Bergen County Players Will Perform THE CURIOUS INCIDENT OF THE DOG IN THE NIGHT-TIME

Bergen County Players will conclude its 2023-2024 mainstage season with the critically acclaimed, Tony Award-winning play The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time. In recognition of National Autism Acceptance Month, performances begin Saturday, April 20 and will run through Saturday, May 11 at the Little Firehouse Theatre in Oradell, with shows on Friday and Saturday evenings at 8pm and Sunday afternoons at 2pm. Tickets are priced at $25 for Friday and Saturday performances; $23 for Sundays. They can be purchased online at www.bcplayers.org, by calling 201-261-4200 or by visiting the box office at 298 Kinderkamack Road in Oradell during regular box office hours. Please Note: This production contains adult situations and explicit language.

Adapted for the stage by Simon Stephens from Mark Haddon's Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, and directed by Alyson Cohn of Wyckoff, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time tells the story of Christopher Boone, a 15-year-old who is wrongly accused of killing his neighbor's dog. Christopher not only has an unconventional brilliant mind, but is also on the autism spectrum, ill-equipped to interpret everyday life. When he sets out to identify the true culprit, the investigation takes a personal turn leading him to an earth-shattering discovery that will change his life forever. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time explores the complex relationships between a father and son, the effects of keeping family secrets and an immersive adventure inside the mind of a gifted child.

Winner of five Tony Awards, six Drama Desk Awards and five Outer Critics Circle Awards, including Best Play for all three, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time received its world premiere at the Royal National Theatre in 2012, before moving to the West End. The play opened on Broadway in 2014 at the Barrymore Theatre and went on to smash hit runs internationally. Mark Haddon's novel was published in 2003. It was the winner of more than 17 literary awards, including prizes in the US, UK, Japan, Holland, and Italy.

Bergen County Players presents The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time in recognition of National Autism Acceptance Month in April. BCP will help raise awareness about autism acceptance and promote inclusion for people with autism, as well as help enlighten patrons about support services. It's a time to honor the unique perspectives of people living with autism and support children with autism and their families. Those interested in the latest resources on early identification and support services for autism may visit CDC's website at www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/autism/index.html.

Director Alyson Cohn is a BCP Life Member and serves as the organization's current President. Her directing credits include The Play That Goes Wrong, Boeing-Boeing, The Laramie Project, Glengarry Glen Ross, Six Degrees of Separation, Lips Together/Teeth Apart, The Heidi Chronicles, Proposals, True West, Marvin's Room, Art, Angels in America, and One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. For both Proof and God of Carnage she received a Perry Award for Outstanding Direction of a Play. Audiences have enjoyed her on stage at BCP in How to Succeed..., Lucky Stiff, Lend Me a Tenor, A Year with Frog and Toad, Little Shop of Horrors (Perry Award, Outstanding Lead Actress/Musical), The Full Monty, and most recently as Emma Goldman in Ragtime: The Musical (Perry Award Nomination, Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical). By day, she is the director of Music Together of Northern NJ, an early childhood music and movement program.

"We are thrilled to close out our season with this thought-provoking, groundbreaking work that allows our audiences to experience the universe of Christopher's imagination, experiencing the vast world as he sees it," says Cohn. "Curious Incident, at its heart, is about discovery, understanding, forgiveness, and acceptance of the differences that make us who we are."

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time stars Tom Kiely of Allendale as fifteen-year-old Christopher. Tom was last seen on the BCP stage in the title role of Pippin. He also appeared at the Little Firehouse Theatre in Seussical The Musical. Other local credits include Tick, Tick...BOOM!, La Cage Aux Folles and The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time at another local theater. Joining Tom is a stellar collection of actors including Ian Kenny of Butler as Ed who is making his stage debut at BCP. On other stages he has appeared in The Duchess of Malfi, Faustus, and Metamorphosis. Leslie Darcy of Oakland plays Judy. Leslie has performed on the BCP stage in Sylvia, Love Letters, Brooklyn Boy, The Typists, and Church and State. For her performances in Time Stands Still and the female version of The Odd Couple she received Perry Award nominations for Outstanding Lead Actress in a play. Allyson Stevenson of Westwood plays Siobahn. Allyson has graced the BCP stage with performances in Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, God of Carnage (for which she was nominated for a Perry Award for Outstanding Leading Actress), Church and State, Boeing/Boeing, and Barbecue.

Marisa Gore of Englewood appears as Actor 1. Marisa appeared at BCP in Clue and The Drowsy Chaperone. Her credits on other local stages include Grand Horizons, Crossing Delancey, and Les Miserables. Mark Bogosian of Tenafly portrays Actor 2. Mark's credits at BCP include Pippin, Getting Away With Murder, and Cinderella. His work on other local stages includes Rock of Ages, Rocky the Musical, Ride the Cyclone, Wait Until Dark, and Hair. Nick Nappo of Suffern, NY takes on the role of Actor 3. Nick's BCP credits include Godspell and Clue, with other local credits such as The Full Monty, The Tempest, A Night of Disney, Lost in Yonkers and Disgraced. Jan Eggers of Montvale is also making his debut at BCP as Actor 4 in this production. His credits elsewhere include Titanic the Musical, Vintage Hitchcock: A Radio Play, Annie Get Your Gun, and Cabaret.

Jenna Stewart of River Vale plays Actor 5. Previously, Jenna has appeared on the BCP stage in Barbecue, Pippin, The Music Man, Something's Afoot, Jacques Brel..., Porch, Mary Kitchen, and Mission Improv-able 3. Credits elsewhere include A Midsummer Night's Dream, Come Blow Your Horn, Precious Sons, and Trophies. Rounding out the cast is Cheryl Woertz of Alpine who plays Actor 6. Cheryl has appeared on the BCP stage in Gypsy, Central Park West, A Streetcar Named Desire, Steel Magnolias, Lovers and Other Strangers, Sordid Lives, And the World Goes 'Round, Sweeney Todd, Summer Brave, and Better Late. On local stages she performed in Circle Mirror Transformation, The Glass Menagerie, Our Town, All My Sons, Blood Brothers, and I Do! I Do!.

Finally, making his debut on the BCP stage in The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time is Buddy Lupfer, a two-year-old Shorkie puppy, considered by many to be the most adorable member of the company.

The production team is comprised of Nick Nappo (Co-Producer), Michele Roth (Co-Producer/Assistant to the Director/Stage Manager), Allan Seward (Lighting Design), Aura Caicedo (Lighting Operation), Rob DeScherer (Sound Design), Kate McManus and Ludma Delva (Sound/Projections Operation), Daniel Seitz (Set Design/Construction), Lauren Zenreich (Set Décor), Scout Schiro (Costume Designer), Olga Garey (Costumes), Laura Dinoia and Joellen Tierney (Properties), Alan Zenreich (Photography), Ian Kenny (Dialect Coach), Marisa Gore (Hair/Makeup), Jennifer Bancks and Susan Kaufman (Crew), Michael Serpe (Stunt/Fight Coordinator), Tim Larsen (Projection Coordinator), Marci Weinstein (Program Bios), Janica Carpenter (Member-at-Large) and Cynthia Barry (Headshot Board).

TICKET AND SCHEDULE INFORMATION:

• All performances take place at The Little Firehouse Theatre at 298 Kinderkamack Road in Oradell, home to the Bergen County Players since 1949. Performance times are Fridays and Saturdays at 8pm and Sundays at 2pm.

• Tickets for Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time are $25 for Friday and Saturday performances and $23 for those on Sunday.

• Tickets can be purchased online at www.bcplayers.org, by calling 201-261-4200 or by visiting the box office at 298 Kinderkamack Road in Oradell during regular box office hours. Visa, Master Card, and American Express are accepted.

• Those interested in Group Sales or benefit theater parties can call (201) 261-4200 (option #6).

• BCP offers seating to accommodate patrons who are mobility impaired and can transfer from a wheelchair. These seats can be purchased by calling the box office at 201-261-4200 and will be released for public sale two weeks prior to performance.

• BCP's popular Questions & Artists talkback session with cast and crew will be held following the performance on Friday, April 26.

• Advance discount tickets for students aged 25 and under with proper ID are available for $18 by phone or walk-up at every performance, pending seat availability. Not available online. There is a limit of one discount ticket per student ID.

• "Rush' discount tickets for students aged 25 and under with proper ID are available for $5 at the box office window, starting 30 minutes prior to curtain. There is a limit of one Rush ticket per student ID and cash is the only payment method accepted.

• A new program is now available for qualified non-profit organizations to use one performance of each production as a fundraising event. The group will book all 200 seats at a highly discounted price and then resell the tickets at a price of their choosing, with the difference in price kept by the group. The available date is the Thursday of each show's final weekend. Interested groups can email fundraising@bcplayers.org for more information.

• Parking is free for our patrons at the Park Avenue municipal lot, across the street, one-half block north of the theater, as well as street parking on Kinderkamack Road and various side streets, all within easy walking distance.

Further information can be found at www.bcplayers.org.

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