STATE COLLEGE — “Seminar,” a provocative comedy from Pulitzer Prize nominee Theresa Rebeck, will be staged at the Downtown Theatre Center at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 18, and Friday, Feb. 19, and at 2 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 21.
In “Seminar,” four aspiring young novelists sign up for private writing classes with Leonard, an international literary figure. Some of the novelists will succeed, while others can barely get a grasp. Friendships are made, while hearts will get broken. Harsh wordplay and innocence combine in this tongue-biting comedy.
“Seminar” is being presented by FUSE Productions and being directed by Dan Carter, director of Penn State’s School of Theatre.
Producer Richard Biever said in 2013 FUSE did a reading of “Seminar” as part of the Contemporary Play Reading Series and received an excellent response from audience members.
“I knew then we would eventually do a full production of the show. I am thrilled to have PSU’s Dan Carter directing and a brilliant cast of three PSU theater students and two professional actors from the community bring ‘Seminar’ to life in State College,” said Biever. “It’s a perfect show for a college town.”
Local actor Wil Hutton will play Leonard. The cast also includes Anastasia Davidson as Kate, Courtney Brown as Izzy, James McCready as Martin and Jacob Tarconish as Douglas.
Davidson recalls director Carter saying, “Seminar is truly an ‘actor’s play,’ meaning Theresa Rebeck has crafted such full, truthful characters that each individual actor can really make the role their own.”
Davidson, a graduate student in the School of Theatre, said her character, Kate, is intelligent and relatable, but also “a privileged, native New Yorker with a fierce personality, big dreams and a lot of heart.”
Davidson also said she can relate to her character well, from being driven to succeed but also struggling to find the direction in which she wants her life and career to follow and, she joked, “throughout these challenges, she turns to food, which I can definitely connect with!”
“It’s a very human play that hopefully will inspire some great conversation afterwards,” Davidson added.
Tickets are available by calling (814) 380-8672.
