FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 12, 2009
Media Contact: Michael Corby 904.632.3310

Florida State College at Jacksonville DramaWorks presents Robert Brustein’s award-winning adaptation of Pirandello masterpiece “Six Characters in Search of an Author”
Six performances only of classic absurdist masterpiece

What:	“Six Characters in Search of an Author” classic absurdist play
When:	Oct. 29, 2009 at 7:30 p.m. Oct. 30-31 and Nov. 6-7 at 8 p.m. Nov. 8 at 2 p.m.
Where:	Nathan H. Wilson Center for the Arts, Main Stage Florida State College at Jacksonville South Campus 11901 Beach Blvd.
Cost:	$10 general public; $8 students, seniors and military with ID; $5 Florida State College students and employees.

Details: (Notes from Professor Ken McCulough, director): “Six Characters in Search of an Author” is one of the most significant and pivotal plays in Western drama. Written by Italian Nobel Prize-winning playwright Luigi Pirandello in 1921, the play’s first production created a riot. Productions in Rome and London found a more sane reception as critics realized Pirandello had written an ingenious work that eventually marked a line in the theatre between the realism of the late 1800s and the non-realistic experimentation characterizing the early 20th century. “Six Characters” had a profound influence on later playwrights such as Samuel Beckett and Edward Albee, as well as postmodernist philosophers. The play explores the relationships between fiction and non-fiction; between art and life; between the character on the page and the actor who portrays that character onstage. Pirandello makes audiences question assumptions about what is real and what in the theatre is make-believe. “Six Characters” is a play-within-a-play, or a play-within-a-rehearsal-for-another-play. Or perhaps, as some might suggest, a visit to The Twilight Zone.

This translation is an adaptation by Robert Brustein, one of America’s greatest theatre scholars and critics. It was adapted specifically for the American Repertory Theatre in Cambridge, Massachusetts in 1985 and revived in 1996, winning theatre awards and critical acclaim. The cast of “Six Characters in Search of an Author” is comprised of 13 student actors and a number of student technicians from around Northeast Florida. The production is directed by Professor of Theatre, Ken McCulough, with scenery and lighting designed by Director of Theatre and Entertainment Technology Johnny Pettegrew.

Note: Mature themes and language; may not be suitable for children.