Real Life Father/Son Acting Duo to Star in A NUMBER at Edge of the Universe Theater

Beginning on August 8 and running through September 1, 2024, Edge of the Universe Theater will bring A Number to the stage. Written by the highly acclaimed British playwright Caryl Churchill, A Number will be directed by Stephen Jarrett. The two lead roles will be played by the real-life father and son David Bryan Jackson and Max Jackson. This production will take place Thursdays through Sundays at Gunston Arts Center Theatre II (2700 S. Lang St, Arlington, VA). 

A Number is set in the not-too-distant future, where a father plagued by parenting doubts has secretly cloned his son, hoping not to repeat past mistakes. But as each son learns who he really is, things quickly get out of hand. Horrifying revelations emerge in a thought-provoking work that wrestles with identity, nature versus nurture, and science.

Award-winning actor David Bryan Jackson has appeared in several productions by Edge of the Universe Theater including, The Caretaker, Entertaining Mr Sloane, and Laughter in the Shadow of the Trees. Additionally, he has performed in numerous productions on stages across Washington, DC including, The Kennedy Center, Shakespeare Theatre Company, Folger Theatre, Mosaic Theater, Woolly Mammoth Theatre, Studio Theatre, Theater J and more. In addition, he has directed several plays, worked as a sound designer and composer, and appeared in independent films and television shows. 

Appearing earlier this year in Studio Theatre’s Love, Love, Love, Max Jackson got his start acting in local DC theatre at age 11 in Active Culture’s To Hell and Back. Since then he has appeared on stage at Spooky Action Theater, Ford’s Theatre, Keegan Theatre, Shakespeare Theatre Company and many more. He studied acting in London at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, where he appeared professionally in Company. He has composed and performed music for several productions, and his film credits include the independent films The Summer Before and Of Dice and Men. This will be his debut with Edge of the Universe.

Director Stephen Jarrett’s work for Edge of the Universe Theater includes The Caretaker, Entertaining Mr Sloane,  The Summoning of Everyman and a Capital Fringe production of A Number in 2022, among others. Other career highlights include directing many productions for The American Century Theater, ten years as an Equity stage manager, three years running an Army theater in Zweibruecken, Germany, and twelve years as Staging Director and Production Manager for the annual Hispanic Heritage Awards (Kennedy Center). He was the founding Director of Performing Arts at the BlackRock Center for the Arts in Germantown, MD, and spent ten years as the Executive Director of the Washington Area Performing Arts Video Archive (WAPAVA).

"The ripped-from-the headlines part of this clever, witty play is human cloning, and that's what the intricate plot's about,” says Jarrett. “But it's a smokescreen hiding Churchill's real concerns, chiefly fatherhood and the abject terror of the void."

The rest of the crew for A Number includes Simone Schneeberg as Set Designer, Lauren K. Lambie* as Costume Designer, Hailey LaRoe as Lighting Designer and Steve Antosca as composer. 

For more information and to purchase tickets for A Number, please visit Edge of the Universe Theater or call 202-355-6330. Single ticket prices are $30. A Number is presented by arrangement with Concord Theatricals on behalf of Samuel French, Inc.

*Member, United Scenic Artists Local USA 829, IATSE

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