Ghost Light Theater opens its 2018 season with the Pulitzer nominated True West by Sam Shepard. The play runs from April 13th to April 21st at Gateway City Arts Center in Holyoke, MA.
Set in the kitchen of their mother's home 40 miles east of Los Angeles, True West is a character study that examines the relationship between Austin, a screenwriter, and his older brother Lee. Austin is house-sitting while their mother is in Alaska, and there he is confronted by his brother, who proceeds to bully his way into staying at the house and using Austin's car. In addition, the screenplay which Austin is pitching to his connection in Hollywood somehow gets taken over by the pushy con-man tactics of Lee, and the brothers find themselves forced to cooperate in the creation of a story that will make or break both their lives. In the process, the conflict between the brothers creates a heated situation in which their roles as successful family man and nomadic drifter are somehow reversed, and each man finds himself admitting that he had somehow always wished he were in the other's shoes.
"I wanted to write a play about double nature, one that wouldn't be symbolic or metaphorical or any of that stuff. I just wanted to give a taste of what it feels like to be two-sided. It's a real thing, double nature. I think we're split in a much more devastating way than psychology can ever reveal. It's not so cute. Not some little thing we can get over. It's something we've got to live with." - Sam Shepard
The play is directed by Megan Healey with technical direction by Kevin Tracy and Ana Steiner.
Lee and Austin will be played by Greg Mahoney and Joshua Mason, Ghost Light alums. They will be swapping roles over the two weekends of performances.
Saul Kimmer will be played by Dominic Baird
Mom will be played by Sue Boyle Dziura