Burien Actors Theatre (BAT) can’t bring audiences into the theater right now, so the longtime Burien organization has gone online.
BAT’s new 2020 ‘Shelter-in-place Season’ consists of five plays over nine weeks, read live online by talented actors with guidance from equally talented directors.
The plays are the Artistic Director’s choice with little supervision. So they will be different than offerings found anywhere else on social media or streaming.
Two of the plays have been on BAT’s stage, and three have not.
According to BAT’s Artistic Director, Eric Dickman:
“Even if you saw the play onstage, a reading is a very different experience.”
This is a chance to experience something unique in these twisted times. The readings can only be seen live in real-time, or not at all. They will not be recorded. And because they are presented through Zoom, sweatpants are optional.
Performance Schedule
Here is the schedule for BAT’s 2020 Shelter-in-place Season (all times are Pacific Daylight Time):
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- May 2 at 8 p.m. – The Letters by John W. Lowell
- May 3 at 2 p.m. – The Letters by John W. Lowell
- May 16 at 8 p.m. – waiting on rights from the author
- May 17 at 2 p.m. – waiting on rights from the author
- May 30 at 8 p.m. – Zombie by Bill Connington
- May 31 at 2 p.m. – Zombie by Bill Connington
- June 13 at 8 p.m. – Hindle Wakes by Stanley Houghton
- June 14 at 2 p.m. – Hindle Wakes by Stanley Houghton
- June 27 at 8 p.m. – waiting on rights from the author
- June 28 at 2 p.m. – waiting on rights from the author
The Letters
In the psychological thriller The Letters, written by John W. Lowell, the Ministry Director calls Anna, a bureaucrat, into his office for a meeting. It is 1931 in the Soviet Union, and things are not what they seem. The meeting becomes a suspenseful game of cat-and-mouse in which being the last one to flinch may mean the difference between life and death. Based on Soviet efforts to edit composer Pyotr Tchaikovsky’s letters, this thriller is a vivid slice of paranoid life under Stalin.
Anna is performed by Devin Rodger and The Director by Michael Mendonsa under the direction of Beau M.K. Prichard.
ADMISSION TO THE READINGS
Each reading will be live on Zoom. To see the reading, audience members must donate to BAT at the link on the landing page of their website at www.burienactorstheatre.org. There are donation levels in varying amounts to fit a wide range of budgets. Following the donation, the audience member will be sent an email with a Zoom link and password to get into the “show.”
Donations help fund the cost of the readings. The donations also help BAT and Click-4-Tix, BAT’s online ticket seller, as they both face hard times.
BAT has missed their audience very much and hopes to be together soon. “Stay safe, and wash your hands!”
ABOUT BURIEN ACTORS THEATRE
Exciting live theater has been a tradition in Burien since 1955. Incorporated in 1980, Burien Actors Theatre is a leading producer of quality live theater serving residents of the Seattle and south Puget Sound areas.
BAT is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) entity and operates on donations, revenue from ticket sales, grants, sponsorships and volunteers.
More info at www.burienactorstheatre.org.
