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Press Release: San Jose Stage Co. presents Pulitzer Prize-winning DISGRACED
"Terrific, turbulent, with fresh currents of dramatic electricity. Disgraced comes roaring to life on Broadway." -The New York Times
CONTACT: Clinton Williams / 408-283-7142 or cwilliams@thestage.org
2013 Pulitzer Prize-Winning Drama
DISGRACED
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By Ayad Akhtar
Directed by William Ontiveros
Find out what's happening in Campbellfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
February 1 – 26, 2017
Opening Night: Saturday February 4, 2017
San Jose, CA (January 13, 2017) San Jose Stage Company presents Pulitzer Prize winning Drama Disgraced as part of its culturally diverse 34th season.
EXPLOSIVE EXAMINATION OF CULTURAL IDENTITY
Can anyone ever truly escape their past? Amir Kapoor is
living the American Dream and quickly climbing the corporate ladder at
his powerful Manhattan law firm. But when Amir and his wife Emily, an
artist inspired by Islamic painting, host a dinner party for friends and
colleagues, the pleasant evening quickly erupts into a volatile
cultural debate over race, religion, and class in the modern world. This
combustible drama is the “emotionally shattering” (Newsday) tale of the
stories we tell our friends, the secrets we tell our lovers, and the
lies we tell ourselves to find our place in the American Dream.
Fearlessly examining the state of Islamic faith combined
with the American Ideal, Ayad Akhtar probes at faith mixed with cultural
assimilation in the modern world. Disgraced
has become the most produced play in contemporary theatre. This
Pulitzer Prize-winning and Tony-nominated play provokes audiences with
powerful societal commentary.
About the Playwright
Ayad Akhtar is an OBIE & Pulitzer Prize winning
playwright best known for his plays depicting the American-Muslim
experience. Listed as the most produced playwright for the 2015/16
season by American Theatre Magazine; his work explores the human
condition through the eyes of multicultural characters. His plays The
Who & The What and The Invisible Hand received Off-Broadway runs and
are currently being produced around the world. As a screenwriter, he
was nominated for an Independent Spirit Award for Best Screenplay for
The War Within. He has received fellowships from MacDowell, Djerassi,
the Sundance Institute, Ucross, and Yaddo, where he serves as a Board
Director. Akhtar is currently the Resident Playwright with Arena Stage
at the Mead Center for American Theater.
About the Director
William Ontiveros balances artistry and social relevancy
to create powerful theater. As a co-founder of Pioneer Square Theatre
in Seattle and associate artistic director at the Seattle Group Theatre
in the early 90s, Bill introduced commercially successful, long-running
productions (Angry Housewives,ER Emergency Room). Bill championed
emerging playwrights and staged works with diversity of cast and
viewpoint, including the first local staging of Larry Kramer's The
Normal Heart.
Not seen on Northwest stages for 20 years, Bill returned
in late 2014 with a complex, nuanced performance as Imam Saleem in Ayad
Akhtar's The Invisible Hand at ACT - a role he reprised at Portland's
Artists Repertory Theatre five months later. He appeared recently at
Seattle Repertory Theatre in a May 2016 staged reading of Oubliettes, a
new play by Seattle playwright Yussef El Guindi.
Quotes
"Terrific, turbulent, with fresh currents of dramatic electricity. Disgraced comes roaring to life on Broadway." -The New York Times
"...breathtaking, raw and blistering" -Associated Press
“A sparkling and combustible contemporary drama” -Bloomberg News
Cast Includes:
Salim Razawi, Allison F. Rich*, Damien Seperi, Kathryn Smith-McGlynn* Jonathan Rhys Williams*
*Actors appear courtesy of Actors’ Equity Association.
Creative Staff:
William Ontiveros Director
Guilio Cesare Perrone Scenic Design
Abra Berman Costume Design
Maurice Vercoutere Light Design
Steve Schoenbeck Sound Design
Jamie D. Mann Stage Manager*
FOR CALENDARS:
WHAT: DISGRACED
2013 Pulitzer Prize for Drama
By Ayad Akhtar
Directed by William Ontiveros
SHOWS: Previews: February 1 @ 7:30 pm / November 2 @ 7:30 pm/
February 3 @ 8:00 pm
Opening: February 4 @ 8:00 pm
Run Dates: February 4 - February 26
Wednesday & Thursday @ 7:30 pm
Friday & Saturday @ 8:00 pm
Sunday @ 2:00 pm
WHERE: 490 S 1st St, San Jose, CA 95113
TICKETS: For tickets ($30-$65) or more information, the public may contact San Jose Stage Company box office at 408-283-7142, or www.thestage.org
