By Adam Hetrick
13 Aug 2009
The acclaimed L.A. Actors' Gang production of Daniel Berrigan's The
Trial of the Catonsville Nine will make a limited Los Angeles return
prior to a national tour.
After an extended run at the Ivy Substation late last winter, the
true-life drama will play four performances at the Actors' Gang (Aug.
27-30) before playing the University of Richmond (Sept. 8-9); the
Reston VA Community Center CenterStage (Sept. 12); University of
Maryland (Sept. 17-17); and Australia's Brisbane Festival (Sept. 24-27).
The final Aug. 30 performance in Los Angeles will serve as a gala
fundraiser that includes a post-show celebration with Oscar winner
and Actors' Gang co-founder Tim Robbins and United Talent Agency.
The Trial of the Catonsville Nine is based on a 1968 incident that
involved "two Catholic priests, and seven Catholic activists
including a nurse, a nun, an artist and four others [who] all walked
into the selective service office Local Board 33, located in the
Knights of Columbus building in Catonsville, Maryland, grabbed
hundreds of 1-A draft files and burned them with homemade napalm in
protest against U.S. involvement in Vietnam. The publicity and news
coverage from the ensuing trial was instrumental in galvanizing the
American anti-war movement," according to press notes.
Jon Kellam directs a cast that features Andrew E. Wheeler as Daniel
Berrigan, Scott Harris as Philip Berrigan, Chris Schultz as Thomas
Lewis, Colin Golden as David Darst, Corey G. Lovett as George Mische,
Patti Tippo as Marjorie Melville, George Ketsios as Thomas Melville,
Paige Lindsey White as Mary Moylan, Ethan Kogan as John Hogan and
Adele Robbins as the Judge.
"Is there a difference between breaking the law and committing a
crime?" asks director Jon Kellam in a statement. "Civil disobedience
is an inherently American and truly patriotic act. The Catonsville
Nine were sentenced to a collective 18-20 years in prison for a crime
that caused a little more than $100 in damage. We claim to be a world
leader of moral ideals and human rights, but in what ways have we
allowed economic and corporate interests to overshadow that
responsibility? These are some of the compelling questions that this
play inspires."
The production has set design by Sibyl Wickersheimer, lighting design
by Jacqueline Reid, costume design by Susan Dalian and sound design
by David Robbins.
Tickets are available by phoning (310) 838-4264 or by visiting TheActorsGang.
.
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