They say you can’t take it with you. Or can you?
Who: PlayMakers Repertory Company
What: “Everybody” by Branden Jacobs-Jenkins. Directed by Orlando Pabotoy.
When: January 22 to February 9, 2020; Opening Night & Press Opening Saturday, January 25, 7:30 p.m.
Where: PlayMakers Repertory Company, 120 Country Club Road, Chapel Hill, NC
Tickets: Start at $15; Students tickets start at $10
(Chapel Hill, NC, January 9, 2020) PlayMakers Repertory Company proudly presents “Everybody,” the award-winning, Pulitzer Prize finalist comedy that asks us to consider: What is a life well lived? Directed by Orlando Pabotoy in his PlayMakers debut, the production runs from January 22 to February 9, 2020.
What do you do when Death comes knocking to tell you that your time is up? Everybody, who doesn’t want to meet Death alone, starts looking for people and things to take into the afterlife. Along this existential, hilarious, and life-affirming journey, Everybody meets Friendship, Strength, Kinship, Beauty, Cousin, Mind, Stuff, Senses, and Love. Who or what will Everybody be able to take to the grave? Adding to the play’s theatrical magic, each night, five brave actors will have their characters chosen by lottery, as they fight to cheat Death.
“I’ve been eager to share with Triangle audiences the work of the brilliant Branden Jacobs-Jenkins,” said PlayMakers’ Producing Artistic Director Vivienne Benesch. “His whimsical, contemporary take on the classic morality play asks us to take stock of what really matters in life—what we have, what we stand for, and with whom we surround ourselves. With humor and humility, Branden deftly reminds us that on the other side of the ever-present, seemingly random nature of Death and loss is the equally powerful possibility for Love. In the hands of director Orlando Pabotoy and PlayMakers’ resident scenic sorceress McKay Coble, ‘Everybody’ is a true feast for the senses, and the talent and dedication of our acting company is marvelously showcased by the nightly lottery that will also give our audiences a dynamic, unique experience each night. I hope people will come back more than once!”
“I’m proud to have worn many hats in my theatre career—playwright, actor, choreographer, and teacher—but one of the things I really love about directing is the opportunity to create a whole world, that can have a rhythm and poetry that is familiar to the audience, or can transport them to a new place,” said director Orlando Pabotoy. “‘Everybody’ is one of those plays that feels familiar, because the story exists in all cultures in one form or another, but in this contemporary setting it feels fresh and relatable, and I find that so important to keeping both the art of theatre, and classic stories, alive for new generations.”
“Everybody” features David Adamson, Anthony August, Zuzu Bersley, Emily Bosco, Daryl Ray Carliles, April Mae Davis, Kathryn Hunter-Williams, Maddie Johnson, Trevor Johnson, Dan Toot, and Omolade Wey.
The Creative Team of “Everybody” includes: Orlando Pabotoy (Director; wrote and acted in “Sesar” at Ma-Yi Theatre Company, Founding Artistic Director of The Artigiani Troup), McKay Coble (Scenic Designer & Costume Designer; “Leaving Eden,” “My Fair Lady”), Cha See (Lighting Designer; “One in Two” at Signature Theatre), Fabian Obispo (Sound Designer; “The Tempest”), Tia James (Vocal Coach; “Ragtime”), Tracy Bersley (Choreographer; “She Loves Me”), Mark Perry (Dramaturg; “How I Learned to Drive”), and Elizabeth Ray (Stage Manager; “Temples of Lung and Air”).
This play is rated PG-13 due to strong language and content; we encourage patrons to use their own discretion in determining the age appropriateness of the material. Please contact our Box Office for more details.
For information and to purchase tickets, call 919.962.7529 or visit www.playmakersrep.org. Individual ticket prices start at $15.
Performance and Special Event Schedule:
- January 23, 6:00 p.m. — “The Vision Series—Directors in Conversation,” a behind-the-scenes preview with members of the creative team before the evening’s performance, at the Joan H. Gillings Center for Dramatic Art. Free and open to the public.
- January 22 – 24, 7:30 p.m. — Preview performances
- January 25, 7:30 p.m. — Opening Performance & Press Opening, with post-show Opening Night Celebration
- January 28, 7:30 p.m. — All-Access performance for attendees with special needs, with sign language interpretation and audio description
- January 28, 7:30 p.m. — Community Night. General admission seating, with all tickets $15
- January 29, 6:30 p.m. — Setting The Stage: PlayMakers Resident Dramaturg Mark Perry leads a pre-show discussion on the context and content of Everybody to help set up the World of the Play.
- February 1, 2:00 p.m. — Open captioned performance, with dialog, stage direction, and sound effects communicated on a “universal access” live caption unit
- February 2 — Free post-show discussion with members of the creative team, cast, and community members
- February 9 — Mindplay: a free post-show psychoanalytic reading of our production in partnership with the North Carolina Psychoanalytic Society
About PlayMakers Repertory Company:
PlayMakers Repertory Company is North Carolina’s premier professional theatre company. For more than 40 years, we have produced relevant and courageous work that tells stories from and for a multiplicity of perspectives and creates transformational impact in our immediate and extended communities. We are proud to be part of a 100-year tradition of playmaking at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. PlayMakers has been named one of the “best regional theatres in America.”
PlayMakers Contacts:
- For press information and interviews, contact Diana Pineda, Director of Sales and Marketing, dmpineda@email.unc.edu or 919.962.7114
- For photos or poster art and other PlayMakers questions, please contact Rosalie Preston, Associate Director of Marketing, rosalie@unc.edu or 919.962.6997
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