a World Premiere by Jeff Daniels
SEPTEMBER 17, 2015 – DECEMBER 19, 2015
Frank and Ron are two middle-aged actors who have been competing for the same roles in New York City and beyond for thirty years. Join us for this hilarious world premiere comedy by Jeff Daniels that explores the lengths to which actors will go to get the part.
Directed by Guy Sanville
CAST:
PRESS QUOTES
“…a brief, biting, funny look at the business of Broadway through the hearts of three people who can’t stop lurching toward a spotlight or putting themselves “out there” time after time, year after year, decade after decade, because their hearts, and souls, won’t let them do anything else.”
“…laugh-out-loud moments of sharp dialogue, expertly delivered by director Guy Sanville’s cast.”
“‘Casting Session’ has a charm beyond its impressively high laughs-per-minute ratio. It’s an intelligent play – with minimal physical comedy, but plenty of sharply crafted banter.”
an American classic by Neil Simon
JANUARY 21, 2016 – MARCH 26, 2016
Two suddenly single pals — a sloppy sportswriter and a neat freak news writer — strain their friendship by turning roommates, but patterns of their own disastrous marriages begin to reappear with hilarious results.
Directed by Lauren Mounsey
CAST:
PRESS QUOTES
“Treat yourself to some unapologetic laughs served up by people who care about their craft. ”
“These are characters we all know so well from stage, movie and a hit TV series, but the Purple Rose gives them bright new life.”
– Pulp
a Word Premiere by Matt Letscher
APRIL 14, 2016 – MAY 28, 2016
When Jane brings home the much older, soon-to-be father of her unborn child, Mom thinks that she’s kidding. What starts as a practical joke turns into a thoughtful exploration of what it is that we pass down through the generations. Is it more than just DNA?
Recipient of the 2015 Edgerton Foundation New Play Award!
Directed by Guy Sanville
CAST:
PRESS QUOTES
“Letscher has written an artful story, bringing imagination, deep feeling and rich color to a mere photograph of two skeletons in a lover’s embrace..”
“’Gaps’ surprising twists and turns, and particularly its jolting final act, make it feel simultaneously realistic and fantastical.”
“Director Guy Sanville understands how to work with this material. The audience is never sure which brushstroke will reveal the bigger picture, and it is this tension that keeps us leaning forward into Letscher’s precisely crafted dialog.”
an American class by Paul Osborn
JUNE 16, 2016 – AUGUST 20, 2016
Morning’s At Seven, is that rare thing – a gentle comedy about folks just like us. The story, set in a small Midwestern town in 1938, revolves around four sisters, two of whom shake things up when they decide to change their lives while they still have time. Join us for this wonderful comedy which celebrates love and family, written by University of Michigan graduate Paul Osborn.
Directed by Michelle Mountain
CAST:
PRESS QUOTES
“[Director Michelle Mountain] leans into the skills of this veteran ensemble to bring foundational credibility to characters that might otherwise seem too odd to be fully enjoyed.
“All theater companies aspire, with every show they produce, to create that elusive, hypnotic magic that happens when everything – the script, the director, the cast, the tech team, etc. – falls together in exactly the right way; but only rarely does this happen … [Morning’s At Seven is] my hands-down favorite Rose production since “A Stone Carver” in 2012!”
“What makes this work to some extent is actors who can delve deeply and sympathetically into the motivations, pains, and sly humor of these characters…”
– Pulp