(BOSTON) – From March 7 through April 5, 2014, SpeakEasy Stage Company will proudly present the New England premiere of the acclaimed Off-Broadway drama THE WHALE by
Samuel D. Hunter.
Winner of the 2013 Lucille Lortel Award for Best Play, THE WHALE tells the story of Charlie, a morbidly obese man who hides away in his Northern Idaho apartment quietly eating himself to death in the wake of a personal tragedy. With his health quickly failing, Charlie makes one last desperate attempt to connect with his estranged daughter Ellie, a sharp-tongued and wildly unhappy teen whom he has not seen in 15 years. Also involved in Charlie’s quest for redemption are Liz, Charlie’s enabling caregiver; Elder Thomas, a Mormon on a mission; and Mary, Charlie’s ex-wife.
THE WHALE was written by Samuel D. Hunter, whose play A Bright New Boise had its Boston debut last season. A native of Northern Idaho, Mr. Hunter lives in New York City and holds degrees in playwriting from New York University, The Iowa Playwrights Workshop, and Juilliard. He has received the 2013 Otis Guernsey New Voices Award, a 2012 Whiting Writers Award, the 2011 Sky Cooper Prize, and the 2008-2009 PONY Fellowship. Mr. Hunter is also a member of New Dramatists, an Ensemble Playwright at Victory Gardens, a Core Member of The Playwrights’ Center, a member of Partial Comfort Productions, and is currently a Resident Playwright at Arena Stage. He has three new plays set to debut nationally this season: The Few, A Great Wilderness, and Rest.
Norton Award-winner David R. Gammons will direct THE WHALE for SpeakEasy Stage. Mr. Gammons’ previous directorial efforts for the company include the award-winning productions of Blackbird, Red, and The Motherf**ker with the Hat.
Boston actor, teacher, and playwright John Kuntz will play Charlie, and will share the stage with Josephine Elwood, Georgia Lyman, Maureen Keiller, and Ryan O’Connor.
The design team includes Cristina Todesco (scenic), Gail Astrid Buckley (costumes), Jeff Adelberg (lighting), David Remedios (sound), and Megan F. Kinneen (props). Christine Lomaka is the Production Stage Manager.
THE WHALE will run for five weeks, from March 7 through April 5, in the Roberts Studio Theatre in the Stanford Calderwood Pavilion at the Boston Center for the Arts, 527 Tremont Street in Boston’s South End.
Ticket prices start at $25, with discounts for students, seniors, and persons age 25 and under. For tickets or more information, the public is invited to call 617.933.8600 or visit www.SpeakEasyStage.com.