DC-Area Premiere of HAZARDOUS MATERIALS to Open in Bethesda in November

Perisphere Theater, a Helen Hayes Award-winning, nonprofit theater company based in Montgomery County, Md., will open the DC-area premiere of Hazardous Materials by Beth Kander at The Writer's Center on November 3.

Synopsis: In a South Side Chicago apartment in 1955, Esther and Lynley, two war widows with very different backgrounds, form a relationship that runs afoul of the racial and sexual attitudes of the time and puts them in danger. In 2015, county employees Cassie and Hal, who harbor secrets of their own, inspect that same apartment to try to determine the identity of the hoarder Jane Doe who recently died there. In scenes that alternate between the two eras, the history of the apartment and its occupants is slowly revealed.

Perisphere's production of Hazardous Materials is directed by Lizzi Albert, a DC-based actor and director. Other directing credits include This Historic Night (Seed Productions/Capital Fringe), A Christmas Carol and The Tempest (Chesapeake Shakespeare Company), and an all-female Macbeth (Notre Dame of Maryland University). Acting credits include Avant Bard's Julius Caesar, Constellation Theater Company's Absolutely! Perhaps, and several productions with Chesapeake Shakespeare, where she is a company member. Albert holds an MA in Acting from the University of Essex and a BFA in Theater from NYU.

About this production, Albert said, "I love Hazardous Materials because it's fundamentally a play about how lonely people find connection, across race and gender lines and ultimately across decades. It asks us to consider how what we leave behind reveals or conceals the truth of our identity. And it asks us to look at the progress we've made as a society since 1955 and be honest about how far we still have to go."

The cast features Kullan Edberg, who appeared in Hangar Theatre's Clybourne Park and New World Stage's off-Broadway production of Puffs; Dawn Thomas Reidy, a production associate and member of the Black Classical Acting Ensemble and Artistic Company at Chesapeake Shakespeare Company who has also appeared locally with Taffety Punk, Washington Stage Guild, and Unexpected Stage Company; Jessica Ludd, who has performed with Rorschach Theatre, 4615 Theatre Company, and Adventure Theatre; and Seth Rosenke, a resident artist with 4615 Theatre who has also appeared with Encore Theatre Company, Prince George's Shakespeare in the Parks, Rainbow Theatre Project, Brave Spirits Theatre, and Rorschach Theatre.

Perisphere Theater, recently called a "theater of note" and a "thought-provoking company" by the Washington Post, was nominated for three Helen Hayes Awards for its 2022 production of Tanya Barfield's Blue Door. Jaucqir LaFond won the award for Outstanding Lead Performer. Perisphere produces plays that examine the notion of history, focusing especially on the events, people, and points view that often get left out.

Hazardous Materials will play for 10 performances from November 3 to November 18. More information can be found here: https://perispheretheater.com/ .

Members of the media wishing to review the play or interview the playwright, director, actors, or members of the production team should use the contact information at the top of this release.

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