THE DING DONGS Comes to Gloucester Stage Company

Gloucester Stage Company is excited to announce the highly anticipated opening of THE DING DONGS, a comedic thriller by Cape Cod playwright Brenda Withers and directed by Gloucester Stage's Artistic Director Rebecca Bradshaw. A part lesson in how power evolves and how intimidation works, audiences will have the opportunity to experience this thought-provoking play beginning Friday, August 11, through Friday, August 27, at the Gloucester Stage Company's historic waterfront theater.

Rebecca Bradshaw, will bring Withers' play to the stage, having directed its 2022 debut at the Kitchen Theatre Company. Re-uniting the work's original cast and creative team, she will lead the incredibly talented ensemble of actors in reprising their performances, including Karl Gregory (Joe), Erica Steinhagen (Natalie), and Nael Nacer (Redelmo), who was previously seen at Gloucester Stage in the critically acclaimed regional production of Tiny Beautiful Things for which his powerful performance was nominated for an Elliot Norton Award.

In the critically acclaimed THE DING DONGS, when sweet-faced strangers show up on a suburban doorstep, the tight-lipped homeowner finds their story suspicious: the house, they claim, was their childhood home, and they've come in hopes of getting a quick peek. As they cheerily muscle their way across the threshold, using wit and wordplay to mask a more sinister threat, it becomes clear the couple has no intention of leaving.

"I'm ecstatic to be able to take a second stab at Brenda Wither's The Ding Dongs," shared the Director, Rebecca Bradshaw. "The flexibility and trust Brenda instills in her interpreters is a playground for a director. This play has a way of twisting and turning with every line, even after watching it countless times it still leaves my jaw dropped. I can't wait for Gloucester to join this wild ride!"

"The Ding Dongs" delves into the complexities of human relationships. It bends reality with wit and mystery as we are asked to examine who has the right to stand on the land they inhabit," said Christopher Griffith, Gloucester Stage's Managing Director. "Brenda Withers' brilliant, witty, and insightful script combined with our own Artistic Director Rebecca Bradshaw's masterful direction promises an unforgettable experience for our audiences, one that will linger long after the final curtain call."

THE DING DONGS will run from Friday, August 11, to Sunday, August 27. All performances, unless noted, are Wednesday and Thursday at 7:30 pm, Friday and Saturday at 8:00 pm, and Saturday and Sunday at 3:00 pm at Gloucester Stage Company located at 267 East Main Street, Gloucester. Tickets are now on sale and available at GloucesterStage.com.

The 2023 Season at Gloucester Stage has been made possible by the Shubert Foundation and the Applied Materials Foundation. STEW is made possible with support from The Marla & Clifford Robinson Family Fund and by Coldwell Banker.

About the Artists:

Brenda Withers (she/her) (Playwright) is a writer, actor, and founding member of the Harbor Stage Company. Her plays have been developed and produced at places like Northern Stage, Urbanite Theatre, Two River Theatre, Portland Stage, and Amphibian Stage Productions. She is a graduate of Dartmouth College, a recipient of the Clauder Prize and an Edgerton New Play Award, and a recent Huntington Playwriting Fellow.

Rebecca Bradshaw º (she/her) (Director), recently joining Gloucester Stage as its new Artistic Director, has built her career in Boston as a theatre director, producer, educator, casting director, and advocate. She has directed productions for the Huntington Theatre Company, Kitchen Theatre Company, Lyric Stage, The Nora Theatre Company, SpeakEasy Stage, Greater Boston Stage Company, A.R.T. Institute, Emerson College, Bridge Rep of Boston, Central Square Theatre/M.I.T., Weston Drama Workshop, The Umbrella Center for the Arts, Fresh Ink Theatre, among others. Bradshaw spent eight seasons producing at the Huntington Theatre Company, handling line producing, casting, and developing new work. She is a part of the Affiliated Faculty of Emerson College, teaching directing and producing, and has taught casting seminars at Harvard University, Suffolk University, Boston University, Brandeis University, Lesley University, and Boston Conservatory. She comes to Gloucester Stage after acting as the Producing Artistic Director at the Kitchen Theatre Company in Ithaca, NY. Bradshaw is a proud member of the Stage Directors and Choreographers Union.

Karl Gregory * (he/him) (Joe) is an Award-Winning actor and an Award-Winning bartender. Go figure. He has been seen in over 50 productions with Kitchen Theatre Company in Ithaca, NY; his favorite shows include The Ding Dongs, Tribes, Every Brilliant Thing, Buyer & Cellar, Peter and the Starcatcher (SALT Award), Gutenberg! The Musical!, Fully Committed (SALT Award), SantaLand Diaries, Swimming In The Shallows, and title roles in A Perfect Ganesh, The Cripple of Inishmaan, and The Servant of Two Masters. Gregory's television credits include ALPHA HOUSE and NIGHTCAP. He recently wrapped a feature film in Provincetown, MA, titled "Best Place." Gregory received his Bachelor of Fine Arts from Syracuse University and M.F.A. from Brown/Trinity Rep. He splits his time between Ithaca and Provincetown with his husband.

Nael Nacer * (he/him) (Redelmo) returns to The Ding Dongs after performing in it at the Kitchen Theater Company in Ithaca, NY, this past winter. Previous Gloucester Stage Company credits include Tiny Beautiful Things, True West, Bank Job, and The Flick. Other recent credits: The Orchard with Jessica Hecht and Mikhail Baryshnikov, directed by Igor Golyak (Arlekin Players/B.A.C.), Angels in America (Bedlam/C.S.T.), Macbeth, The Tempest (Commonwealth Shakespeare Company); The Merchant of Venice, Macbeth, Equivocation (Actors' Shakespeare Project); People, Places & Things, Small Mouth Sounds, A Future Perfect, Tribes (SpeakEasy Stage), Romeo and Juliet, A Doll's House, Bedroom Farce, Come Back, Little Sheba, Awake and Sing!, The Seagull, David Cromer's production Our Town (The Huntington); The Seagull (Arlekin Players Theatre); The Return (Israeli Stage); Tiny Beautiful Things, 45 Plays for 45 Presidents, It's a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play (Merrimack Rep); Calendar Girls (Greater Boston Stage Company); Mr. Burns, a Post-Electric Play, Intimate Apparel, Animal Crackers (Lyric Stage); A Number, Lungs, The Kite Runner, Pattern of Life (New Repertory Theatre); Rhinoceros, Windowmen (Boston Playwrights' Theatre); and Shear Madness (Charles Playhouse). Nael is the recipient of multiple Elliot Norton and IRNE awards for his work and is a resident acting company member of Actors' Shakespeare Project, as well as a private monologue coach with My College Audition.

Erica Steinhagen* (she/her) (Natalie) most recently performed at the Kitchen Theatre Company: Carol in Hurricane Diane, Adrienne in Cry It Out, Margery in Hand to God. Earlier credits include: The Drunken City; Precious Nonsense; Bed No Breakfast; Tony and the Soprano; Dario Fo's We Won't Pay!; Nora; Bed and Sofa; The Servant of Two Masters, among others. At the Hangar: Baker's Wife in Into the Woods; Trish in Kinky Boots; Dana in Ever So Humble(world premiere with Karl Gregory as Bobby); The Sound of Music; Cats; Beauty and the Beast; My Fair Lady; and her one-woman cabaret Imagine My Surprise. With the Cherry (founding member): White Rabbit Red Rabbit, George Kaplan, the title role in The Snow Queen and What Happens Next. Additional regional credits include Stage Kiss; The Best of Kathy and Mo; Wider than the Sky; Antigone; The Drowsy Chaperone; The Unfortunates, a one-woman play by Aoise Stratford. Steinhagen is a proud member of A.E.A., a voice teacher, and owner of Erica Steinhagen Voice Studio.

º Member Stage Directors and Choreographers Society (SDC) Union

*Member Actors Equity Association (AEA) Union

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