LateNight @ the Footlight Presents Pulitzer Prize Winning Drama Topdog/Underdog In Time For 2011 MOJA Arts Festival
September 12, 2011
CHARLESTON, SC – September 22 – October 1, 2011 – As the second production of the LateNight @ The Footlight series, the Footlight Players are pleased to present the Holy City’s premier of Suzan-Lori Parks’ Pulitzer Prize winning play Topdog/Underdog; the play is about two African-American brothers struggling to survive.
Set in a shabby apartment, off the mean streets of Brooklyn, Parks’ savage comedy uses wit, raw dialogue, and poetry to explore the volatile relationship between the two fiercely competitive siblings.
Lincoln and Booth, so named as a dark joke by their father, are haunted by the past and their obsession with the street con Three Card Monte. Lincoln, an ex-card shark is attempting to stay on the straight and narrow by working a demoralizing, yet honest job, impersonating Abraham Lincoln. While his brother Booth—a petty thief—dreams of becoming the slick conman his brother used to be.
Written by Suzan-Lori Parks, Topdog/Underdog, premiered on Broadway in April 2002 at The Ambassador Theatre. The original cast starred Jeffrey Wright and Don Cheadle (later replaced by Mos Def). The production earned a number awards including Tony Awards for Best Play and Best Actor; its most notable award, however, is it’s 2002 Pulitzer Prize for Drama making Suzan-Lori Parks the first African-American woman to win the Pulitzer Prize.
Local actor, director and playwright Michael Smallwood directs the Players’ production and the two member cast included Tremaine Rapp and Jerod Frazier.
Performances of Topdog/Underdog are September 22, 23, 24, 29, 30 and October 1 at 9 p.m. Tickets for the Late Night @ The Footlight series are $10 on Thursdays and $15 for Friday and Saturday shows. All seating is General Admission. To purchase tickets, contact the Footlight Players box office at (843) 722.4487 or visit www.FootlightPlayers.net and reserve your tickets online.
About the Director
Michael Smallwood is an actor, playwright, and director. A graduate of the College of Charleston with a degree in Theater, Smallwood is a two time Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival award winner for his original plays TALK and The Mind’s I. He recently worked as an apprentice at Horizon Theater Company in Atlanta, GA, where he starred in The Last Days of Judas Iscariot as Judas and wrote Fall Into Sunlight, which made its world premiere in January 2010.
About LateNight @ The Footlight
In its sixth season, LateNight @ The Footlight offers audiences edgy and contemporary productions in a relaxing and sociable environment at a low cost. It’s perfect for those new to theatre, as well as, seasoned theatre fans. Put on your favorite pair of jeans and experience theatre from a laid back, fun perspective. Gather up your friends and grab a bucket of beer at concessions—LateNight theatre is cheaper than going to a movie! If it’s not LateNight @ The Footlight, it’s just not theatre.
Footlight Players theatre is the longest continuously performing arts group of any kind, in Charleston, has been producing performances since 1931. Presenting on average six Main Stage and three Late Night productions annually, Footlight Players is notably one of the leading community theatres in the South and is focused on providing quality entertainment for and by the community. For more information on Footlight Players, Inc. call (843) 722.7521 or visit FootLightPlayers.net
