FutureFest 2015
Dayton Playhouse
July 17-19
Dayton
- Fri, July 17 at 8pm HAIL THE CONQUERING HERO [Fully staged]
- Sat, July 18 at 10am BOOK OF HOURS [Staged reading]
- Sat, July 18 at 3pm RETURN TO GOODNIGHT [Staged reading]
- Sat, July 18 at 8pm THE CONSUL, THE TRAMP, AND AMERICA’S SWEETHEART [Fully staged]
- Sun, July 19 at 10am BLUE OVER YOU [Staged reading]
- Sun, July 19 at 3pm SMOKE [Fully staged]
HAIL THE CONQUERING HERO by Rich Amada
Directed by Fran Pesch
Friday, July 17 at 8pm
[Full staging] Tom Azuric is a radio humorist who has toiled for years in various stations around the country until he has finally made it to the biggest U.S. radio market of them all – New York City. However, judging from his demeanor, his family can sense that something is terribly wrong. Despite his professional success, Tom, it seems, has failed to fulfill a promise to his deceased mother, leaving him feeling terribly inadequate. That feeling, coupled with the pressure his boss is putting on him to engage in some sleazy politics, is pushing Tom to the breaking point.
Cast: J. Gary Thompson as Tom Azuric, Terry Larson as Ginny Azuric, Cydnie Hampton as Kimberly Azuric, Cynthia Karns as Marilyn Froling, K. L. Storer as Wally Froling, Shawn Hooks as Bud Peel, Kathleen Durig as Mom & Annie Pesch as Sylvia Sanchez
BOOK OF HOURS – by Thomas Klocke
Directed by Brennan Paulin
Saturday, July 18 at 10am
[Staged reading] Margins, decorative marginalia, marginalized people. Every connotation of the word is broached when one 14th century Manuscript Illuminator stands his ground for artistic integrity against the heavy handed censorship of the Church which commissioned the handmade BOOK OF HOURS devotional. To tell the story, the play crosses centuries and oceans, from the Biblical times of Abraham and his sons to contemporary gay street hustlers just trying to survive in the margins of an uncaring city.
Cast: William Scarborough as Zak (Isaac), Joe Meyer as Fugitive Green, Richard Young as Illuminator, Amy Taint as Angel, Chuck Larkowski as International Style & Matthew Smith as Izzie (Ishmael)
RETURN TO GOODNIGHT by Jared Robert Strange
Directed by Debra Kent
Saturday, July 18 at 3pm
[Staged reading] Irene Deckard has lost her father, but she may also lose her mind fulfilling his final wishes, which involve bringing his remains from Montana all the way down to Goodnight, Texas, and in the company of her gay ex-husband Casper, no less. It’s all part of a promise they made to her father a long time ago, a promise that will bring them together for the first time in thirty years to face old demons, discover new truths, and maybe – just maybe – rekindle their long-dead friendship.
Cast: Cheryl Mellen as Irene Deckard & Rick Flynn as Casper Kelly
THE CONSUL, THE TRAMP, AND AMERICA’S SWEETHEART by John Morogiello
Directed by Jim Lockwood
Saturday, July 18 at 8pm
[Full staging] On the eve of World War II, Georg Gyssling, the nazi consul to Hollywood, confronts Mary Pickford, the silent film star and co-founder of United Artists, to stop production on Charlie Chaplin’s controversial first talkie, The Great Dictator. Gyssling succeeds until war is declared and the movie is needed to buck up the allies.
Cast: Maggie Carroll as Miss Hollombe, David Hallowren as Georg Gyssling, Debra Strauss as Mary Pickford & Matthew Lindsay as Charlie Chaplin
BLUE OVER YOU by Dan Noonan
Directed by Saul Caplan
Sunday, July 19 at 10am
[Staged reading] Where’s Mitzi? What happened to Mitzi?! Francis, an enchanting high school drama teacher, comes home to discover that his wife, Mitzi, is missing. Did she leave because of his infantile behavior, has she run off with the hunky maintenance man, or is something much darker at work here? Join this song-and-dance man as he tries to find Mitzi and woo her back.
Cast: Robb Willoughby as Francis
SMOKE by Gloria Bond Clunie
Directed by Geoff Burkman
Sunday, July 19 at 3pm
[Full staging] In the drama SMOKE, country store owner Ora Rakestraw wants no parts of the mysterious Wallace Johnson when he descends upon her tiny southern town to organize tobacco workers. It’s the 1960’s— and though Kennedy orders the Surgeon General to investigate smoking— tobacco is king in Carolina. The Marlboro Man, Lucky Strikes, and Camels are Kool because they put food on the table for her customers. As promises are made and secrets revealed, love collides with small town politics in one hot, tumultuous summer!
Cast: Megan Cooper as Ora Rakestraw, Ray Geiger as Wallace Johnson, Dodie Lockwood as Mama “Liz” Sommerville & Mike Rousculp as Sheriff Orville Hayes
Behind the Curtain Cincinnati 