Players Ring Premieres New Play 9/12

The Players' Ring continues its 30th Anniversary season with the world premiere of Walter Freeman's 9/12, a provocative and compelling comedy/drama about an unexpected visitor on the day after the 9/11 World Trade Center tragedy. It runs from October 8 to 17 at The Ring's Prescott Park home, 105 Marcy Street, Portsmouth.

According to the theatre, "This thrilling new play tells a riveting story: The day after 9/11, a conflicted Boston family proceeds with their plan to host a birthday party for their two-year-old daughter, but the fragile veneer of normalcy is shattered by an unexpected visitor. At once funny and frightening, 9/12 will bring you to the edge of your seat with its compelling characters, its twists and turns, and its shocking ending".

"9/11 is an incomprehensibly traumatic event in and of itself, but 9/12 has become an ongoing reality. Other elements are autobiographical, not the least of which was trying to celebrate my son's birthday the day after the attacks," said Playwright Walter Freeman. "On a physical level, the central conflict is between the couple trying to throw a birthday party on the day after the World Trade Center, Pentagon, and Pennsylvania attacks and the many ways the unfathomable horror of terrorism unravels their lives," said Freeman. "On an allegorical level, it is a conflict between a desperate desire for normalcy at odds with frightening change."

For tickets - or for subscriptions that save up to 30% off the cost of tickets, visit www.playersring.org or email info@playersring.org. General admission tickets are $25 ($22 for seniors and students) with performances at 7:30 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays and 2:30 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays. (The production will also play at the Hatbox Theatre in Concord November 12-21.)

Produced by Donald Tongue and New World Theatre, 9/12 is directed by Matthew Parent. The cast comprises Tana Ericksen, Kate Gilbert, James Grillo, Nicole Jones, Eric Lamarche, Mark Nichols, and Jacob Zentis. Emily Zentis will stage manage.

The creative team includes Justin Lahue, set designer; Emily Zentis, costume designer; Bretton Reis, lighting designer; Donald Tongue, sound designer; and Jacob Zentis, fight director.

The Players' Ring season continues next with Frankenstein, newly adapted by Bretton Reiss, October 29-November 21; And The Winner Is by Mitch Albom, January 7-23; I Love You Because, a musical by Ryan Cunningham and Joshua Salzman, February 4-20; Places You Go by William Ivers, February 25-March 6; Jesus Christ Superstar, the classic musical by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice, March 25-April 10; Moonglow by Jack Neary, April 22-May 1; and Children of the Grim, a new musical by Bitter Pill, May 13-June 5.

Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol, newly adapted by Jennifer Towle, will play December 3-24. A Christmas Carol is not part of the subscription series.

Season sponsors include MacEdge, Dowling, Business Cents, PPM-TV, Portsmouthnh.com, Seacoastonline.com, and Tri-State Lock & Safe.

For further information, visit www.playersring.org.

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