The Phoenix Theatre of Indianapolis Opens CLYBOURNE PARK, 4/4

The Phoenix Theatre of Indianapolis has announced the Indiana Premiere of Clybourne Park by Bruce Norris in the Livia and Steve Russell Theatre. Opening Thursday, April 4, and running through Sunday, May 5, 2013, Clybourne Park is the dark and richly satirical 2011 Pulitzer Prize-winning play and 2012 Tony award-winner for Best Play.

The play tackles tough subjects with humor and grit, including race, real estate and the volatile values of each, told through two acts set 50 years apart. The first takes place in 1959 as nervous community leaders try to stop the sale of a home to a black family. The second is set in the same house in its present-day, predominantly African-American neighborhood. The 1959 landmark drama A Raisin in the Sun provides a contextual center for Clybourne Park. The neighborhood and house the family aspires to purchase in A Raisin in the Sun is the setting for Clybourne Park, but it is not at all necessary to see the previous play first.

"Every one of us grew up in a neighborhood of some kind. Urban or country or suburban - we all grew up surrounded by the personalities, textures and influences of the community around us," says Phoenix Producing Director Bryan Fonseca - who is also directing the play. "For good or for bad, home is where the heart - and history - is."

The Playright

Bruce Norris is the author of the play Clybourne Park, which was produced at The Royal Court Theatre and won the Evening Standard Award for Best Play, 2010. Other plays include The Infidel (2000), Purple Heart (2002), We All Went Down to Amsterdam (2003), The Pain and the Itch (2004), and The Unmentionables (2006), all of which had their premieres at Steppenwolf Theatre, Chicago. His newest play, titled A Parallelogram, premiered there in July. His work has also been seen at Playwrights Horizons (New York), Lookingglass Theatre (Chicago), Philadelphia Theatre Company, Woolly Mammoth Theatre (Washington D.C.) Staatstheater Mainz (Germany) and The Galway Festival (Ireland), among others. He is the recipient of the Steinberg Playwright Award (2009), and The Whiting Foundation Prize for Drama (2006) as well as two Joseph Jefferson Awards (Chicago) for Best New Work. As an actor he can be seen in the films A Civil Action and The Sixth Sense, and the recent All Good Things. He lives in New York.

The Cast and Production Team

The cast includes Lisa Ermel (Betsey/Lindsey), Constance Macy (Bev/Kathy), Eric J. Olson (Karl/Steve), Ben Rose (Albert/Kevin), Bill Simmons (Russ/Dan), Ben Tebbe (Jim/Tom/Kenneth), and Dena Toler (Francine/Lena).

In addition to Bryan Fonseca as producer and director, the production team is Set Designer Bernie Killian, Lighting Designer is Laura Glover, Costume Designer and Props Mistress is Ashley Kiefer, Sound Designer Tim Brickley, Technical Director is Nolan Brokamp, and Assistant Stage Manager Brandon Allmon-Jackson.

Critical Acclaim

"Clybourne Park proves itself more vital and relevant than ever."

- The New York Times

"(Clybourne Park) is an insightful work, as excruciating as it is funny."
- The Hollywood Reporter

"You just have to see this riveting Pulitzer Prize-winning play."

- Entertainment Weekly

Ticket Details

It is the goal of The Phoenix Theatre to be the best ticket value in town for live, professional theatre. The following are ticket prices for Clybourne Park on the Livia and Steve Russell Stage at the Phoenix:

$18 - Katrina Basile Realtor CheapSeats Opening weekend; First Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday

$28 for all adults All remaining performances after opening weekend (Thursdays,

Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays

$18 for individuals Age 21 and under

Tickets may be purchased now by calling the box office at 317.635.7529 to charge by phone, and are available to purchase on-line at phoenixtheatre.org. All seating is general admission on a first-come, first-served basis. Performances are Thursdays at 7:00 pm; Fridays at 8:00 pm, Saturdays at 8:00 pm and Sundays at 2:00 pm, unless otherwise noted on our website. Doors open ½ hour prior to curtain for seating. The Phoenix Pub, located inside the theatre, offers beer, wine, soft drinks, coffee and bottled water, as well as treats, and all refreshments may be taken into either theatre and consumed during the performance.

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