The Pillowman
MEADVILLE, Pa. – Oct. 26, 2009 – Allegheny College’s Playshop Theatre will open its 80th season with Martin McDonagh’s thriller “The Pillowman” in the Gladys Mullenix Black Theatre at the Vukovich Center for Communication Arts. The play will be performed Nov. 5-8, with productions at 8 p.m. on Thursday, Friday and Saturday and at 2:30 p.m. on Sunday.
“An Anglo-Irish writer, Martin McDonagh’s work is stunningly theatrical, funny, gruesome and tautly psychological,” said director Mark Cosdon, associate professor of theatre at Allegheny. “‘The Pillowman’ is wildly funny and will take audiences on a rollercoaster of emotions. It’s hardly a ‘light night’ in the theatre. Rather it’s one that’s tension- and action-packed, yet leavened with deeply comic moments. Audiences that like Quentin Tarantino, the Coen Brothers or Troy Duffy will love Martin McDonagh. He neatly mingles horror with hilarity.”
Set in an unnamed totalitarian state, “The Pillowman” follows Katurian, a writer of particularly ghastly short stories who has been arrested in connection with a string of recent murders. The conditions of the murders eerily mirror situations found within his stories. Under harsh interrogation, Katurian unleashes a Kafkaesque series of deceptions that will leave audiences debating questions of authorial responsibility, censorship and the very nature of artistic production.
“It’s a play by Martin McDonagh—there will be blood,” said Cosdon. “I’m eager to introduce Playshop audiences to one of the contemporary theatre’s most gifted, controversial, original and decorated playwrights.”
With a steady stream of recent triumphs in London and New York, McDonagh is author of “The Beauty Queen of Leenane,” “A Skull in Connemara” and “The Lieutenant of Inishmore.” He also wrote and directed the film “In Bruges.”
“The Pillowman” features Samuel Aloysius Moodey (Erie, Pa.) as Katurian, Corey O’Connor (Pittsburgh, Pa.) as Tupolski, Brian Henderson (Wilmington, Del.) as Ariel, and Brett Bacon (Knoxville, Pa.) as Michal. Assistant Professor of Theatre Michael Mehler designed the sets and lights; Sarah Russell designed the costumes. The production’s stage manager is Brittany Lanahan (Solon, Ohio).
“The Pillowman” contains strong language, violence and situations that some may find unsettling. The play is recommended for mature audiences only.
Tickets are $10 for adults and $7.50 for non-Allegheny students, senior citizens and Allegheny employees. Although admission is free for Allegheny students with identification, they are asked to make reservations. For more information or to order tickets, contact the Playshop Theatre box office at (814) 332-3414.
