THE UNDERSTUDY Begins 9/8 at Artists Rep

Artists Repertory Theatre opens its 2015/16 season with The Understudy, a witty look behind the curtain from prominent American playwright and the creator of TV's Smash, Theresa Rebeck. An Off-Broadway and regional theatre hit, The Understudy earns its place to kick off of the new season with a comedic and existential look backstage at what it takes when "the show must go on."

An understudy rehearsal for a fictional Kafka play on Broadway teeters on the edge of reality when Harry - the understudy for Jake, who is the understudy for Bruce, a Hollywood action star about to land a multimillion-dollar part - must work with the ill-fated production's exasperated stage manager whose life he ruined long ago. The Understudy is a raucously funny existential exposé on human motivation that examines the underbelly of the theatre business and the personal drama behind the curtain.

"There aren't many plays I read about the work we do, as theatre artists, that strike in me such a surprisingly poignant chord," said Director Michael Mendelson. "What hit me most was the universality of the story and the human condition Ms. Rebeck sets out to tackle: the need and desire to be seen, acknowledged, loved. This story might have played out in an office building, an apartment, indeed anyplace where we find people who have dreams that seem unattainable."

The show features a dynamic set that, at times, seems like an additional character in the production-one with quite a sense of humor. As Scenic Designer Megan Wilkerson said at the play's first rehearsal, "It's not every day a scenic designer gets to make jokes with scenery."