Black Box Players to present ‘Women and Wallace’ April 25-May 4

Black Box Players to present ‘Women and Wallace’ April 25-May 4April 22, 2008Patrick Finlonstagepr@syr.edu

The Black Box Players concludes its 22nd season at Syracuse University with Jonathan Marc Sherman’s “Women and Wallace.” The show opens on Friday, April 25, and runs through Sunday, May 4, at the Black Box Theatre, located at Syracuse Stage, 820 E. Genesee St.

When he was six years old, Sherman’s mother committed suicide. He wrote “Women and Wallace” about that event, when he was 18. The play was performed two years later in the Young Playwrights Festival in 1988. Festival founder, composer Stephen Sondheim, noticed it and recommended it to the executive producer of American Playhouse. A film-for-television version of the play aired in January 1990.

“Women and Wallace” centers on an innocent Jewish boy who witnesses his mother kill herself with a kitchen knife and his relationships with women following that event.

The cast consists of nine students from the SU Drama Department in the College of Visual and Performing Arts. The play is directed by junior Joshua Nathan Finn.

Cast:

• Wallace: sophomore Dominique Stasuilis
• Grandmother: sophomore Laura Borgwardt
• Psychiatrist: junior Nicki Calfee
• Nina: junior Jess DiScipio
• Sarah: junior Caroline Kenny
• Victoria: sophomore Maggie McVey
• Lili: senior Jackie Ganz
• Wendy: junior Allison Calhoun
• Mother: senior Tina Edrehi

Designers and crew:

• Scenic Design: sophomore Julia Correia
• Costume Design: senior Jes Zurell
• Lighting Design: sophomore Evan Gannon
• Stage Manager: sophomore Kayliane Burns

Performances:

• Thursday, April 24: 8 p.m., preview
• Friday, April 25: 8 p.m., opening
• Saturday, April 26: 8 p.m.
• Sunday, April 27: 7 p.m.
• Thursday, May 1: 8 p.m.
• Friday, May 2: 8 p.m.
• Saturday, May 3: 2 p.m.
• Sunday, May 4: 8 p.m.

All Black Box Players productions are free. Seating is limited, so audience members should arrive at least a half hour prior to the performance. To make reservations, leave a message on the Black Box Players’ voice mailbox at (315) 443-2102 or send an e-mail to tickets@blackboxplayers.org. (All requests will receive a follow-up phone call from the box office.) For more information, visit http://www.blackboxplayers.org.

The Black Box Players was founded in 1986 and is one of the oldest theatrical student organizations at SU. The group is committed to enhancing the education of SU students by presenting theatrical work produced, created, directed, designed and acted by students. Each year, the group produces four main productions in the Black Box Theatre.