Pulp
By Joseph Zettelmaier
Directed by Tony Caselli
Los Angeles, 1933. The world of pulp fiction is turned upside down when a literary agent is gruesomely murdered. The four suspects: his remaining clients, all writers for different pulp magazines. Private Investigator Frank Ellery dives into the mystery, and his world turns upside down as life begins to imitate literature in this who-dun-it-science-fiction caper.
A National New Play Network Rolling World Premiere.
The Nerd
By Larry Shue
Directed by John Lepard
Aspiring young architect Willum Cubbert has often told his friends about the debt he owes Rick Steadman, a fellow ex-GI but who saved his life in Vietnam. He has written to Rick saying as long as he is alive, “you will have somebody on Earth who will do anything for you”—so Willum is delighted when Rick shows up at his thirty-fourth birthday party. But his delight soon fades as Rick, a hopeless nerd, sticks around and causes one uproarious incident after another, building to a surprise ending.
A collaboration with the MSU Department of Theatre
A Painted Window
By Christy Hall
A Painted Window catalogues the reunion of two sisters, Josephine and Sylvia, that used to giggle together late at night, yet now stand worlds apart. It’s a dissection of identity, classism, racism, and the grotesque havoc that consumerism, capitalism, and entitlement have wreaked on the American dream. But ultimately, at its center, this is a play about love.
A World Premiere!
1984
By George Orwell
Adapted by Michael Gene Sullivan
Directed by Tony Caselli
Based on the iconic novel by George Orwell, 1984 brings us the story of Winston Smith, a cog in the giant machine state of Oceania. Winston has been caught struggling for scraps of love and freedom in a world awash with distrust and violence. With the brutal “help” of four Party Members, Winston is forced to confess his Thoughtcrimes before an unseen inquisitor, and the audience – which acts as a silent witness to his torture. A ferocious and provocative adaptation of one of the most prescient works of literature of the last century.
Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell (Copyright, 1949) by permission of Bill Hamilton as the Literary Executor of the Estate of the Late Sonia Brownell Orwell, adapted by Michael Gene Sullivan.
A Michigan Premiere!
Taking Shakespeare
By John Murrell
Directed by Mary Job
When a longtime, disillusioned college professor is asked to tutor her dean’s son through his freshman Shakespeare class, she finds it to be as much a test for her as it is for him. Although they seem to have nothing in common, as they explore the Bard’s Othello together, they learn more about each other—and themselves—than either is ready to admit. While they draw strength from the play, they come to understand what it means to live up to expectations.
A Michigan Premiere!
Murder for Two
Book and Music by Joe Kinosian
Book and Lyrics by Kellen Blair
Directed by Rob Roznowski
Murder For Two is the perfect blend of music, mayhem and murder! In this hilarious 90-minute show, 2 performers play 13 roles—not to mention the piano—in a witty and winking homage to old-fashioned murder mysteries. The New York Times calls it “Ingenious! A snazzy double-act that spins out a comic mystery animated by funny, deftly turned songs.” You won’t want to miss this killer musical comedy!
Tony Caselli 