Susan Louise O'Connor to Lead Flying Carpet Theatre's THE MEDICINE SHOWDOWN; Cast Announced

The Flying Carpet Theatre (FCT) presents the New York premiere of THE Medicine ShowDOWN, a new play by Topher Payne and Adam Koplan that interweaves a traditional story (inspired by Henrik Ibsen's classic "Enemy of the People") with scenes from a turn-of-the-century Medicine Show, complete with tap dance, old time melodrama, country music and vaudevillian comedy. THE Medicine ShowDOWN begins performances October 12 prior to an official press opening of October 16 at the East 4th Street Theatre (83 East 4th Street - btw. Bowery and Second Avenue) in Manhattan.

First presented by FCT in Atlanta, Georgia at the 14th Street Playhouse in 2009, THE Medicine ShowDOWN (which was selected as "Top 10 of 2009" and "Top 50 of the Decade" by Atlanta's "Creative Loafing") is set in small-town Georgia during the 1918 global influenza pandemic, public health is placed at odds with the town's economic interests as a concerned doctor urges the mayor to shut down all public gatherings - including the popular and lucrative local Medicine Show.

Directed by Jessi D. Hill, the cast of THE Medicine ShowDOWN will feature Jay Rhoderick, John Wright, Khalid Hill, Timothy McCown Reynolds, and Susan Louise O'Connor.

The design and production team for THE Medicine ShowDOWN is James Aitken (scenic designer), Annie Wiegand (lighting designer), Moria Sine Clinton (costume designer), Khalid Hill (choreographer), John Wright (music director/additional songs), Kyle Metzger (associate director), Kristen Torgrimson (stage manager), and Shayna O'Neill (assistant stage manager).

Post-show panel discussions and talk-backs with experts in the public health field, media, and vaudeville fields along with the cast and creative team for THE Medicine ShowDOWN will be presented as follows: on October 13th - Dr. Scott Hammer (Harold C. Neu Professor of Medicine, Columbia University, College of Physicians & Surgeons) and Andrew Nemr (TED Fellow, Artistic Director at Cats Paying Dues, co-founder of the Tap Legacy Foundation, Inc.); on October 16th - Dr. Richard Besser (Chief Health and Medical Editor, ABC News); on October 17th - Dr. David Weggman (Adjunct Professor of Environmental Health, Harvard School of Public Health) and Jesse Weggman (New York Times Editorial Board - Supreme Court and legal affairs); and on October 25th - Dr. Jim Marks (Senior Vice President and Director, Health Group, RoBert Wood Johnson Foundation).

These panal discussions have been created through the support of community partners Mailman School of Public Health at Columbia University, Columbia School of Nursing, and the RoBert Wood Johnson Foundation

Scheduled October 12 through October 27, THE Medicine ShowDOWN will have a performance schedule of 8pm on Wednesdays and 7:30pm Thursday-Sunday at the East 4th Street Theatre (83 East 4th Street - btw. Bowery and Second Avenue). Tickets for THE Medicine ShowDOWN are $20 and can be purchased from Brown Paper Tickets (direct link: http://goo.gl/ZakCMJ).

For more information about THE Medicine ShowDOWN or Flying Carpet Theatre, please visit www.flyingcarpettheatre.com.

Photo Credit: Walter McBride

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