AMERICAN SON
Written by Christopher Demos-Brown
Directed by David Saint
WHEN: Feb. 7 – 26, 2017; Opening night: Friday, February 10, 2017
WHERE: George Street Playhouse, 9 Livingston Ave., New Brunswick
TICKETS: Individual tickets, starting at $20, and discount ticket packages are also available. Contact the George Street Playhouse Box Office at 732-246-7717 or visit www.GSPonline.org for tickets and information
Jamal’s car has been pulled over in the middle of the night. His mother (Douglas) and her estranged husband (Bolger) rush to the police station seeking answers and their son’s whereabouts. With no explanation forthcoming and emotions building, this highly charged drama twists and turns to an explosive conclusion.
American Son, which earned the 2016 Laurents/Hatcher Foundation Award for a new play by an emerging playwright, had its world premiere at Barrington Stage last summer. Helming George Street Playhouse’s production will be Artistic Director David Saint, celebrating his 20th anniversary at the Playhouse.
“I knew the minute I read this play, I had to bring it to George Street,” said Mr. Saint. “This is an extraordinary page-turner and an important, timely play.”
George Street Playhouse has also planned additional audience engagement opportunities related to American Son. David Dante Troutt, a professor of law at Rutgers University and author who has written extensively legal and political commentary on race, law and equality, will be the featured speaker during a free event – “American Sons: A Conversation” – to be held at the Playhouse on Thursday, January 19, at 7 p.m. Those attending performances of American Son are invited to visit the Playhouse Cabaret before or after the show to see a special exhibit depicting our American sons.
American Son stars George Street favorites John Bolger (GSP’s Outside Mullingar, Twelve Angry Men) and Suzzanne Douglas (GSP’s Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar and Grill, Wit). Mark Junek (Broadway’s The Performers) and Mark Kenneth Smaltz (Law & Order: SVU) complete the cast.
American Son is sponsored by The Karma Foundation and The Blanche and Irving Laurie Foundation.
Grant funding has been provided by the Middlesex County Board of Chosen Freeholders through a grant award from the Middlesex County Cultural and Arts Trust Fund. This program is made possible in part by funds from the New Jersey State Council on the Arts/Department of State, A Partner Agency of the National Endowment for the Arts.
“American Sons: A Conversation” and the special exhibit were made possible by a grant from the New Jersey Council for the Humanities, a state partner of the National Endowment for the Humanities. Any views, findings, conclusions or recommendations expressed in this program do not necessarily represent those of the National Endowment for the Humanities or the New Jersey Council for the Humanities.
About George Street Playhouse
George Street Playhouse is a nationally recognized theatre, presenting an acclaimed mainstage season while providing an artistic home for established and emerging theatre artists. Its leadership consists of Artistic Director David Saint, Resident Artistic Director Michael Mastro and Managing Director Kelly Ryman. Founded in 1974, the Playhouse has been well represented by numerous productions both on and off-Broadway, including the Outer Critics’ Circle Best Musical Award-winner The Toxic Avenger; the Outer Critics Circle, Drama Desk and Drama League nominated production of The Spitfire Grill; and the Broadway hit and Tony and Pulitzer Prize winning play Proof by David Auburn, which was developed at GSP during the 1999 Next Stage Series of new plays. In 2015, George Street Playhouse was represented by two productions in New York with the Broadway production of It Shoulda Been You and Joe DiPietro’s Clever Little Lies, which opened off-Broadway that same year. Both shows received their premieres at the Playhouse. In addition to its mainstage season, GSP’s Touring Educational Theatre features three issue-oriented productions that are seen by more than 40,000 students annually. George Street Playhouse programming is made possible in part by funds from the New Jersey State Council on the Arts/Department of State, a partner agency of the National Endowment for the Arts.
