BARD THEATER PRESENTS FOUR PERFORMANCES OF MAXIM GORKY’S THE LOWER DEPTHS, OCTOBER 1–3, AT THE RICHARD B. FISHER CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS

ANNANDALE-ON-HUDSON, N.Y.—Bard Theater Program presents four performances of Maxim Gorky’s play The Lower Depths, directed by Johanna McKeon, from Saturday, October 1, through Monday, October 3. Free and open to the public, the programs begin at 7:00 p.m. (with an additional matinee on Sunday at 2:00 p.m.) in LUMA Theater of the Richard B. Fisher Center for the Performing Arts.

“The abolition of serfdom in 1861 threw Russia into an economic and social state of confusion, and also engendered a thriving, radically minded intelligentsia,” says McKeon. “Gorky, born in 1868, came of age in this vital climate, and became a champion spokesman for the causes of the poor. The Lower Depths captures the raw, stubborn spirit of the Russian poor at the turn of the 20th century better than any other play I have ever read. It encapsulates the desperation of poverty, but at the same time evokes the rage and optimism that catapult us into the Great Revolution, which comes 15 years after the play was written."

The cast includes Bard students Jesse Myerson as Kostilyov, Julia Tadlock as Vasilissa, Brittany Parinello as Natasha, Matthew Waldron as Medvedyev, Matthew Wood as Vaska Pepel, Caleb Bark as Kleshch, Sasha Winters as Anna, Arla Berman as Nastya, Rachel Faison as Kvashnya, Myles Curtis as Bubnov, T. Alex Davis as Baron, Max Cramer as Satin, Patrick Stewart as Actor, Adam Goldman as Luka, Markus Paminger as Alyoshka, Barret Wall as Tartar, R. Alex Davis as Policeman, and Julian Cloud and Alex Simons as Vagabonds.

Director Johanna McKeon was this year’s Boris Sagal Directing Fellow at the Williamstown Theatre Festival, where she created a new work based on The Book of Jeremiah with acclaimed playwright Anne Washburn. McKeon has worked at the Ontological Hysteric Theatre, Jose Quintero Theatre, The Pearl, New York Theatre Workshop, Seattle Rep, German Theatre Abroad, the Schaubuehne, and the Maxim Gorki Theatre in East Berlin, among others. She received an M.F.A. degree from the University of Texas at Austin and is the recipient of Drama League and Fulbright grants.

For further information and reservations, call 845-758-7900.
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(9/20/05)

This event was last updated on 12-13-2011

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