New Light Theater Project and Access Theater will present IN THE SOUNDLESS AWE by nationally acclaimed playwrights Jayme McGhan and Andy Pederson. Originally produced at Concordia University and the Kennedy Center ACTF Festival, the New York City Premiere will be directed by award-winner Sarah Norris. Previews begin November 20 at Access Theater with opening slated for November 23.
IN THE SOUNDLESS AWE is a highly-theatrical, emotionally-wrought, and horrific imagining of the final nightmare of Captain McVay, the man at the helm of the worst Naval disaster in United States history.
July 30, 1945. The U.S.S. Indianapolis is hit by two Japanese torpedoes, killing 300 sailors in the initial blast and leaving 900 men to drift helplessly in the Pacific Ocean. The survivors are discovered almost five days later. When rescue ships and planes finally arrive, they witness hundreds of large shadows lurking around small groups of broken men drifting aimlessly in the current. Only 321 sailors are pulled from the blood-filled water.
IN THE SOUNDLESS AWE takes place twenty-two years later, finding
Charles Butler McVay III, the wrongly court-martialed and disgraced Captain of the U.S.S. Indianapolis, in his haunting final moments.
The production team includes Corrie Blissit (choreographer), Loren Beri (original music), Brian Dudkiewicz (scenic design), Genevieve Beller (costumes), Michael O'Connor (lighting),
Andy Cohen (sound design), projections by Yuriy Pavlish (projections), and film associate Zach Griffin (film associate), Joshua Shain (production manager), Matt Vieira (technical director), Abby Wylan (associate director), Samantha Schaffer (associate scenic design), production Assistant Joy Yoo (production assistant), and
Juni Li (production stage manager). Casting will be announced shortly.
SARAH NORRIS is an award-winning director whose work has been seen both around the country (New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Fresno, Las Vegas, Minneapolis, Maine & Alaska) and around the world (Australia, England, & Ireland). In New York, she has worked with:
Playwrights Horizons,
LAByrinth Theater Company,
Disney Theatrical Productions, BAMA Theatre Company, The
Flea Theater, The Gallery Players, The Glass Eye/Fresh Produce'd, and Boomerang Theatre to name a few. She has an MFA in Directing from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas and a BA in Theatre from the University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa. She is also an Associate Producer for the Broadway producing company,
Bisno Productions. She is a founding member of New Light Theater Project.
JAYME McGHAN's plays have been produced and developed across the country at theatres including Irish Repertory, Kennedy Center, Washington Shakespeare Company,
Chicago Dramatists, Mortar Theatre, Cleveland Public Theatre, Hot City Theatre, Yellow Tree Theatre, Nevada Conservatory Theatre, Southern Appalachian Repertory Theatre and many more. His full-length plays include Red Rock, The Fisherman, Mother Bear, Hellfire, Autonomy, Jest, Damn the River Deep, The Methuselah Tree, and The Sweet Stuff. Four of his plays are published. Jayme is a Resident Playwright at
Chicago Dramatists and an Artistic Associate with Stage Left Theatre. He is the former Regional Representative of the
Dramatists Guild to the Twin Cities. He is as an Associate Professor of Theatre at Chicago's Concordia University. He holds an MFA in Playwriting from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.
ANDY PEDERSON's plays have been produced in Chicago, Atlanta, Memphis, and Vermont. His full-length plays include YELLOW LIGHT, JUNE FIRST, and THE TENACITY OF JUST SEEMING. He is member of the Dramatists' Guild and an alumnus of the Kennedy Center Playwriting Intensive. Andy holds an MFA in playwriting from Goddard College and is resident playwright of The Saltbox Theatre Collective. Andy teaches in the English and Creative Writing Program at Concordia University Chicago.
Under Artistic Director Sarah Norris, NEW LIGHT THEATER PROJECT is an ensemble-based theater company in New York City. They place writers at the center of the process of developing new works and reinterpreting classic stories. They create an environment-for both artist and audience-that is open, engaging, and affordable. For more info, visit NewLightTheaterProject.com.
Since 1992, ACCESS THEATER has served as a cost-effective rental alternative to New York's Off-Off and Independent Theater scene. Access seeks innovative, not-for-profit producing organizations devoted to the production of new works.
IN THE SOUNDLESS AWE runs November 20 - December 12, Thursday - Saturday at 8pm with additional performances Nov. 22 at 3pm, Nov. 23 & 24 at 8pm. (Please note: no performances Nov. 25, 26 or 27). Access Theater is located at 380 Broadway on the 4th floor (at White Street) -- accessible from the A/C/E/N/Q/R/6 trains at Canal Street or the 1 train at Franklin. Tickets are $15 at 800-838-3006 or BrownPaperTickets.com.
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