Because Ben Hill Keeps Calling Me

We interrupt this year in review to tell you about something going on that has Rorschach's finger prints all over it.

While we are not sponsoring the Hatchery Festival we do have numerous company members and alumni working their own unique brand of edge of your seat, magic in small spaces mojo on this thing.
This is their final weekend and I have been a bad friend for not mentioning this before. I would tell them to sue me but I hooked them up with Wee Jane for a sweet article in the Post a couple of weeks back, so most of my guilt is assuaged if not trodden into the earth. So without further eloquence here is a message from one of the producers of this little endeavor who also happens to have directed Rorschach Theatre's smash hit The Beard of Avon, Ms. Jessi Burgess.

Hello friends,

This weekend will be the inaugural Hatchery Festival's final weekend!

We're closing with a workshop production of Samuel Brett William's scathing & hilarious political satire, THE WOODPECKER. It's a fantastic cast paired with a terrific director - you're guaranteed one hell of a night out if you're able to make it!

We are offering two PWYC performances, Saturday and Sunday at 3 p.m. Last weekend our PWYC performances were nearly sold-out, so be sure to arrive early to guarantee a seat! Feel free to distribute/post the email below.

If you're interested in coming but can't make it to a PWYC (or if you want to guarantee yourself a seat), tickets are only $15! Visit www.hatcheryfestival.org or call Box Office Tickets at 800-494-TIXS to reserve now!

xoxo

jessi

THE WOODPECKER

by Samuel Brett Williams

PAY-WHAT-YOU-CAN PERFORMANCES on Saturday 8/19 and Sunday 8/20 at 3 p.m. Just mention Pay-What-You-Can at the door!

August 16 through August 20
7:30pm Wednesday through Sunday, 3:30pm Saturday & Sunday

workshop directed by Grady Weatherford (Director of Lord of the Flies, Family Stories and Accidental Death of an Anarchist) , dramaturged by John Baker, produced by David McKeever (Sound Designer for After the Flood, Accidental Death of an Anarchist and A Clearing in the Woods); featuring Katie Atkinson (A Bright Room Called Day), Frank Britton (After the Flood and Accidental Death of an Anarchist), Richard Pelzman, Andrew Price (The Hairy Ape, Rhinoceros and Family Stories), and Clay Steakley; design by Alex Cooper, David Ghatan (Ubu Roi, Family Stories, Master and Margarita, The Scarlett Letter, The Beard of Avon and The Arabian Night)Susan Mason (Family Stories and The Arabian Night), David McKeever and Jenni Tardiff.

The Woodpecker is a tale of two worlds: the small town of Arkadelphia, Arkansas, and the grim reality of Guantanamo Bay. It's Jimmy's last day before joining the military, he's addicted to glue, his mom is seeing visions in the sweet potato casserole, and his wheelchair-bound dad can kick his ass. He turns to God for answers, and finds . . . an ivory-billed woodpecker. Playwright Samuel Brett Williams explores family, faith, and freedom in a dark comedy that blurs the lines between black and white and right and wrong.