Different Strokes! stages “The Shape of Things” with two casts

Local theater company Different Strokes Performing Arts Collective will open The Shape of Things on Thursday, Sept. 3. The play will be staged with two different casts “to explore gender bias and sexuality in regards to relationship intimacy and sacrifice,” according to a press release.

Press release from the theater company:

Next up in our 2015 season is Neil LaBute’s The Shape of Things, which runs Sept. 3-19 at The BeBe Theatre (20 Commerce St. in Downtown Asheville). We’re thrilled to be mounting this production with two alternating casts, allowing us to explore gender bias and sexuality in regards to relationship intimacy and sacrifice. See one cast or see them both; in either case, you’ll enjoy an intense study of human relationships coupled with the ethics involved in the relationship between art and life.

Showtime is Thursday at 7:30pm, Friday at 7:30pm and 10pm, and Saturday at 7:30pm and 10pm. Advance tickets are $15 each online at www.differentstrokespac.org, and tickets at the door are $18 each. Friday and Saturday evenings will feature alternating casts for the early and late shows, with double-header ticket pricing of $25 for both shows in one evening when purchased in advance, or $30 at the door. You can also save your ticket stub and return another evening for $5 off a ticket purchased at the door.

We last mounted a show with alternating casts in 2012 with A Lesson Before Dying, although that show featured several actors crossing over into the two casts. This time around, we have two entirely different casts telling the story of Evelyn and Adam, who are embarking on an intense relationship that causes shy and principled Adam to go to extraordinary lengths to maintain a relationship with his newfound love. In the process, Evelyn’s subtle coaching results in Adam’s complete transformation.

The Shape of Things is directed by Steph Hickling Beckman and features Nathan Singer and Desmond Zampella as Adam, Meg Hale Brunton and Sam Stewart as Evelyn, Maximilian Koger and Devyn Ray as Phil/Phyll, and Emily Crock and Allen Law as Jenny/Jamie.

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About Alli Marshall
Alli Marshall has lived in Asheville for more than 20 years and loves live music, visual art, fiction and friendly dogs. She is the winner of the 2016 Thomas Wolfe Fiction Prize and the author of the novel "How to Talk to Rockstars," published by Logosophia Books. Follow me @alli_marshall

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