Downstate
By Bruce Norris
Directed by Patrick White
Albany Barn
9/17-9/26
Harbinger’s 21st Capital Region Premiere
6:30pm signup for a 7pm start. Auditions at Christ Church, 35 State St, Troy, NY 12180
In downstate Illinois, four men convicted of sex crimes against minors share a group home where they live out their lives in the shadow of the crimes they committed. A man shows up to confront his childhood abuser—but does he want closure or retribution? This gripping and provocative new play by Pulitzer Prize-winning Bruce Norris (“Clybourne Park”) zeroes in on the limits of our compassion as it questions what happens when society deems anyone beyond forgiveness.
“Downstate fulfills art’s profound function of making you look and think hard about complex, difficult moral issues that society has a tendency of solving with superficial solutions. It is not a comfortable evening, but it is a vital one.”-What’s On Stage?
CASTING:
EFFIE: Late teens – Early 20’s. Any ethnicity. Hyperactive. Too much eye makeup. GIO’s co-employee at Staples. Vapes CBD to control her anxiety.
ANDY: Late 30’s – 40’s. White. Professional, liberal, adult survivor of childhood sexual assault.
EM: Late 30’s – 40’s. Married to ANDY, smart, suburban, sensitive – highly protective of Andy and her child.
DEE: Pushing 60. Black. Thin, languid, also on the registry, post-incarceration. Defiant about his past.
GIO: 30’s. Black. Muscular, clean-cut, ambitious, voluble. On the registry, post-incarceration. Considers himself above FRED and DEE.
ROLES CAST:
IVY: 40’s – 50’s. Black or Latina. Probation officer, overworked, weary. She makes weekly visits to and drop-ins on the group home. CAST
FRED: 70’s. White. Glasses, motorized wheelchair. On the sex offender registry, post incarceration. He is sincerely repentant and childlike in manner – not unlike Fred Rogers. CAST
FELIX: 40’s. Latino. Heavyset, solitary, silent. On the registry, post-incarceration. Tormented by his past.
Please contact Director Patrick White white.patrick1963@gmail.com for audition sides.
Harbinger produces impactful Capital Region premieres by underrepresented playwrights, creating opportunities for all theater fans interested
in change.
