New Play DRY POWDER to Make Texas Premiere at Alley Theatre; Cast, Creatives Announced!

Gregory Boyd, Artistic Director of the Alley Theatre, announces the cast and creative team of Sarah Burgess's new play DRY POWDER. Burgess's intriguing play is set amongst those who try to shape, and skewer, the American economy - but it's also a tale about the price of success, and the real cost of "getting the deal done." The production makes its Texas premiere and features members of the Resident Acting Company.

DRY POWDER, directed by Taibi Magar, features Alley Resident Company members Elizabeth Bunch as Jenny, Jay Sullivan as Seth and Chris Hutchison as Jeff. Also, Alley veteran John Feltch joins the cast as Rick.

The creative team of DRY POWDER includes scenic design by Kevin Rigdon, costume design by Tilly Grimes, lighting design by Bradley King, and sound design by Broken Chord.

In DRY POWDER, the same week his private equity firm forced massive layoffs at a national grocery chain, Rick threw himself an extravagant engagement party, setting off a publicity nightmare. Fortunately, Seth, one of Rick's partners, has a win-win deal to invest in an American-made luggage company for a song and rescue his boss from a PR disaster. But Jenny, Seth's counterpart, has an entirely different plan: to squeeze every last penny out of the company, no matter the consequences.

Playwright Sarah Burgess won the 2016 Laurents Hatcher Prize and was a Susan Smith Blackburn Prize finalist for DRY POWDER, which premiered at The Public Theater in a production directed by Thomas Kail, starring Claire Danes, John Krasinski, and Hank Azaria. The Alley Theatre's production of DRY POWDER is the first production following the New York premiere.

January 28 at 10:00 a.m. get a sneak peek at the Alley Theatre Production Center and Stages. The tours are offered at 10:00 AM and last approximately 90 minutes. Space is limited. Cost is $5 for students and $10 for adults. Advance reservations are required and can be made at alleytheatre.org.

The Alley Theatre will present a Designer Talk one hour before the January 22 (1:30 p.m.) performance of DRY POWDER. The discussions will feature artistic staff and the creative team of DRY POWDER, giving audiences a behind-the-scenes look at the design process. The Alley will present Artist TalkBacks following the January 28 (2:30 p.m.) and January 31 (7:30 p.m.) performances of DRY POWDER. These discussions will feature cast and artistic staff.

The Alley Theatre will also present a special Alley In Context, featuring playwright Sarah Burgess following the January 25 (7:30 p.m.) performance of DRY POWDER. An additional discussion is scheduled following the January 29 (2:30 p.m.) performance of DRY POWDER, featuring local finance experts discussing the themes of the play and how they are reflected in our lives today. Artist Talk-Backs and Alley In Context are free and open to the public.

The Alley Theatre, one of America's leading not-for-profit theatres, is a nationally recognized performing arts company led by Artistic Director Gregory Boyd and Managing Director Dean R. Gladden. Home to a Resident Company of actors, the Alley creates a wide-ranging repertoire and innovative productions of classics, neglected modern plays, and premieres. Alley All New, the initiative to commission and develop new work year round, features the Alley All New Festival each season presenting workshops and readings of new plays and musicals in process. Additionally the Alley serves 65,000 students annually with award-winning education and community programs including in-school arts integration residencies, school tours and student matinees. A recipient of the Special Tony Award for Outstanding Regional Theatre, the Alley has brought productions to Broadway, 40 American cities including New York's Lincoln Center and internationally to London, Berlin, Paris, and St. Petersburg throughout its 70 year history.

After a year-long, $46.5 million renovation during the 2014-15 season, the Alley Theatre now has one of the most technically advanced non-profit theatre complexes in the nation. With more than 450 performances in 2016-2017, the Alley will produce more shows than all other performing arts organizations in the Houston Theater District combined.

DRY POWDER opens January 20 and runs through February 12. Performances of Dry Powder are Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday at 7:30 p.m.; Friday at 8:00 p.m.; Saturday at 2:30 p.m. and 8:00 p.m.; and Sunday at 2:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. For more information, call 713-220-5700 or visit alleytheatre.org. Tickets start at $30.

Dry Powder contains explicit language and adult content.

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