“Something has happened but I don’t know what.”

THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF THEATRE & DANCE
PRESENTS

THE DIFFICULTY OF CROSSING A FIELD

BY DAVID LANG & MAC WELLMAN
DIRECTED BY LUKE LEONARD
MUSIC DIRECTED BY LYN KOENNING
APRIL 23-MAY 2, 2010
AT THE B. IDEN PAYNE THEATRE

The University of Texas Department of Theatre and Dance presents THE DIFFICULTY OF CROSSING A FIELD, an inventive blend of opera and theatre from Pulitzer Prize-winning American composer, David Lang, and winner of the Obie Lifetime Achievement Award playwright, Mac Wellman, April 23 – May 2, 2010, at the B. Iden Payne Theatre.

Based on Ambrose Bierce’s 500-word story of the same name, THE DIFFICULTY OF CROSSING A FIELD recounts the mysterious disappearance of a wealthy Alabama planter and slave owner, (Mr. Williamson), who drops from sight one sunny afternoon in the brief moment that his assembled friends, family, and slaves turn away. Because Williamson has no male heir and has left no will, a court must decide his fate in order to divide his estate.

Under the stage direction of Luke Leonard, MFA in Directing candidate, and musical director/conductor Lyn Koenning, Musical Theatre faculty, THE DIFFICULTY OF CROSSING A FIELD will expose audiences to a performance that resists categorization. Hauntingly beautiful choral verses accompanied by a live string quartet and engaging character movement combine with a powerful story to create this drama fit for those with tastes ranging from classical to contemporary.

Mac Welllman is an American playwright, author and poet known for his experimental work in theater. He has received grants from the National Endowment for the Arts, New York Foundation for the Arts, the Rockefeller Foundation, McNight and a Guggenheim Fellowship. In 1990 he received an Obie award for Best New American Play for Bad Penny, Terminal Hip, and Crowbar followed by a second Obie in 1991 for Sincerity Forever. He has received a Lila Wallace-Readers’ Digest Writers Award, and most recently the 2003 Obie award for Lifetime Achievement as well as a grant from the Foundation for Contemporary Arts that same year. Wellman is a co-founder of The Flea Theater in New York City.

David Lang is one of America’s most performed and honored composers with a list of awards including the Rome Prize, the BMW Music-Theater Prize (Munich), and grants from the Guggenheim Foundation, the Foundation for Contemporary Performance Arts, the National Endowment for the Arts, the New York Foundation for the Arts, and the American Academy of Arts and Letters. He is the recipient of the 2008 Pulitzer Prize in Music for The Little Match Girl Passion, commissioned by Carnegie Hall. Lang is co-founder and co-artistic director of New York’s legendary music festival, Bang on a Can.

Luke Leonard has studied with legendary, experimental director, Joseph Chaikin, trained with Anne Bogart’s SITI Company. Recent Directing credits include: Israel Horovitz’s The Indian Wants the Bronx for the “70/70 Horovitz Project,” in Spoleto, Italy, Mac Wellman’s Bad Penny (The Blanton Museum of Art), Beat Voices in conjunction with the exhibition On the Road with the Beats (The Harry Ransom Center), and Stephen Adly Guirgis’ Our Lady of 121st Street (The Lab Theatre). He served as an assistant for the premiere of Robert Wilson’s Sonette, in 2009 at The Berliner Ensemble in Germany. Leonard is a member of Actors’ Equity Association, Screen Actors Guild, Associate Member of the Dramatists Guild, and founder/member of Monk Parrots.

THE DIFFICULTY OF CROSSING A FIELD features Scenic Design by Sonja Rainey (The Nomadic Dream Project, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Susannah), Costume Design by Alison Heryer (The Trojan Women, The Idiot, Big Love), and innovative Lighting Design by Lih-Hwa Yu (The Shape of White, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Summer People, The Shadow Box).

Join us April 23rd for two special events:

A Conversation with Mac Wellman and David Lang
All theatre patrons are invited to attend this intimate pre-performance talk with the creators of The Difficulty of Crossing a Field. Refreshments will be served.

April 23 at 6:45 p.m. at Winship 2.112 Space is limited

Opening Night Reception
Meet with the cast, crew and director of The Difficulty of Crossing a Field while enjoying an assortment of light snacks and desserts. The reception immediately follows the performance and will be held in the Winship Atrium.

For more information on THE DIFFICULTY OF CROSSING A FIELD, please visit
http://www.utexas.edu/finearts/tad/season-tickets/production-archives/20...

The B. Iden Payne Theatre (300 E. 23rd St.) is located in the F. Loren Winship Drama Building on the University of Texas campus. For a map of the campus, please visit http://texasperformingarts.org/visit/maps_directions

CALENDAR LISTING:
April 23 – May 2, 2010 – The University of Texas Department of Theatre &
Dance presents The Difficulty of Crossing a Field at the B. Iden Payne Theatre (300 E.23rd St.), located in the F. Loren Winship Drama Building. A map of the campus:http://texasperformingarts.org/visit/maps_directions. Show times are April 23, 24, 28, 29, 30 & May 1 at 8:00 p.m., April 25 & May 1, 2 at 2:00 p.m.Tickets($20 adults, $17 UT faculty & staff, $15 student) are now on sale at the following authorized ticket outlets, which include the Bass Concert Hall Box Office, most H-E-B stores and all Texas Box Office outlets, online at www.TexasPerformingArts.org, or by calling (512) 477-6060 or (800) 982-BEVO.

For immediate release:
Media Contact:
Gene Bartholomew; 512.471.0632; gbartholomew@TexasPerformingArts.org
Amanda Flores; 512.232.5337; amflores@austin.utexas.edu