Theater Breaking Through Barriers will present the World Premiere of THE HEALING by Drama Desk and Obie Award-winning playwright Samuel D. Hunter (The Whale, A Bright New Boise). It will be directed by Stella Powell-Jones. Previews begin today, June 11 at Theatre Row's Clurman Theatre with opening night slated for June 22.
Twenty-five years ago, a motley group of friends met as kids at a summer camp where the head counselor secretly taught them that their disabilities could be "cured" through the power of prayer. Today, the group has gathered to mourn the untimely passing of one of its members. Over the course of the night, old wounds are uncovered, friendships are tested and the truth surrounding their late friend becomes troublingly clear.
The production will feature set by
Jason Simms, costumes by Christopher Metzger, lighting by Alejandro Fajardo, and sound by
Brandon Wolcott. Casting will be announced shortly.
Samuel D. Hunter's plays include The Whale (Drama Desk Award,
Lucille Lortel Award for Outstanding Play, Drama League and Outer Critics Circle nominations for Best Play), A Bright New Boise (Obie Award, Drama Desk nomination for Best Play), The Few, A Great Wilderness, Jack's Precious Moment, Rest, Pocatello, Lewiston and Clarkston. He is the recipient of a 2014 MacArthur "Genius Grant" Fellowship and an honorary doctorate from the University of Idaho. His plays have been produced in New York by
Playwrights Horizons, Rattlestick Playwrights Theater, Partial Comfort, and others. He is a member of
New Dramatists, an Ensemble Playwright at Victory Gardens and he was a 2013 Resident Playwright at
Arena Stage. He holds degrees in playwriting from NYU, Iowa Playwrights Workshop, and Juilliard.
Stella Powell-Jones is currently associate director on The Father (Duke of York's Theatre, West End/UK National Tour). Her recent credits include The Mystery of Love and Sex (
Signature Theatre, VA), West Coast premiere of Trevor by
Nick Jones (Circle X Theatre) 17 Orchard Point by
Stephanie DiMaggio and
Anton Dudley (Theater Row), Bullfinch Mythology (
Williamstown Theatre Festival), Wet Glitter by Lucile Baker Scott (IRT) and plays by Lauren Morelli, Brian Watkins &
Marco Ramirez for Lesser America's Just Right Just Now. Stella has developed work with The Kennedy Center, New York Stage & Film,
Playwrights Horizons, and
Primary Stages among others. In the United Kingdom she has directed world premieres for Renegade Theatre at the
Bush Theatre, London & Painted Filly Theatre Co, Dublin.
Theater Breaking Through Barriers, under the Artistic Direction of
Nicholas Viselli, is a critically acclaimed Off-Broadway company integrating able-bodied actors with artists with disabilities. Founded in 1979 by
Ike Schambelan as Theater by the Blind, the company's mission is to change the image of people with disabilities from one of dependence to independence, to fight stereotypes and misperceptions associated with disability, and to show how vibrant, fluid and exuberant the work of artists with disabilities can be. The company has premiered works by
Bekah Brunstetter,
Bruce Graham,
John Guare,
A.R. Gurney,
Samuel D. Hunter,
David Henry Hwang,
Neil LaBute,
Kate Moira Ryan and
Diana Son, among others.
THE HEALING runs June 11 - July 16 at Theatre Row's Clurman Theatre (410 West 42nd Street, between 9th and 10th Avenues). Performances are Tuesday - Wednesday at 7pm, Thursday - Friday at 8pm, Saturday at 3pm & 8pm, and Sunday at 3pm. (Note: Sunday, June 12th will be at 7pm.) Tickets are $55, available at 212-239-6200 or visit
www.telecharge.com. For additional information, visit
www.tbtb.org.
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