Photo Flash: First Look at Bergen County Players' GOD OF CARNAGE

Bergen County Players presents the final mainstage production of its 2014-2015 season of shows, the 2009 Tony Award-winning play, God of Carnage, written by Yasmina Reza, translated by Christopher Hampton and directed by Alyson Cohn. God of Carnage will open on May 2, 2015 and run through Sunday, May 31, 2015 at the Little Firehouse Theatre, 298 Kinderkamack Road in Oradell (no performances Memorial Day weekend, May 22-24). The New York Times described Carnage as "[a] streamlined anatomy of the human animal... [The play] delivers the cathartic release of watching otherpeople's marriages go boom."

A playground altercation between eleven-year-old boys brings together two sets of Brooklyn parents for a meeting to resolve the matter. Yasmina Reza's witty script starts out as a rancidly funny account of two couples tiptoeing around their mutual dislike. At first, diplomatic niceties are observed, but as the evening progresses, the gloves come off and the night becomes a side-splitting free-for-all. The London production at the Gielgud Theatre was widely acclaimed, receiving the Olivier Award for Best New Play of 2009. The Broadway production won a Tony for Best Play and became the longest running comedy of the 2000s.

When asked about the themes of the production, Director Alyson Cohn of Wyckoff stated, "Playground politics - children live them and adults pretend to have outgrown them. But do we ever?" Alyson is a seasoned BCP director, helming the BCP productions of Boeing-Boeing; Glengarry Glen Ross; One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest; Angels in America: Millennium Approaches; Six Degrees of Separation; The Heidi Chronicles; Proposals; True West; Art; The Laramie Project; and Proof, which won the 2006 Perry Award for Best Production of a Play.

The talented cast of God of Carnage includes Larry Kadish (Alan Raleigh) of New Milford, Allyson Stevenson (Annette Raleigh) of Westwood, Scott Schneider ( Michael Novak) of Congers, NY, and Angie Joachim (Veronica Novak) of White Plains, NY. Larry Kadish last appeared on the BCP stage in Boeing-Boeing, which he added to his list of previous BCP productions including Sideman, Murder in Green Meadows, Marvin's Room, Art, Thumbs, Fuddy Meers, Table Manners, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, Glengarry Glen Ross, and Angels in America, among others. Allyson Stevenson returns to our stage after 2012's Boeing-Boeing. Previously she appeared in The Little Dog Laughed and Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf for which she earned a Perry Award nomination. Angie Joachim is thrilled to be performing with BCP for the first time, after having performed on stages in both Northwest Connecticut and New Orleans. Her stage credits include Noises Off, Hairspray, Coyote on a Fence, A Flea in Her Ear, Cabaret, Over the Tavern, Dancing at Lughnasa, and A Chorus Line. Scott Schneider is also making his BCP debut in God of Carnage; his prior credits elsewhere include True West, 12 Angry Jurors, Of Mice and Men, and Othello, among others.

The crew includes: Kathie Robitz (Producer, Props), Michele Roth (Stage Manager, Assistant to the Director), Marci K. Weinstein (Set Design, Décor, Program Notes), Greg Cilmi (Set Design and Construction), Allan Seward (Lighting Design), Rob DeScherer (Sound Design), Bunny Mateosian and Marian McCabe (Costume Design), Pat Bain (Props), Angela Grippo (Lighting Operation), Daniel Reid (Sound Operation), Christine Francois (Makeup Design), Larry Landsman (Publicity), and Alan Zenreich (Photography).

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