DOUBT, A PARABLE Runs 7/14-7/19 At WVPT

Since beginning a new tradition of non-musical presentations in 2004, WVPT audiences have been treated to the classics of the American stage from Thornton Wilder, Arthur Miller, Tennesee Williams, and Neil Simon. This season a new American classic, Doubt, a Parable, by John Patrick Shanley debuts at the West Virginia Public Theatre from July 14th through July 19th on the stage of the Gladys B. Davis Theatre at the WVU Creative Arts Center. Directed by WVPT Executive Producer and Founding Artistic Director, Ron Iannone, Doubt details the struggle of Sister Aloysius, a Bronx school principal, who takes matters into her own hands when she suspects the young Father Flynn of improper relations with one of the male students.

Alison Edwards stars as the resolute Sister Aloysius. Edwards starred opposite Judith Light in the National Tour of Wit and has been seen in numerous productions with the New York and Alabama Shakespeare Festivals among other regional credits. Portraying Father Flynn, the priest who believes that the clergy should be more accessible, is Duke LaFoon. LaFoon has been seen in the country's most reputable regional theatres and has starred in New York in A Wonderful Life and Gentlemen Prefer Blondes. NBC's Law and Order's Thérèse Plummer brings the innocent and caring Sister James to life and Joy Hooper from TV's Cold Case, As the World Turns, and All My Children plays Mrs. Muller, the young student's mother.

Doubt was originally staged off-Broadway at the Manhattan Theatre Club on November 23, 2004. The production transferred to the Walter Kerr Theatre on Broadway in March 2005 and closed on July 2, 2006 after 525 performances and 25 previews. This production won the Tony Award for Best Play and the Pulitzer Prize. A 2008 movie adaptation, directed by Shanley, starred Meryl Streep and Phillip Seymour Hoffman and was nominated for five Academy Awards.

Doubt is directed by Ron Iannone, who founded and has led the West Virginia Public Theatre through its twenty-five years of presenting Broadway's best in the mountains of West Virginia. Iannone is an educator, an author, a director, and a musician

Associate Director David S. Sollish directed Little Shop of Horrors earlier this season and has spent eleven seasons over fifteen years with WVPT as actor, director, and Director of Marketing and Development.

Doubt runs Tuesday, July 14th through Sunday, July 19th with performances on Tuesday thru Saturday at 8:00PM and 2:00 PM matinees on Wednesday and Sunday. The season continues with The Wedding Singer: July 21-July 26; Fiddler on the Roof: July 28-August 2; and Cats: August 4-August 9.

3 Show Ticket Packages are still available along with single tickets. Discounts for students and children are also available. Special "Anniversary Day" tickets are available for $15.00 on opening nights and $20.00 RUSH tickets are available for all other performances two hours prior to curtain. For tickets, call (304) 291-4122 (or toll free at 1-877-999-WVPT) or visit the WVPT box office in the WVU Creative Arts Center between 9:00 A.M. and 5:00 P.M. Monday through Friday; Saturdays 12:00PM-5:00PM; Sundays 12:00PM-4:00PM. WVPT performs at the WVU Creative Arts Center, which is air-conditioned and wheelchair accessible. More information can be obtained from WVPT's website: www.wvpublictheatre.com.

Photo: Alison Edwards 

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