Throughline Theatre to present CLOUD 9

Throughline Theatre Company continues eighth season with Cloud Nine, opening August 11 at The Henry Heymann Theatre on the University of Pittsburgh campus. Absurdist comedy explores gender and sexual identity in keeping with Throughline's theme, "The Fair Sex".

The first act of Cloud Nine revolves around a British family in colonial Africa. Clive, the patriarch, rigidly maintains that his family perfectly embodies Victorian values but reality is more complex than he would like to admit. Act Two takes place in 1979 but features several of the same characters as Act One, thus highlighting the differences (and surprising similarities) of the Victorian and modern eras.

Cloud Nine was first performed by the Joint Stock Theatre Group at Darlington College of Arts in 1979 and has since been produced around the world. An important voice of twentieth-century feminism, Caryl Churchill has written such acclaimed plays as Top Girls, On the Verge, and Far Away. Churchill's plays are noted for their quirky humor, unconventional structure, and exploration of sexual politics.

Cloud Nine opens Friday, August 11 and runs through Saturday, August 19. Thursday and Friday performances start at 8:00 p.m., Saturday performances at 2:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m. Tickets are $20.00 general admission or $15.00 for students and seniors. On opening night, for an additional $10, entry to the Opening Night Party can be purchased.

Tickets are available at the door or online at throughline.showclix.com. The 2:00 p.m. performance on Saturday, August 12 is pay-what- you-can, and tickets for this performance can be purchased online or at the door (but are considered donations) and are first come, first served.

The play is being directed by Edwin Lee Gibson and the cast includes the very talented Malic Williams, Liam Ezra Dickinson, Victor M. Aponte, Jalina McClarin, George Saulnier, Tracey D. Turner, and Maeve Harten.