OdysseyStage's AT BIRTH Closes This Weekend

OdysseyStage's world premiere of At Birth by Chapel Hill playwright Mark Cornell heads into its final weekend at Burning Coal Theatre's Murphey School Auditorium (224 Polk St, Raleigh). Performances are Friday, August 22 at 7:30 pm; Saturday, August 23 at 2:00 pm (Pay What You Can); Saturday, August 23 at 7:30 pm; and Sunday, August 24 at 1:00 pm.

Audiences arriving at At Birth won't find the usual hush before curtain. Instead, twenty minutes before each show, a local stand-up comic takes the stage-a deliberate, genre-bending choice that sets the tone for the wild ride to come. This weekend's comics include E-man, EJ Masicampo, Brian McGuinness, and Just Justin, each bringing their own rhythm and voice to sharpen the experiment. "Even if a set isn't your taste, there's always something to notice, something to learn," notes director Juliana Valente.

At Birth is an outrageous Southern farce that spirals into drama, set in a rural North Carolina trailer park. It follows two families-one white, one Black, one local, one immigrant-thrust together after a hospital mix-up switches their babies. What begins with absurd misunderstandings explodes into a chaotic cocktail of comedy, heartbreak, and firepower.

The Cast

• Julius - DJ Brinson

• Diego - Juan Martin Balaguer

• Brittney - Ainsley Goodyear

• Matt - Jon Parker Douglas

• Savannah - Bonnie Webster

• The Parrot, The Baby - Live voices performed by Tori Grace Nichols

Directed and produced by Juliana Valente with co-direction by Jose Rondon Jr., At Birth features an all-North Carolina cast and creative team, underscoring OdysseyStage's mission to champion new work by NC playwrights and artists.

Ticket Information

• Friday, Aug 22 at 7:30 pm

• Saturday, Aug 23 at 2:00 pm (Pay What You Can)

• Saturday, Aug 23 at 7:30 pm

• Sunday, Aug 24 at 1:00 pm