The Henegar Center Announces Casting for HAND TO GOD

The Henegar Center (Hank Rion, Artistic Director) today announced casting for Hand to God, an irreverent puppet comedy. Under the direction of Hank Rion, and written by Robert Askins, Hand to God will play September 9 - 25, 2016 on the Upstairs at The Henegar stage. Single tickets start at $20 for adults, $16 for students/seniors, and are on sale starting August 6 through the Box Office at 321.723.8698 and online at www.henegar.org. Please note: Children under the age of 17 not permitted without an adult.

The hilarious and provocative Hand to God centers on shy, inquisitive student Jason, who finds an outlet for his burgeoning creativity at the Christian Puppet Ministry in the devoutly religious, relatively quiet small town of Cypress, Texas. Jason's complicated relationships with the town pastor, the school bully, the girl next door and-most especially-his mother are thrown into further upheaval when Jason's hand puppet Tyrone-once soft-spoken-takes on a shocking and dangerously irreverent personality all its own. As Tyrone's influence over Jason steadily grows, Hand to God explores the startlingly fragile nature of faith, morality, and the ties that bind us.

The Henegar Center will offer talkbacks with the director, cast and an invited guest following the Saturday evening performances, September 10, 17, and 24, 2016. Rion said, "It is important for the community to have a voice when the plays we produce reflect our current situation." Playwright, Robert Askins, said of writing Hand to God,

"Those things are the bedrock foundation seminal moments in my childhood. For a long time, I was writing about them in a Sam Shepard way-trying to understand them as Western surreal tragedy. It took me a long time to figure out that it wasn't tragedy; it was comedy."

"Hand To God is one of the most exciting productions we have presented on the Upstairs stage since Spring Awakening", Rion said. "The show is shocking, challenging and thought-provoking, with a wild streak of surprising hilarity. While the subject matter may be controversial, the idea about how one handles grief in their life is something we can all identify with."

Casting for Hand to God includes Logan Ayala (Henegar: debut) as Jason, Shane Frampton (Henegar: Memphis, Cry Baby, Big Fish) as Margery, David Hill (Henegar: Big Fish) as Pastor Greg, Kirstin Williams (Henegar: Big Fish, Nice Work, Wizard of Oz) as Jessica, and Damon Dennin (Henegar: Big Fish) as Timothy.

The creative team for Hand to God includes Brighid Reppert (Set Design), Josh Huss (Lighting Design), Thom Restivo (Sound Design), Pamela Harbaugh (Assistant Director), Nate Dobson (Stage Manager) and Steve Rossi (Technical Director).

Hand to God will play September 9 - 25, 2016 on the Upstairs at The Henegar stage. Single tickets start at $20 for adults, $16 for students/seniors, and are on sale starting August 6 through the Box Office at 321.723.8698 and online at www.henegar.org. Please note: Children under the age of 17 not permitted without an adult.

To post a comment, you must register and login.