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Furman Theatre Department announces lineup for 2022-2023

Furman Department of Theatre presents ‘Never Swim Alone.’

Last updated September 12, 2022

By News administrator

The Furman University Theatre Arts Department has announced its lineup of productions for the 2022-2023 academic year. Shows take place in The Playhouse on campus and begin at 7:30 p.m. except for Sunday matinees, which take place at 2 p.m. Season passes are $25, which includes four flex tickets. General admission is $15 and student tickets are $5. The public is invited to attend.

Poster for Never Swim Alone

“Never Swim Alone” opens Sept. 27 in The Playhouse.

“Never Swim Alone”
By Daniel MacIvor
7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 27-Saturday, Oct. 1
2 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 2
Directed by Jay Oney

“Never Swim Alone” is a swift, funny satire about two alpha males and their ruthless competition for the title of “Top Dog.” The play is structured as a surreal egotistic boxing match: Frank and Bill, two guys in dark suits and bad ties, square off in a 13-round battle royale of vicious undermining and one-upmanship refereed by a seemingly anonymous woman.

“But as their cage match grows increasingly bitter, a tragic story emerges implicating all three characters. We learn that the woman’s role as referee is the result of a childhood swimming race between her, Frank and Bill. It was a playful competition with tragic consequences that gives the play its raw emotional core.” – John Del Signore, The Gothamist

“Consider Me”
7:30 p.m. Friday, Oct. 21-Saturday, Oct. 22
Written and performed by Wesley Hudson
Special guest artist presentation created with Michael Cherry and Guillermo Jemmott Jr.

This show places the viewer in the waiting room of an insurance company with our main character, Wesley Whitmire, as he anxiously awaits to be called back for a job he so desperately needs. Wesley tells (and sings) his story to the audience of how he got to this point; from the height of graduating from a prestigious school with an excellent degree to needing this job he is clearly overqualified for and everything in between.

“Clever Little Lies”
By Joe DiPietro
7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 15-Saturday, Nov. 19
2 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 20
Directed by Rhett Bryson

“Clever Little Lies” is a story of long-term love and marriage…for better…and for worse. A mother always knows when something’s up. Bill Jr. is distracted, under pressure and off his game. Will a surprising evening with his parents send him further off-kilter? Secrets are exposed and clever little lies are crafted when a confidence shared between father and son escalates into an unexpected revelation that could change everything.

Joe DiPietro is an American playwright, lyricist and author. He is best known for the Tony Award-winning musical “Memphis,” for which he won the Tony Awards for Best Book of a Musical and Best Original Score.

“Project Dawn”
By Karen Hartman
7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 14-Saturday, Feb. 18
2 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 19
Directed by Guest Artist Ahsha M. Daniels

This captivating story of a real-life courtroom with a mission to rehabilitate women in the sex trade is revolutionary and shockingly intimate. In “Project Dawn,” audiences get an inside look at court staff and program participants who walk the line between activism and absorption. Issues that can oftentimes feel distant are brought right to your doorstep in a revealing and caring way.

“Powerful, heart-rending, often slyly funny, and serendipitously timely during a national conversation over drug abuse and sex trafficking.” – Broadway World

“Our Tempest” (an updated show replacing originally scheduled “Put Yourself Out There”)
By Jake Brasch in partnership with The Farm Theater College Collaboration Project and sponsored in part by Furman Humanities Center
7:30 p.m. Tuesday, April 11 – Friday, April, 14
2 p.m. Saturday, April 15, and Sunday, April 16
Directed by Caroline Jane Davis

“Our Tempest” follows a group of theatre majors into the woods for an immersive devised theatre workshop about the climate crisis, through the lens of Shakespeare’s “The Tempest.” The experience – and their guest artist – is not at all what they were expecting. An exploration of performative activism, contemporary queerness, and the necessity of community, “Our Tempest” is an ensemble show that asks important questions about our collective future with humor and heart.

“In a mutually beneficial relationship, playwrights develop new work and students get involved in the process of making a new play” (American Theatre magazine). Students and faculty met in August 2022 in NYC to begin the collaboration with professionals from The Farm Theater. This year’s cycle consists of work with three different playwrights on three different plays at three different phases in development. Throughout the season, each university (Oklahoma City University, Centre College, and Furman) produces a play and hosts a playwright independently, culminating with a professional workshop series back in NYC in June 2023.

Individual tickets go on sale two weeks prior to opening night. For more information, contact the box office at 864-294-2125, or visit Furman.edu/theatrearts.

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