BARRINGTON STAGE COMPANY’S
ACCLAIMED WORLD PREMIERE PLAY
“AMERICAN SON”
BY CHRISTOPHER DEMOS-BROWN
RETURNS TO BOYD-QUINSON MAINSTAGE
SEPTEMBER 14-25
STARRING TAMARA TUNIE, MICHAEL HAYDEN,
LUKE SMITH, and ANDRE WARE
DIRECTED BY JULIANNE BOYD
WINNER OF THE LAURENTS/HATCHER AWARD
FOR BEST NEW PLAY 2016
(Pittsfield, MA – August 2, 2016) Barrington Stage Company (BSC), the award-winning theatre in Downtown Pittsfield, MA, under the leadership of Artistic Director Julianne Boyd and Managing Director Tristan Wilson, is proud to announce the return of the critically-acclaimed world premiere play, American Son, winner of the prestigious Laurents/Hatcher Award for Best New Play of 2016, from September 14-25 on the Boyd-Quinson Mainstage (30 Union Street, Pittsfield).
Written by award-winning playwright Christopher Demos-Brown and directed by Julianne Boyd, American Son stars Tamara Tunie (“Law & Order: SVU”) as “Kendra Ellis-Connor,” Michael Hayden (Carousel) as “Scott Connor,” Luke Smith (Peter and the Starcatcher) as “Officer Paul Larkin,” and Andre Ware (“House of Cards”) as “Lt. John Stokes.”
This explosive new drama examines our nation’s racial divide through the eyes of an estranged, interracial couple. Over the course of one evening, the couple’s disparate backgrounds collide as they confront an unexpected crisis involving their son, the police, and an abandoned car.
“We had an overwhelming response from audiences and were sold out for many performances of American Son this summer. We want to make this important and relevant play available once again to our Berkshire audiences, especially the young people of Pittsfield. In addition to our evening performances for all theatre-goers, we will be presenting four student matinees, three of which will be devoted entirely to Pittsfield and Taconic High School students. Talkbacks will be held after each matinee. We want to engage students directly in conversations about race and bias,” said Artistic Director Julianne Boyd.
Following the success of the summer’s symposiums on Race, Bias and Culture in Present-Day America, an additional symposium will be held on Sunday, September 18 at 2pm at the Boyd-Quinson Mainstage. The symposium will once again be free. Details will be announced soon.
The design team includes Brian Prather (set design), Scott Pinkney (lighting), Sara Jean Tosetti (costumes), and Brad Berridge (sound). Ryan Winkles is fight choreographer.
American Son is sponsored in part by Roz and Charles Stuzin, who commissioned the play through BSC’s New Works Initiative. American Son is also sponsored in part by Susan and David Lombard.
The performance schedule for American Son is as follows: Wednesday and Thursday at 7pm, Friday and Saturday at 8pm, and Sunday at 5pm. Tickets range $25-$49 and are on sale and available at www.barringtonstageco.org or by calling 413-236-8888 or visiting the MainStage box office (30 Union Street, Pittsfield, MA 01201).
ABOUT BARRINGTON STAGE COMPANY
Barrington Stage Company, a professional award-winning Equity regional theatre located in the heart of the Berkshires, in Pittsfield, MA, was co-founded in 1995 by Artistic Director Julianne Boyd. Barrington Stage’s mission is three-fold: to present top-notch, compelling work; to develop new plays and musicals; and to find fresh, bold ways to bringing new audiences into the theatre—especially young people. Barrington Stage garnered national attention in 2004 when it premiered William Finn and Rachel Sheinkin’s musical hit The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, which later transferred to Broadway, where it won two Tony Awards. In 2009/2010 Barrington Stage produced the world premiere of Mark St. Germain’s Freud’s Last Session, which later moved Off-Broadway and played for two years. St. Germain’s Becoming Dr. Ruth (which premiered at BSC as Dr. Ruth, All the Way in 2012) played Off-Broadway at the Westside Theatre in fall 2013. BSC’s all-time record-breaking musical, On the Town, originally presented in 2013, opened on Broadway in 2014 with BSC as a co-producer, where it was nominated for four Tony Awards including Best Musical Revival. Barrington Stage was named “Best Theatre Company” in Metroland’s Best of the Capital Region 2009-2012, and was voted “Best Live Theatre” by The Berkshire Eagle readers in 2011, 2012, and 2015.
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