Forum's DARK PLAY Examines The Seamy Side Of Virtual Reality

As the weather heats up this summer, Forum Theatre invites folks inside for some cool, dark fun. The multimedia-oriented company closes its fifth season with the DC premiere of dark play or stories for boys. Carlos Murillo’s smash hit from the 2007 Humana Festival explodes the seductive, dangerous allure of the Internet. Directed by Artistic Director Michael Dove, dark play runs July 11 through August 2 at H Street Playhouse in northeast DC.

The play focuses on Nick, who creates multiple online personalities to feed his teenage desires. Enticed by his classmate Adam’s web profile, which states “I want to fall in love,” Nick invents the girl of Adam’s dreams. But Nick becomes obsessed with testing the limits of this online love story, and, as his real world collides with the virtual one, the game turns increasingly dangerous.

“The Internet has permeated our lives in ways we never imagined. With anonymous online chat rooms and social networking sites like MySpace and Facebook, recreating yourself online has become second nature,” observes Forum artistic director Michael Dove. But Dove feels the play is about more than online adventures in intimacy and betrayal. “At its heart, dark play is a love story—twisted though it may be.”

Playwright Carlos Murillo grew up in New York, Caracas, and Bogota. His plays have been produced at En Garde Arts and Soho Rep in New York, Theatre at Boston Court in Pasadena, Actors Express in Atlanta, and elsewhere. Murillo was a Jerome Fellow at the Minneapolis Playwrights’ Center and has received grants from the Rockefeller Foundation and the Minnesota State Arts Board. He is also a two-time recipient of the National Latino Playwriting Award.

dark play features James Flanagan as the antagonistic protagonist Nick and Brandon McCoy (Marisol) as his hapless prey Adam. Casie Platt appears for the first time at Forum as girlfriends real and imagined, and Forum alums Charlotte Akin (Valparaiso) and Cliff Williams III (The Skriker) play multiple roles. The show is designed by Christopher Baine, Heather Lockard, Matt Soule, and Forum executive director Paul Frydrychowski.

dark play runs July 11–August 2 at H Street Playhouse. Performances are Thursday through Saturday at 8:00 pm and Sunday at 2:00 pm (extra Saturday matinees July 25 and August 1). Tickets are $20 for all performances ($18 for students and seniors; $15 for Fringe button wearers). To purchase, visit www.boxofficetickets.com/forum or call 1-800-494-TIXS.

For those who like to log in early, there will be two pay-what-you-can previews on Wednesday, July 8 and Thursday, July 9 at 8:00 pm (no advance sales for previews).

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