Wednesday, August 30, 2017
For: IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Media Contact: Kirsten Park
801-581-6270
kirsten.park@ptc.utah.edu
PIONEER THEATRE COMPANY PRESENTS
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time
A play by Simon Stephens, based on the novel by Mark Haddon
Salt Lake City – The Pioneer Theatre Company production of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time will begin performances on September 15, 2017 and continue through September 30, 2017. The Tony Award-winning play by Simon Stephens is adapted from Mark Haddon’s best-selling novel and directed by PTC Artistic Director Karen Azenberg.
In this highly original play, fifteen-year-old Christopher has an extraordinary brain and is exceptional at maths, but he is ill-equipped to interpret everyday life. When he falls under suspicion for killing his neighbor’s dog, he sets out to find the guilty party. His determination to solve the mystery sends him on a journey of discovery, one that has us rooting for him at every turn.
Curious Incident… was the first book selected in Salt Lake City’s citywide book club in 2005.
The New York Times said this play is “…one of the most fully immersive works ever to wallop Broadway. Be prepared to have all your emotional and sensory buttons pushed, including a few you may have not known existed.”
TIME Magazine said this is “… a play that works on every level – crowd-pleasing, eye-opening, life-affirming and unmissable.”
HARRISON BRYAN leads the cast in the role of Christopher. He is joined by Equity actors JOHN FORD-DUNKER, STEPHANIE HOWELL, MICHAEL KEYLOUN, MELISSA MILLER, TOM O’KEEFE, MICHAEL RUDKO and TIA SPEROS. SAM BRUCE and SARAH SHIPPOBOTHAM complete the ensemble.
BRYAN is making his PTC debut in the role of Christopher. He is a New York-based actor with regional and Off-Broadway credits (Seymour in Little Shop of Horrors, Peter in Peter and the Starcatcher, Zangara in Assassins).
O’KEEFE plays Christopher’s father, Ed. He returns to PTC after 2015’s Outside Mullingar. In addition, he has appeared Off-Broadway in Vanity Fair and Tamburlain the Great, in Bedlam Theatre’s productions of Twelfth Night, Hamlet, Outside Mullingar, and more.
Christopher’s mother Judy is played by local Equity actor STEPHANIE HOWELL. She returns to PTC after last season’s Play-by-Play reading of The Ice Front, and previous PTC productions One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, Big River, A Funny Thing …Forum and South Pacific. She has also performed with Plan-B Theatre and Salt Lake Acting Company.
The role of Christopher’s trusted teacher Siobhan is played by MELISSA MILLER, in her PTC debut. Miller played opposite F. Murray Abraham in TFANA’s national tour of The Merchant of Venice. She debuted on Broadway in Tartuffe.
Performing as various characters in the ensemble are SAM BRUCE, JOHN FORD-DUNKER, MICHAEL KEYLOUN, MICHAEL RUDKO, SARAH SHIPPOBOTHAM and TIA SPEROS. Ford-Dunker appeared in last season’s King Charles III. Keyloun returns after roles in The Producers and Is He Dead? Rudko debuts at PTC; his Broadway work includes The Audience, Romeo & Juliet, Mary Stuart, The Best Man, Timons of Athens and Serious Money. Speros was last seen at PTC in Fiddler on the Roof and In Something’s Afoot. Shippobotham appeared in The Crucible and King Charles III. Bruce, a native New Yorker, enjoys her PTC debut.
PTC Artistic Director KAREN AZENBERG directs this production. She directed and choreographed last year’s Regional Premiere of Sting’s The Last Ship as well as Oliver! Other credits include National Tours of Carousel and Brigadoon, West Side Story (over 15 productions), and productions at Indiana Rep., Geva Theatre Center, Alabama Shakespeare Festival, Goodspeed, and last season Mary Poppins at the Utah Shakespeare Festival. This is her sixth season as Artistic Director of PTC.
Scenic design is by DANIEL MEEKER. At PTC, Meeker has designed sets for Women in Jeopardy, Outside Mullingar and The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee. Based in Portland, OR, credits include set design for The People’s Republic of Portland and Red (Drammy Award), the lighting for Twist Your Dickens, and the set and lighting for Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike, The Typographer’s Dream, LIZZIE (Drammy Award for Best Lighting), The Last Five Years, Bo-Nita, and The Mountaintop.
Costume Designer K.L. ALBERTS is in his 30th year designing for PTC. He designed PTC’s Of Mice and Men, Proof, the comedies Private Lives and Scapino! and many musicals including Les Misèrables (both PTC productions), The Producers, Elf-The Musical and The Music Man.
Lighting design is by guest designer PAUL MILLER. His PTC credits include The Count of Monte Cristo, In the Heights, Much Ado About Nothing, A Few Good Men and I Hate Hamlet. His Broadway credits include Amazing Grace, The Illusionists, Legally Blonde, Freshly Squeezed and Laughing Room Only.
Former PTC Resident Sound Designer JOE PAYNE, returns as a guest designer for this production. Payne has sound-designed 70 PTC productions including 42nd Street, Our Town, 12 Angry Men and A Chorus Line, and was sound designer for the Utah Shakespeare Festival for 17 years. Payne is currently an Associate Professor at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville.
Hair and makeup design is by PTC resident designer AMANDA FRENCH; CHRISTOPHER DU VAL is the production’s fight choreographer. ALEXANDRA HARBOLD is dramaturg for this production.
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PUBLICITY PHOTO SHOOT: There will be two on-site Publicity Photo Shoots on Thursday, August 31, 2017 at 10:00 a.m. and Tuesday, September 5, 2017, time to be announced. Please call 801-581-6270 to RSVP.
MEDIA PHOTOS AVAILABLE TO DOWNLOAD: High-resolution color photos of this production will be available for media use on the PTC website beginning Wednesday, September 6, 2017 after 3:00 p.m. Go directly to
http://www.pioneertheatre.org/press-room/media-photos/ to view the photos.
TV CAMERA FILMING: Filming a short segment of the production during preview or opening nights for press use can be arranged. Call 801-581-6270.
INTERVIEWS: Interviews with the cast and artistic staff are available. Call 801-581-6270.
WHO:
Pioneer Theatre Company
WHAT:
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time
A play by Simon Stephens based on the novel by Mark Haddon.
Contains strong language.
WHEN:
September 15 – 30, 2017
TIMES:
Mondays – Thursdays, 7:00 p.m.
Fridays and Saturdays, 7:30 p.m.
Saturday matinees, 2:00 p.m.
WHERE:
Simmons Pioneer Memorial Theatre
300 South 1400 East, Salt Lake City
PRICES:
$25 – $44 in advance, and $5 more when purchased on the day of the show
Kids in grades K-12 are half-price on Mondays and Tuesdays
MORE INFO:
Box Office: 801-581-6961
Open 10:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m., Mon – Fri
www.pioneertheatre.org
CAST:
SAM BRUCE………………………..Voice Five
HARRISON BRYAN*…………………Christopher
JOHN FORD-DUNKER*……………..Voice Three
STEPHANIE HOWELL*……………..Judy
MICHAEL KEYLOUN*……………….Voice Two
MELISSA MILLER*…………………. Siobhan
TOM O’KEEFE*……………………..Ed
MICHAEL RUDKO*………………….Voice Four
SARAH SHIPPOBOTHAM……………Voice One
TIA SPEROS*……………………….Voice Six
ARTISTIC TEAM:
Director……………………………………………. KAREN AZENBERG
Scenic Designer……………………………………..DANIEL MEEKER
Costume Designer…………………………………..K.L. ALBERTS
Lighting Designer……………………………………PAUL MILLER
Sound Designer………………………………………JOE PAYNE
Hair and Makeup Designer…………………………..AMANDA FRENCH
Fight Choreographer………………………………..CHRISTOPHER DU VAL*
Dramaturg…………………………………………..ALEXANDRA HARBOLD
Production Stage Manager…………………………..MARY P. COSTELLO*
* Denotes member of Actors’ Equity Association.