine percent the same genes as any other person. We've got ninety per cent as a chimpanzee. We've got thirty percent the same as lettuce," says Michael Black in A NUMBER. "Does that cheer you up at all? It makes me feel I belong."

NAATCO's production of Caryl Churchill's A NUMBER, starring Joel de la Fuente and James Saito, runs March 12-April 3: Tuesdays-Saturdays at 7:30 pm, Saturdays at 3:00 pm, and Sundays at 2:00 pm at the Cherry Lane Studio Theatre (38 Commerce Street). Tickets are $25. For tickets, visit Telecharge.com or call 212-239-6200 or 800-432-7250. Tickets may also be purchased at the Cherry Lane box office: Tuesdays-Fridays, 4-8 pm; Saturdays, 12-8 pm; and Sundays, 1-7 pm. For additional details, please visit www.naatco.org.

Photo Credit: William P. Steele