Widows
Hip Pocket Theatre, Ft. Worth, TX
Widows
is an adaptation of Ariel Dorfman's novel about village widows in an unidentified,
war-torn country, who claim the bodies of political victims that wash up in
the local river. The play follows the determination of the women to defy the
local military officials in taking possession of the bodies and giving them
a respectful burial.
Playwright,
novelist, and essayist Ariel Dorfman is a Chilean citizen who has been in exile
since 1973. His plays include Death and the Maiden, winner of London's
Olivier Award for Best Play and later filmed by Roman Polanski; Widows
(a different version in collaboration with Tony Kushner), which opened in 1991
at the Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles; and Reader, which is opening
at Edinburgh's Taverse Theater with Ian Brown directing Clive Merrison. It has
just opened in Copenhagen and in Bonn, and is scheduled to tour in 10 other
countries. Meanwhile, Widows is receiving an English premiere and tour,
and six other foreign productions are prepared for 1997-98. Dorfman is a Distinguished
Research Professor of Literature and Latin American Studies at Duke University.
He contributes regularly to The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times,
The Nation, and The Village Voice. He has been a human rights
activist for many years. His works have been translated into more than 30 languages.
Director: Susan
Chapek
Set Designer: Wenhai Ma
Lighting Designer: Dennis Runge
Composer: Bob Price
Costume Designer: Diane Simons
Property Master and Scenic Artist: Mark Walker
Featured Performers: Susan Neely, Suzanne Turner, Zelmer Phillips, Costa
Caglage, Maurice Taylor, Jude Johnson, Douglas Balentine, Jerry Betsill, Pat
Dias, Miriam Angressi, Dick Harris, and Libby Villari
Running Dates: July 22-August 7, 1988
