Peppermint Creek Theatre Company
2010-2011 Season
Marked

Caroline, or Change
Book & Lyrics by Tony Kushner, Music by Jeanine Tesori
Joint Production with Riverwalk Theatre
Directed by Chad Badgero
September 9 – 12 & 16 – 19, 2010

Louisiana, 1963: A nation reeling from the burgeoning Civil Rights Movement and the Kennedy assassination. Caroline, a black maid, and Noah, the son of the Jewish family she works for, struggle to find an identity for their friendship. Through their intimate story, this beautiful new musical portrays the changing rhythms of a nation. Tony Kushner and composer Jeanine Tesori have created a story that addresses contemporary questions of culture, community, race and class through the lens and musical pulse of the 1960s.

Reasons to be Pretty
By Neil LaBute
Directed by Deborah Keller
October 28 - 31 & November 4 - 6, 2010

A love story about the impossibility of love, REASONS TO BE PRETTY introduces us to Greg, who really, truly adores his girlfriend, Steph. Unfortunately, he also thinks she has a few physical imperfections, and when he casually mentions them, all hell breaks loose. A hopelessly romantic drama about the hopelessness of romance, REASONS TO BE PRETTY is a gorgeous play. "No contemporary writer has more astutely captured the brutality in everyday conversation and behavior: That kind of insight requires sensitivity and soul-searching." —USA Today.

Equivocation
By Bill Cain
Directed by Chad Badgero
January 27 - 30 & February 3 - 5, 2011

Truth-telling in dangerous times. What if the government commissioned you to write the definitive history (make that a self-serving lie) of a national crisis? What story would you tell? Welcome to London, 1605, and the world of King James, the Gunpowder Plot, and the Tower dungeons, as William Shakespeare and his theatre company struggle to create a play to please the king and not lose their hearts, souls, or heads in the process. In its Michigan premiere, Bill Cain’s high-stakes political thriller has ties to both Macbeth and Henry VIII. A must-see for Shakespeare lovers.

Distracted
By Lisa Loomer
Directed by Lynn Lammers
March 24 - 27 & March 31 - April 2, 2011

What's wrong with nine-year-old Jesse? He can't sit still, he curses, he raps, and you can't get him into—or out of—pajamas. His teacher thinks it's Attention Deficit Disorder. Dad says, "He's just a boy!" And Mama's on a quest for answers. Is Jesse dysfunctional, or just different? Don't we all have ADD, to some degree? Everyone is distracted, even the actors—they're breaking character! A hilarious, provocative, and poignant look at a modern family and an epidemic dilemma: Are we so tuned into our 24/7 info-rich world that we've tuned out what really matters? “A smartly comic, sharply observant and surprisingly humane play.” —Associated Press.

The Pride
By Alexi Kaye Campbell
Directed by Chad Badgero
May 12 - 15 & 19 - 21, 2011

Oliver, Philip, and Sylvia are caught in a kind of erotic time warp. Their complex love triangle, replete with conflicting loyalties and passions, jumps from 1958 to the present and back in a maelstrom of fantasy, repression and rebellion in this innovative new drama that wrestles with the ever-changing views of homosexuality in our society. After taking London by storm in an Olivier Award-winning production at the Royal Court, The Pride is an alternately tough and touching look at love and betrayal.