THE DANGERS OF ELECTRIC LIGHTING
A World Première by Ben Clawson
Directed by John Henry Davis
WHEN: Thursday, October 13 – Sunday, November 13. Thursdays at 7:30 PM; Fridays and Saturdays at 8 PM; Sundays at 3 PM; Opening night is Friday, October 21, 8 PM
WHERE: Luna Stage, 555 Valley Road, West Orange
TICKETS: Preview tickets are $20; After opening, Thursdays, Fridays and Sundays are $25; Saturdays are $30. Opening night tickets are $35 and include an after-show reception.
Tickets can be purchased online at www.lunastage.org or by calling 973.395.5551
In the mid 1880s the world is emerging from darkness; the advent of the electric light is about to illuminate the globe. The power to spread this new wonder sits cradled in the hands of one man, Thomas Alva Edison. But when a young Serbian immigrant named Nikola Tesla arrives looking for work, Edison must struggle to keep the future of electricity within his control.
The Dangers of Electric Lighting examines the ambitions and pride that accompany genius, the concessions made in the name of progress and the darkness on the road to light up the world. (Right: James Glossman as Edison discusses the character with director John Henry Davis and playwright Ben Clawson)
SPECIAL OPEN-CAPTIONED PERFORMANCE, Sunday, November 6, 3 PM
TALK-BACK after performances on:
Sunday, October 23, 3 PM, with the creative team
Thursday, October 27, 7:30 PM, with Paul Israel, Managing Editor of The Thomas S. Edison Papers at Rutgers University
Please note: A strobe light and smoke effect will be used during this production.
The Dangers of Electric Lighting was commissioned by Luna Stage in 2009. Upon relocating to West Orange, Artistic Director Jane Mandel felt that a play about Thomas Edison would be a way to engage with the theatre’s new community. She approached Ben Clawson, a writer who has a long history with Luna Stage. She selected Mr. Clawson because of his youth and unique sense of humor. “I didn’t want the piece to be dry and solely scientific. I wanted to explore the humanity, the frailty of these geniuses, to make the men, their accomplishments and their failures, accessible and engaging. I knew Ben was the writer to bring levity and resonance to this story.”
Ben Clawson received his B.F.A. in Theater from Montclair State University, NJ in 2007. He is the author of numerous full length and one act plays that have had professional productions, readings and workshops in New York, New Jersey, Washington D.C. and New Orleans. He has been an evening winner and finalist in the Samuel French Short Play festival, national finalist for the American College Theater Festival's John Cauble One-Act Award, finalist for the Princess Grace Award in playwriting, and recipient of the Kennedy Center's David Mark Cohen award. He is a founding member of the StrangeDog Theater Company.
Other major support provided by: The JP Morgan Chase Foundation, The Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, HANDS, Inc., The New Jersey State Council on the Arts, Department of State/A Partner Agency of the National Endowment for the Arts, The Whitehill Foundation, The Shubert Foundation, The John J. Cali and Rose Cali Foundation, and The Gordon Foundation.
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