Season 26 - The Purple Rose Theatre Company

MORNING AFTER GRACE

a World Premiere by Carey Crim

SEPTEMBER 29, 2016 – DECEMBER 17, 2016

Angus and Abigail meet at a funeral and are surprised to wake up together after a wine-fueled, one-night stand. While Abigail may finally be ready to take a chance on love after her husband left her years before for a younger model, Angus has a few issues of his own to work through first. When neighbor Ollie, a former baseball player with secrets of his own, shows up, confusion and chaos ensue. Can these three find a way to connect with their individual pasts in order to construct a brighter future?

Directed by Guy Sanville

CAST:

Randolph Mantooth
Michelle Mountain
Lynch Travis

Set Designer: Bart Bauer
Costume Designer: Shelby Newport
Properties Designer: Dana White
Lighting Designer: Dana L. White
Sound Designer: Tom Whalen
Stage Manager: Thomas Macias

PRESS QUOTES

“It is a delightful farce without being shallow; it is thought-provoking without being pretentious; it points to social injustices but never puffs up with self-righteous indignation. It makes no demands, but somehow seduces us into caring about what happens to the three 60-years-plus adults whose stories unfold across the intimate Purple Rose stage.”

– EncoreMichigan.com

“Crim has premiered five plays at the Purple Rose and has a booming career on regional and Broadway stages. This is an excellent addition to those successes. She’s a witty, subtle but also deeply sensitive playwright. ”

– MLive.com

SMART LOVE

a World Premiere by Brian Lestcher

JANUARY 19, 2017 – MARCH 4, 2017

A brilliant young man strugglES with his father’s sudden death and the revelation that his parents’ marriage wasn’t everything he was led to believe. The play explores the implications and possible ramifications of artificial intelligence and science in general with humor, heartache and potentially devastating consequences. It probes the age-old question: just because we can do a thing, should we?

Directed by Guy Sanville

CAST:

David Bendena
Sarab Kamoo
Wayne David Parker
Jim Porterfield

Set Designer: Gary Ciarkowski
Properties Designer: Danna Segrest
Costume Designer: Shelby Newport
Lighting Designer: Dana White
Sound Designer: Tom Whalen
Stage Manager: Angie Kane Ferrante

PRESS QUOTES

“…You’ve probably never seen a story quite like this unfold on stage….If you go see it with friends, you’re likely to be talking about the play’s themes long into the night.”

– Encore

“Letscher’s play is leavened by the crisp wit and charm of the characters (even Benjy at times). He also employs music in as a prod to happy memories.”

– Pulp

VINO VERITAS

by Detroit playwright David MacGregor

MARCH 23 2017 – MAY 27, 2017

On Halloween night, two couples prepare to attend an annual costume party. Though the evening begins as usual, familiar traditions unravel when the foursome shares a bottle of South American ceremonial wine made from the skin of blue dart tree frogs. Under the influence of this tribal truth serum, the couples experience an unpredictable night of unbridled honesty that stretches the bounds of their friendship forever.

Directed by Rhiannon Ragland

CAST:

Kate Thomsen
David Bendena
Aphrodite Nikolovski
Alex Leydenfrost

Set Designer: Sarah Pearline
Properties Designer: Danna Segrest
Costume Designer: Katherine Nelson
Lighting Designer: Dana White
Sound Designer: Tom Whalen
Stage Manager: Thomas Macias

PRESS QUOTES

“MacGregor’s sharp wit, his feel for contemporary culture, and his sympathy for the characters he’s created make this an excellent example of the kind of theater the Purple Rose presents so effortlessly.

– Pulp

“Thomsen conveys Lauren’s sorrow and disappointment with real sobs of emotion. We probably know people like her, mourning lost promises and unsure if she wants to continue a mundane existence of cleaning, cooking and tending her children.”

– The Oakland Press

HARVEY

a Pulitzer Prize-winning American classic by Mary Chase

JUNE 15, 2017 – AUGUST 26, 2017

Elwood P. Dowd insists on including his friend Harvey in all of his sister Veta’s social gatherings. Trouble is, Harvey is an invisible six-and-a-half-foot-tall rabbit. To avoid future embarrassment for her family — especially for her daughter Myrtle Mae — Veta decides to have Elwood committed to a sanitarium. When they arrive at the sanitarium, a comedy of errors ensues.

Directed by Guy Sanville

CAST:

David Bendena
Caitlin Cavannaugh
Susan Craves
Ruth Crawford
Rusty Mewha
Hugh Maguire
Richard McWilliams
Lauren Knox
Michelle Mountain
Larry Peters
Tom Whalen

Set Designer: Sarah Pearline
Properties Designer: Danna Segrest
Costume Designer: Suzanne Young
Lighting Designer: Noele Stollmack
Sound Designer: Brad Phillips
Stage Manager: Angie Kane Ferrante

PRESS QUOTES

“The new Purple Rose Theatre production of this Broadway classic reveals a deeper, richer, and more focused Harvey. It’s still funny, still frantic at times, but so much more.”

– Pulp

“McWilliams is a superb Elwood, as easy going as a corn-cob pipe, genuinely interested and engaged with everyone and everything around him.”

– Encore Michigan