People's Light & Theater Presents The Philly Fan 10/25-11/20

People's Light & Theatre presents the Theatre Exile production of The Philly Fan, by Bruce Graham. It runs October 25 - November 20, 2011 on the Steinbright Stage. Joe Canuso directs. People's Light & Theatre is located at 39 Conestoga Road, Malvern, PA 19355. For tickets call 610.644.3500 or visit PeoplesLight.org. The Philly Fan is sponsored by ING.

In this one-man tour de force, Tom McCarthy takes audiences on a journey through Philadelphia's sports history of the last fifty years and the frustrations and victories therein. It's a tell-it-like-it-is romp through the eyes of a hard core sports fan who is used to seeing "sure thing" victories turn into "oh-my-God-they-blew-it" defeats. Featuring an abundance of new material that includes recent updates on Philly's sports scene.
Actor Tom McCarthy conceived the idea of the play and asked playwright Bruce Graham to write it. "After over forty years in the acting business, I wanted to do something a little different," McCarthy says. "I've always been into Philadelphia sports and was interested in creating a play about a disgruntled fan. Joe Canuso from Theatre Exile produced it and we've done the production thirteen times in seven years."

Some of the places in which The Philly Fan has been produced include the Fringe Festival, Theatre Exile, the Arden, Media Theatre, Act II, Bristol Riverside Theatre, and the Kimmel Center.

Joe Canuso, the Founding and Producing Artistic Director of Theatre Exile and the director of The Philly Fan, says, "I never get tired of working on this play, especially because I'm a longstanding, die-hard sports fan. I've lived through all the events in the play. Plus, Tom is such an improvisational actor. When he performs, it's as though he's speaking the lines for the first time."

"Every time we do the play we make a few changes, depending on how Philly's sports teams are doing," McCarthy notes. "That keeps it fresh for me."
Canuso says, "What fascinates me is how The Philly Fan is not just for hard core sports fans. It's a real character story about a working class hero who represents most Philadelphians. He's loyal to his family, his team, and his city. Audiences enjoy not only the sports history experienced in the play, but also this character who is really likable in all his gruffness."

"The audience response has been amazing," McCarthy agrees. "After each performance, audience members tell me that the character reminds them of their father or brother or uncle, etc. Bruce Graham, the playwright, perfectly expressed the timbre of a Philadelphia fan. I enjoy playing an everyday character who feels so real."

TICKET INFORMATION

The Philly Fan opens on Tuesday, October 25th at 7:30pm and runs through Sunday, November 20th. Single tickets range in price from $25 - $45. For tickets, call the box office at 610.644.3500. Special discounts are available for groups of 15 or more. For more information or to purchase group tickets, call 610.647.1900 x134 or email charles@peopleslight.org. Actors, prices, performance dates and times are subject to change. Additional service charges will apply. Contact the box office for more details.

Subscription tickets are still available for the 2011-2012 Season. Productions in the 6-Play series include Treasure Island: A Musical Panto (November 16, 2011 - January 8, 2012), Fallow (January 11 - February 5, 2012), Of Mice and Men (February 15 - March 25, 2012), Shakespeare's Will (May 30 - June 24, 2012), and Mr. Hart and MR. Brown (July 18 - August 19, 2012).

SPECIAL EVENTS

There will be a FREE Opening Day celebration on Saturday, October 29th from 3:30pm to 7pm. It will feature guests from The Fanatic and BEN-FM, as well as a sports celebrity guest who will sign autographs. The day will include games, food, and other festivities in the back parking lot at People's Light. No reservations are necessary.
On Thursday, November 3rd and Thursday, November 10th after the 7:30pm performances of The Philly Fan, there will be a special Q & A in the theatre with playwright Bruce Graham and actor Tom McCarthy.

For more information about these events, call 610.644.3500 or visit PeoplesLight.org.

ABOUT PEOPLE'S LIGHT

People's Light, a professional, not-for-profit theatre in Chester County, Pennsylvania, makes plays drawn from many sources to entertain, inspire, and engage our community. We extend our mission of making and experiencing theatre through arts education programs that excite curiosity about, and deepen understanding of, the world around us. These plays and programs bring people together and provide opportunities for reflection, discovery, and celebration. Founded in 1974, we produce seven to nine plays each season, in two black box theatres with 350 and 170 seats respectively, mixing world premieres, contemporary plays, and fresh approaches to classic texts for our 6-Play and Discovery Series.

ABOUT THEATRE EXILE

Established in 1996, Theatre Exile has produced over 47 full-scale productions, including 11 world and 18 Philadelphia premieres, pushing the boundaries of commercial theatre every step of the way, proving to be a place where local artists can take their biggest risks. They match challenging scripts with Philadelphia's top talent. Since 2005, they have been honored with 28 nominations from the Philadelphia Barrymore Awards for Excellence in every category, from design to directing, from outstanding ensemble to overall production. The Philadelphia Inquirer has celebrated Exile as the "go-to company for fierce sexy theatre."

BIOS

Bruce Graham (Playwright) has written numerous plays, including Burkie, Early One Evening at the Rainbow Bar & Grille, Moon Over the Brewery, Belmont Avenue Social Club, Desperate Affection, Coyote on a Fence (winner of The Rosenthal Prize, Two Drama Desk Nominations - the West End production starred Ben Cross), According to Goldman, and The Philly Fan. He has won consecutive Barrymore Awards for Best New Play for Something Intangible and Any Given Monday. Mr. Hart and MR. Brown opens at People's Light in 2012. Film credits: Dunston Checks In, Anastasia, Steal This Movie. TV: Roseanne, Ring of Endless Light (Humanitas Award Winner - Best Children's Screenplay), The Most Wonderful Time of the Year. Trading Christmas premiers on the Hallmark Channel December 3rd. Graham is a past winner of the Princess Grace Foundation Statuette. Along with Michele Volansky, he is the author of the book The Collaborative Playwright. Graham teaches film and theatre courses at Drexel University. He lives in South Philly with Stephanie, Kendall, and two beagles.

Joe Canuso (Director) is the Founder and Producing Artistic Director of Theatre Exile and has directed many of their shows. He was nominated in 2006 by the Barrymore Awards for Outstanding Direction of a Play for Killer Joe and was named Best Director in 2009 by The Philadelphia Weekly for Blackbird. He was part of Exile's Barrymore Award-winning ensemble for Glengarry Glen Ross in 2007. He will be directing A Behanding in Spokane by Martin McDonagh, starring Pearce Bunting, for Exile in April.

Tom McCarthy (The Fan) is a native Philadelphian who has performed at most of the theatres in the area, including the Arden, Act II, Walnut Street Theatre, People's Light, the Wilma, and Philadelphia Theatre Company. In 1997 he received the Barrymore Award for Best Actor for his portrayal of Willy Loman in Death of a Salesman at the Arden. TV credits include The Wire, The West Wing, Law & Order, Homicide, New York Undercover, and Ed and Hack. Film credits include: Random Hearts, Fallen, Up Close and Personal, and Blow Out. In 2003 he was awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Theatre Alliance of Greater Philadelphia.

 

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