Actors' Shakespeare Project Continues Their 16th Season with BRIGHT HALF LIFE by Tanya Barfield

Shakespeare Project (ASP) continues its 16th season with Bright Half Life by Tanya Barfield, performed at the Plaza Theatre, Boston Center for the Arts, Boston, MA. Performances run January 23, 2020 - February 16, 2020.

an intentionally itinerant theatre company, is delighted to return to the BCA and the South End after exploring many other neighborhoods in the Boston area. The last production ASP produced at the BCA was the highly acclaimed Twelfth Night in 2011 (directed by Melia Bensussen). Nine years later, this intimate piece is a perfect fit for ASP's next Plaza production.

Christopher Edwards, ASP's Artistic Director, says of the choice of the play for this season, "It's important for us to present narratives that don't make it to the stage very often; narratives that truly hold the mirror up to nature. [Bright Half Life] contains a story that I see all the time in life, but one that I don't see on stage very often. I know these characters. And their story is universal and compelling. Also, when we choose to do a non-Shakespeare production, one of our criteria is the quality of language. Barfield's writing is beautiful; the language is a crucial part of the storytelling."

Megan Sandberg-Zakian returns to Actors' Shakespeare Project to direct. Sandberg-Zakian says of the piece, "Tanya Barfield's beautiful play is both intimate and large, romantic and realistic. I love the unusual structure of the play, which really feels like the structure of human memory, and the way the writing reminds me of both the fragility and the resilience of the most important relationships. As a queer woman in an interracial marriage, it's not that often I get to direct a play with characters that feel so close to my experience. I'm very grateful for that."

Bright Half Life is the story of two women who meet and fall in love. We see the entirety of their relationship from beginning to end, spanning more than forty years, but in a fascinating non-linear format. Honest, moving, and deeply poignant, we move from moment to moment and experience the complexity of Erica and Vicky's relationship over time.

CAST

Kelly Chick Erica

Lyndsay Allyn Cox* Vicky

PRODUCTION TEAM

Megan Sandberg-Zakian*** Director

Lauren Burke* Stage Manager

Rosie G. Hartunian Alumbaugh Assistant Stage Manager

Cristina Todesco** Scenic Designer

Aja Jackson Lighting Designer

Zoë Sundra Costume Designer

Elizabeth Cahill Sound Designer

Steve Vieira Props Designer

*Member of Actors' Equity Association, the Union of Professional Actors and Stage Managers in the United States

**Member of United Scenic Artists Local 829

***Member of The Stage Directors & Choreographers Society, an independent national labor union

EVENT AND PERFORMANCE SCHEDULE

Thursday, January 23, 2020 7:30pm PREVIEW PERFORMANCE

Friday, January 24, 2020 7:30pm PREVIEW PERFORMANCE

Saturday, January 25, 2020 3:00pm PREVIEW PERFORMANCE

SATURDAY, JANUARY 25, 2020 8:00pm PRESS PERFORMANCE & OPENING NIGHT

Sunday, January 26, 2020 3:00pm Post-Show Conversation

Wednesday, January 29, 2020 7:30pm

Thursday, January 30, 2020 7:30pm

Friday, January 31, 2020 7:30pm

Saturday, February 1, 2020 3:00pm & 8:00pm

Sunday, February 2, 2020 3:00pm Post-Show Conversation

Wednesday, February 5, 2020 7:30pm

Thursday, February 6, 2020 7:30pm

Friday, February 7, 2020 7:30pm

Saturday, February 8, 2020 3:00pm & 8:00pm

Sunday, February 9, 2020 3:00pm Post-Show Conversation

Wednesday, February 12, 2020 7:30pm

Thursday, February 13 2020 7:30pm

Friday, February 14, 2020 7:30pm

Saturday, February 15, 2020 3:00pm & 8:00pm

Sunday, February 16, 2020 3:00pm Post-Show Conversation

TICKETS

Tickets are $25-$60. Student, senior, and group discounts available.

To purchase tickets:

ONLINE www.actorsshakespeareproject.org/box-office/single-tickets/

PHONE 866-811-4111

IN PERSON at venue box office (Plaza Theatre), 1 hour prior to show

GROUP SALES 617-241-2200 (groups of 10+)

SUBSCRIBERS 617-241-2200

Actors' Shakespeare Project is an award-winning professional theater company with a Resident Acting Company and extensive education, youth and community programs. ASP performs and works in found spaces, schools, theaters and neighborhoods to present and explore the robust language, resonant stories, and deeply human characters in Shakespeare's plays and in works by other great playwrights. Our work is ensemble-based and focused on intimacy, storytelling, language, relationships, voice, risk and artistry within and throughout the Boston area.

For more information visit actorsshakespeareproject.org.

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