Les Waters (Hot 'n' Throbbing, Savannah Bay) directs the haunting drama slated to open at Berkeley Rep's Thrust Stage Oct. 11 for a run through Nov. 6.
In Finn in the Underworld, 27-year-old scribe Harrison pens a tale of two daughters must clean out their deceased father's house and, by way of the one's curious son, come upon family secrets in the process.
"Usually I start by researching, but when I set out to write this play, I was at a secluded writers' colony," Harrison explained about his work in a release. "So I thought, 'This time, I'll just write what's in my head.' And it turned out to be this psychosexual gothic horror story. I remember being surprised that this thing was coming from me."
Harrison's first script, Kid-Simple, premiered at Humana Festival in 2004 and has subsequently been produced in Chicago, Los Angeles, Providence, San Diego, Seattle and at New York's first Summer Play Festival. Other works include The Museum Play and Act a Lady.
Waters earned an OBIE Award for his staging of Charles Mee's Big Love As an associate artistic director of Berkeley Rep (since 2003), he has also directed Eurydice, Fêtes de la Nuit, The Mystery of Irma Vep, Suddenly Last Summer, and Yellowman. The cast of Finn in the Underworld features Reed Birney (Bug), Randy Danson (Wonderful Town), Clifton Guterman (Nicholas Nickelby - at California Shakespeare Theatre) and Lorri Holt (Continental Divide).
The design team includes David Korins (scenic), Annie Smart (costume), Matt Frey (lighting) and Darron West (sound). Kevin Johnson serves as the stage manager.
The Berkeley Rep season continues with Tony Kushner and Hans Krása's Brundibár (Nov. 11-Dec. 28), Heather Raffo's Nine Parts of Desire (Jan. 20-March 5, 2006), Culture Clash's Zorro (March 3-April 2, 2006), Tennessee Williams' The Glass Menagerie starring Rita Moreno (April 6-June 4, 2006) and Theatre de la Jeune Lune production Molière's The Miser (May 12-June 25, 2006).
Tickets to Finn in the Underworld are available at the Berkeley Rep box office, 2025 Addison Street in Berkeley, CA by calling (510) 647-2949 or toll free at (888) 4 BRT-tix. For more information, visit the website at www.berkeleyrep.org.
