Kyle Hatley Stars in AN ILIAD, Running Now thru 2/15 at KC Rep

Kansas City Repertory Theatre continues its 50th anniversary celebration with An Iliad, directed by Kansas City Repertory Theatre's Producing Director Jerry Genochio and starring the return of former Kansas City Repertory Theatre's Resident Director Kyle Hatley. Performed to critical acclaim at theatres throughout the country, An Iliad is a spellbinding work of theatre spanning three millennia. An Iliad is adapted by Obie Award-winning Lisa Peterson and Kansas City native Denis O'Hare (HBO's "True Blood") from the Roger Fagles translation of The Iliad by Homer.

The ancient thrilling tales of the Trojan War and the modern world collide in this captivating theatrical experience which conjures the fury of the gods. Kyle Hatley's character embodies the Greek classic's famous characters Achilles, Hector, Agamemnon -- even the beautiful Helen of Troy -- as he shares the stage with only a virtuoso musician, Raymond Castrey. Set in a contemporary milieu, the one-man performance stars an ageless Greek singer and poet who delves deep into mankind's unshakeable attraction to violence, destruction, and chaos.

Playwrights Obie Award-winning Lisa Peterson and Denis O'Hare (HBO's "True Blood") have created a spellbinding work of theatre spanning three millennia.

Performances run tonight, January 23 through February 15 at KC Rep's Spencer Theatre on the UMKC campus. Press night is Opening Night, Friday, January 30, 8pm curtain. This performance features some adult language and scenes of violence, and is appropriate for ages 13 and up.

Conversation Series:

Patrons are invited and welcome to attend these FREE post-show forums to learn more from the artists and creative teams about the production.

Meet the Creative Team: Jan. 28, following the 7 pm performance

Scholars' Forum: Feb. 7, following the 2pm performance

Actor's Forum: Feb. 8, following the 2pm performance and Feb. 11, following the 7 pm performance

About the Artists:

Kyle Hatley (The Poet) KC Rep directing credits: When I Come to Die, Carousel, Little Shop of Horrors, Broke-ology, Circle Mirror Transformation, The Borderland, A Christmas Carol (2010-2013), and the upcoming world premiere of Nathan Jackson's Sticky Traps. Also at the Rep, Mr. Hatley was the Associate Director on August: Osage County (Eric Rosen, Director). KC Rep acting credits: The Foreigner (Ellard Simms), Death of a Salesman (Happy), The Whipping Man (Caleb), The Glass Menagerie (The Gentleman Caller). Local acting: Hurlyburly (The Living Room), Jerry Genochio's Tack Driver (Kansas City Fringe Festival). Local writing & directing: Master of the Universe and The Death of Cupid (The Living Room); Head and Watering the Grave (Kansas City Fringe Festival). Local directing: Carousel and Titus Andronicus (The Living Room); The Effect of Gamma Rays on Man-in-the-Moon Marigolds (Kansas City Actors Theatre at The Living Room); Ben Franklin's Apprentice and the world premiere of Red Badge Variations (Coterie Theatre); Hamlet (Two Third's Theatre); The Darwin Project (Friends of Chamber Music at the Kauffman Performing Arts Center). Chicago Acting Credits: Danny Casolaro Died For You (TimeLine Theatre Company) and Take Me Out (About Face Theatre/Steppenwolf Theatre). TV & Film: "Chicago Fire," "Prison Break" and "As the World Turns". Kyle is a 2011 Charlotte Street Foundation Generative Artist Fellow and the Resident Director of Kansas City Rep, where he was the Associate Artistic Director from 2008 to 2014. He is a proud board member of The Living Room Theatre and a Rhodes College graduate.

Raymond Castrey (Music Director, Musician) Ray Castrey is a percussionist who makes music and soundscapes for theatre, dance, and multimedia projects. He is an emeritus member of the Theatre and Dance Department at Missouri State University, where he spent 29 years creating, playing, and teaching music. Ray has been a guest of the New Arts Festival of Ft. Myers, Florida, the Sun Valley Institute for the Arts and Humanities, and the American College Dance Festival. He has worked with Gash/Voigt Dance Theatre, the Parsons Dance Company, Dayton Contemporary Dance, Aha! Dance Theatre, Nebraska Wesleyan University, and Springfield Contemporary Theatre, among others. Ray has been associated with the Missouri Fine Arts Academy for 19 years, the past three as director of the program. He leads music workshops and drum circles for schools, community organizations, and other groups, and plays in the quartet Distant Relative from his home base of Springfield, Missouri.

Jerry Genochio (Director) KC Rep: Producing Director since 2008; Rep directing credits: American Buffalo, The Foreigner, Santaland Diaries , and A Christmas Carol. The Playwrights' Center-Ruth Easton Series: Goddess of Mercy. Florida State University: Pelvic Variations, Summertree and Small Craft Warnings. At the Rep Mr. Genochio leads the production and artistic teams and is responsible for mounting all productions as well as season budgets, calendars and planning. Before joining the team at Kansas City Rep in 2005, he served as production manager for Alabama Shakespeare Festival, PlayMakers Repertory Company, Sacramento Theatre Company and Southwest Missouri State University. He also spent ten seasons as Scenery Director for the Utah Shakespeare Festival and served as Technical Director at Illinois State University, Lafayette College, and Illinois Shakespeare Festival, and toured nationally with Minneapolis' Children's Theatre Company. He was an Adjunct Associate Professor for the Graduate Technical Production Program at the University of Alabama and University of North Carolina. Education: MFA in Theatre from The Florida State University; BS in Theatre from Northwest Missouri State University.

Denis O'Hare (Co-Author) As Actor: NYTW: Vienna Lusthaus, The Devils. Broadway: Elling, Inherit the Wind, Sweet Charity, Assassins, Take Me Out, Major Barbara, Cabaret, Racing Demon. Off-Broadway: Uncle Vanya, A Spanish Play, Pig Farm, Helen, Ten Unknowns, Lonely Planet, Silence Cunning Exile, The Arabian Nights, Woyzeck, Hauptmann. Film & TV: J. Edgar, The Eagle, Changeling, Milk, Duplicity, Michael Clayton, A Mighty Heart, The Proposal, Garden State, "The Good Wife," "True Blood," "American Horror Story." As Author: several screenplays. Upcoming: Theater project in collaboration with Lisa Peterson (Court Theatre). Education: Northwestern University (Acting, Writing Poetry).

Lisa Peterson (Co-Author) NYTW: Trestle at Pope Lick Creek, Slavs!, Traps, The Waves (Co-Author/Director), Light Shining in Buckinghamshire (OBIE). Off-Broadway: Poor Itch, The Square, Tongue of a Bird (Public); Motherhood Outloud, Shipwrecked! (Primary Stages); Collected Stories (MTC); Fourth Sister, Batting Cage (Vineyard); Sueno (MCC); Birdy, Chemistry of Change (WPP). Regional: Guthrie, McCarter, Seattle Rep, La Jolla Playhouse, OSF, Taper, Berkeley Rep, Arena Stage and many more. Executive Board of SDC.

The design and production team includes Martin Andrew (Scenic Design), Grant Wilcoxen (Lighting Design), Georgiana Londré Buchanan (Costume Design), Josh Horvath (Sound Design) and Mary Honour (Production Stage Manager).

An Iliad runs January 23 - February 15, 2015 at Spencer Theatre, located at 4949 Cherry Street on the UMKC campus in Kansas City, MO. Tickets are $20 to $64 and can be purchased through the KC Rep Box Office at 816-235-2700 or online at www.KCRep.org. For group ticket sales, call 816-235-6122.About Kansas City Repertory Theatre

Now celebrating its 50th anniversary, Kansas City Repertory Theatre is one of the nation's oldest and most respected regional theaters. Lauded by The Wall Street Journal, TIME Magazine, Variety and the Toronto Sun, KC Rep produces main stage plays and special events at Spencer Theatre, where it serves as the professional theatre in residence at the University of Missouri-Kansas City (UMKC), and Copaken Stage located in downtown Kansas City. KC Rep employs more than 250 professional artists, technicians and administrators, and serves more than 100,000 patrons and 12,000 school children annually. Kansas City Repertory Theatre is led by Artistic Director Eric Rosen and Executive Director Angela Lee Gieras.

Photo Credit: Don Ipock

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