Lear (alone) & Walking on a Paper Moon at ReAct Theatre

Baker Theater Workshop is proud to present the world premiere of a script by two young playwrights alongside a reimagining of King Lear this January.

As part of its mission to support the creation of scripts by local artists, Baker Theater has commissioned two playwrights under the age of 18 to create a new piece. Walking on a Paper Moon, by Lorelai Kaplan and Eleanor Edlefsen, will premiere on January 10th and run through January 19th.

Walking on a Paper Moon is a one-act play about a father and his daughters coping with grief while watching the first moon landing. Knowing their play would be presented as part of a full evening of theatre alongside an adaptation of King Lear, writers Kaplan and Edlefsen set out to explore the intricacies of family relationships through a more contemporary lens.

Both Kaplan and Edlefsen are active theatre artists in the Puget Sound region. In addition to being writers and board members of The 14/48 Projects’s High School festival, they have acted in many school productions. Walking on a Paper Moon is the first longer play they have written and their first time writing as a team.

Peter Temes, who is the artistic director of Baker Theater Workshop, directs the world premiere of Walking on a Paper Moon. Playwrights Kaplan and Edlefsen also act within their own show. Rounding out the cast are Cassondra Parkerson and Ken Knight, both Baker Theater company members.

Walking on a Paper Moon will be presented alongside another one-act, Lear (alone), an adaptation of the Shakespearean tragedy. Continuing Baker’s dramatic explorations of King Lear, this one-act piece focuses on the original play’s third act, with Lear alone in the wilderness and slowly descending into madness. Although Lear (alone) mostly draws upon the Shakespearean text, Baker Theater’s reimagining also presents some added contemporary elements, such as the presence of a narrator, to help guide a modern audience’s experience.

Peter Temes directs Lear (alone) with Andrew Weiss as assistant director. The cast features the local talents of Eric Newman, Melissa Takai, Cassondra Parkerson, Jason Marr, Jane Cater, and Peter Temes.

Walking on a Paper Moon and Lear (alone) open January 10th at the ReAct Theatre in Pioneer Square. There will be additional performances on January 17th, 18th, and 19th. All tickets are free as part of Baker’s commitment to making quality art affordable to all while paying members of the creative team high stipends.

Location:

ReAct Theatre 562 1st Avenue South #400 Seattle, WA 98104