McCarter Theatre will present the world premiere of Marina Carr's Phaedra Backwards, directed by Artistic Director Emily Mann, October 18 through November 6. This richly poetic and visually complex adaptation of the Phaedra myth is the product of a McCarter commission. Using a non-linear structure and a variety of non-dialogue techniques (both film and live action), Ms. Carr's Phaedra Backwards is brave in its experimentation with form. To learn more about this production, visit www.mccarter.org/PhaedraBackwards/.
According to McCarter Artistic Director and the director of the production, Emily Mann, "Marina Carr has written an aural and visual poem, telling an ancient story in modern terms - poetic, fractured, and deconstructed. As a director, I lie awake at night dreaming about this play and the visual world it evokes. I am thrilled by the immense power of the piece and excited to introduce our audiences to such innovative work."
The complete cast for Phaedra Backwards will feature Susan Blommaert, Christopher Coucill, Angel Desai, Sean Haberle, Stephanie Roth Haberle, Julienne Hanzelka Kim, Mariann Mayberry, Julio Monge, Randall Newsome, and Jake Silbermann. Members of the Young Ensemble are Alexandra Erickson, Noah Hinsdale, Elsa Rodriguez, and Hope Springer.
The design team includes Rachel Hauck (set design), Anita Yavich (costume design), Jeff Croiter (lighting design), Mark Bennett (original music and sound design), Peter Nigrini (projection design), and Peter Pucci (movement director). The production stage manager is Cheryl Mintz.
McCarter Theatre has been privileged to be the American artist home of Marina Carr, one of Ireland's premiere contemporary playwrights. Born in 1964, Marina was brought up in County Offaly and graduated from Dublin's University College in 1987. Plays for The Abbey Theatre, Dublin include: 16 Possible Glimpses, Marble, Ullaloo, The Mai, Portia Coughlan, By the Bog of Cats, Ariel, and Meat and Salt. Other plays include On Raftery's Hill (Druid/Royal Court), Low in the Dark (Project Arts Centre), Woman and Scarecrow (Royal Court), The Cordelia Dream (Royal Shakespeare Company), and The Giant Blue Hand (The Ark). Awards: The Macaulay Fellowship and the E.M. Forster Prize from the American Academy of Arts and Letters. She was the 1932 fellow at Princeton for 2008. She currently teaches playwriting at Trinity College where she is an honorary professor and lives in Kerry with her husband and four children.
Susan Blommaert (Nanny) has appeared on Broadway in Grease and off-Broadway at The Public Theater, Vineyard Theatre, Circle Rep, The Production Co., Actors Playhouse, and Ubu Rep. Her television credits include The Big C, Boardwalk Empire, The Good Wife, Flight of the Conchords, The Sopranos, Law & Order, The X-Files, and ER.
Christopher Coucill (Inventor) has appeared on Broadway in The Graduate, Annie Get Your Gun, and Kiss Me Kate, and off-Broadway in The Rothschilds, Portraits, Words Divine, and The Fantasticks, among others. He has worked at McCarter Theatre, Passage Theatre, Arena Stage, Dallas Theater Center, The Huntington, Hartford Stage, and the Boston Shakespeare Company, among many others. Chris lives in Princeton with his wife Liz Fillo.
