Previews start March 18 for the Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park production of Angus MacLachlan's The Dead Eye Boy. The world premiere of MacLachlan's drama opens officially March 23 and runs through April 16.
As reported earlier, MacLachlan's play, which was developed after winning the 1999 Lois and Richard Rosenthal New Play Prize will be directed by Playhouse associate artistic director Charles Towers. The cast of The Dead Eye Boy includes Kyle Fabel as Billy, Raye Lankford as Shirley Diane and Dan McCabe as Soren.
The production team comprises set designer Karen TenEyck, costume designer David Zinn and lighting designer Nancy Schertler. The fight director for the show is Drew Fracher. The stage manager is Emily F. McMullen.
Dead Eye is a hard-edged drama about an ex-Marine, a single mother, and her 14-year-old son and their "struggle toward light," as MacLachlan described it. "You have to face the darkness within yourself and the world," MacLachlan told Playbill On-Line, "otherwise it will destroy you and everyone else around you." The play contains strong language and adult situations deemed inappropriate for children.
Angus MacLachlan is a North Carolina-based writer whose eight other plays include Marginal Living, Buena Vista, Ariadne Duvall and Divertiment O. The latter two were produced in New York by Circle Repertory Theatre and The Wonderhouse Theatre, respectively. MacLachlan's, short film, Tater Tomater, aired on American Playhouse E and was viewed at the 1992 Sundance Film Festival. Last fall, playwright MacLachlan said, "It's an incredible honor to have won the Rosenthal [New Play] Prize. The track record of the award speaks for itself, as does the Playhouse's commitment to new work by giving the winning script a full month's run. I'm very grateful to the Rosenthals for their extraordinary support."
Maclachlan is the twelfth recipient of the Rosenthal New Play Prize, which was established in 1987 by the Lois and Richard Rosenthal Foundation to encourage superior new plays for the American stage. The prize allows for the first fully staged production of the work within the Playhouse’s regular subscription season, and provides for the playwright’s residency throughout an extended rehearsal process. During rehearsals, the script is developed further in collaboration with the director and cast.
"While the range of style and subject of prize winners has been enormously diverse over the years, my objective is always the same," said PIP artistic director Ed Stern. "To identify a play that is unique and utterly theatrical, deserving of Lois and Dick Rosenthal's generosity. I'm thrilled that we've found such a play. "
Past winners of the Rosenthal Prize include Scotland Road by Jeffrey Hatcher, which has been produced nearly a dozen times around the country since its premiere in 1993, and
Preview seats are $24.50. Regular tickets range from $31.50 - $39.50. Free Meet the Artists programs follow selected performances. The Cincinnati Playhouse's Thompson Shelterhouse Theatre is located at 962 Mt. Adams Circle. For reservations, call the box office at (513) 421-3888 or toll-free throughout the Tristate at (800) 582-3208. Call (513) 345 2248 for Telecommunications Device for the Deaf (TDD) accessibility. Visit www.cincyplay.com.
-- By Murdoch McBride
