Silver Spring Stage Presents DEATH AND THE MAIDEN, 1/15-2/7

Silver Spring Stage presents Death and the Maiden by Ariel Dorfman, directed by Jacy D'Aiutolo and produced by Matt Berman, an award winning political thriller, drawn from the author's native Chile, where roles are reversed between the torture survivor turns the table on her suspected oppressor. Death and the Maiden will perform weekends January 15 to February 7.

Silver Spring Stage is located in the Woodmoor Shopping Center, lower level (next to the CVS) at Colesville Road and University Boulevard. Ticket prices are $20 for adults and $18 for seniors/students. Performances are Friday and Saturday at 8:00 PM and Sunday matinees on January 24 and February 7 at 2:00 PM. Tickets can be purchased at www.ssstage.org. Information is also available by calling (301) 593-6036.

"Life pardoned me. History pardoned me. Violence passed me by. Death decided not to take me," Ariel Dorfman said in 1998, 15 years after his escape and exile from Chile and some 8 years after he wrote his most famous work Death and the Maiden. From 1970 to 1973, Dorfman served as a cultural advisor to president Salvador Allende. Already a writer and critic, he become known internationally for co-writing an article on North American culture, How to Read Donald Duck. In 1973, a coup by General Augusto Pinochet, supported by the United States, overthrew the socialist Allende, killing him and forcing Dorfman to leave. It was fate he survived. A member of Allende's staff took Dorfman's name off the list of those required to report to the Presidential palace thus sparing Dorfman's life. He devoted his life as he said "I turned myself into the storyteller ... But mine is not only a narrative of death; it's a narrative of life and of celebration, as well." He wrote Death and the Maiden in 1990 to depict the consequences of dictatorship and the fragile transition to democracy. Death and the Maiden is a well-constructed mousetrap, raising powerful questions about how victims of police-states handle their oppressors. Do they take the law into their own hands as conveyed in the play? Or do they forget history allowing its potential return? Dorfman does not easily resolve these questions. Instead he presents these issues in a masterful suspense thriller that doesn't preach but excites and entertains.

In a country that has recently thrown off a brutal dictatorship in favor of fledgling democracy, Gerardo Escobar (David Dubov) gets a ride home one night from Roberto Miranda (James Raby), a local doctor. But Gerardo's wife Paulina (Toni Carmine) believes she recognizes Miranda's as the man who tortured and raped her as she lay a blindfolded political prisoner of the previous regime fifteen years earlier. In one evening, the audience will learn the truth - or will it?

The production team includes Pat Miller (Assistant Director), Andrew Greenleaf (Set Design/Set Construction), Jonathan Zucker (Light Design) and Wendy Stengel (Costume Design).

The Stage's 2009-2010 "Appearances Can Be Deceiving!" season continues with the hilarious mystery Die! Mommie! Die! by Charles Busch (Mar. 5-Mar. 28), the moving Rabbit Hole by David Lindsay-Abaire (Apr. 16-May 9), George Bernard Shaw's enchanting Pygmalion (June 4-June 27), and the provocative Fat Pig by Neil LaBute (July 16-Aug. 8)

About Silver Spring Stage
Silver Spring Stage has provided quality, affordable theatre for over 40 years. We are an all-volunteer, non- profit organization and appreciate any contribution to enable us to offer excellent and entertaining productions. Thank you for your interest and support of Silver Spring Stage. All programs at Silver Spring Stage are made possible in part by grants from the Arts and Humanities Council of Montgomery County and the Maryland State Arts Council.

Website: http://www.ssstage.org

 

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