The Sandbox: Two Ways

Performed as part of the Edward Albee Festival at Arena Stage
at the Mead Center for American Theater.

March 29th - April 1st, 2011

The Sandbox, written in 1959, is one of Edward Albee's earliest plays. It features archetypal American characters with names like "Mommy," "Daddy," "Grandma," and "The Young Man." Many of these same characters appear in The American Dream, which Albee wrote the following year.

For the Edward Albee Festival, Faction of Fools presents The Sandbox two ways, like two contrasting preparations of the same dish in a duet sampler at a gourmet restaurant. First, a traditional staged reading, highlighting the simplicity and power of Albee's words. Then, a Commedia dell'Arte interpretation that imagines the Young Man as Capitano, Momma as Donna Zezza (a female Pulcinella), Daddy as Pantalone, Grandma as Tartagliona, and the Musician as a hapless Pierrot.

The cast of the staged reading of The Sandbox will feature: Will Cooke, Denise Perrino, T.D. Smith, Rachel Spicknall, Mary Blake Suib, and Eva Wilhelm.

The cast of the Commedia dell'Arte version of The Sandbox will feature: Paul Edward Hope, Michelle Tang Jackson, Daniel Flint, Emma Jaster, Jesse Terrill