Plainsong

By Eric Schmiedl
Based upon the novel written by Kent Haruf

Directed by Kent Thompson

Originally produced at Denver Center Theatre Co, Denver, CO.

January 31, 2008 through February 23, 2008

About the Premiere Production: The centerpiece of the Colorado New Play Summit, Plainsong is one of three commissioned world premiere productions to be presented on Denver Center stages for visiting national press, playwrights and theatre professionals this February. This highly-anticipated signature work for the Rocky Mountain West's flagship professional resident theatre, will also be the high point of the company's 29th season.

Set on the high plains of eastern Colorado, this adaptation of the New York Times best-selling novel unflinchingly portrays love and loss in a small ranching community. A school teacher is left alone to care for his vulnerable sons, while two gruff bachelor brothers - knowing little about life beyond the ranch - awkwardly offer a home to a pregnant teenage girl. As their lives intertwine, they survive harshness and cruelty to recreate family and community. Warm, stark, unsentimental, yet poetic, this story taps a deep well of human emotion. A DCTC Commission.

Artistic Statement: At the heart of my artistic vision for the Denver Center Theatre Company is relevance - making our theatre a town hall of ideas and issues and an incubator for the best new American plays. I want us to create theatre that arouses strong feelings, spark new ideas, and provokes discussion, debate, and constructive dialogue among the many diverse communities of the Rocky Mountain region. As the major professional theatre in our region, we seek to ride the wave of contemporary relevance at the same time we re-invigorate the great and enduring stories of our past. This includes digging deep into the culture and history of Denver, Colorado, and the Rocky Mountains.

The world premiere production of Plainsong will address all of those goals. Kent Haruf's novel, a finalist for the National Book Award, is a bracing, humorous, unsentimental but moving evocation of life in a small town on the high plains of Eastern Colorado. Featuring more than 35 characters, the play explores the ever-changing meaning of "family" and "community" in contemporary America. It is an emotionally engaging, thought-provoking work of authenticity and compassion. - From Artistic Director Kent Thompson

Director: Kent Thompson

Set Design: Vicki Smith

Lighting Design: Don Darnutzer

Sound Design: Craig Breitenbach

Costume Design: Susan Mickey