Gulfshore Playhouse is bringing an intriguing lineup of productions to the community this year, starting with Nick Payne’s thought-provoking Constellations. Founder Kristen Coury gives us the rundown on what we can expect from the intimate season opener about the “what ifs” in life.
The Premise
“I saw it in New York at the Manhattan Theatre Club when they did the version with Jake Gyllenhaal. It’s a really fascinating play. It’s not like a play you see very often; it’s almost vignettes that are different versions of what would happen with this one couple. … What would happen if this one was married at the time they met, or sick at the time? I just thought that was super interesting, besides the fact that it’s a two-person show.”
The Actors
“I thought, ‘Wouldn’t it be super cool if we could get our former artistic associate, Cody Nickell (Jacob Marley’s Christmas Carol), and his wife, Kate Eastwood Norris (Body Awareness)—who is currently playing (the role of) Hamlet for Shakespeare Santa Cruz—to do it together? This couple needs to have chemistry; so wouldn’t it be amazing to get this couple who are both professional actors?”
The Set
“Then we decided to sit on the floor! Normally we have the raised stage and the flat floor. We’re going to put the stage on the floor, and we’re building seating around it, on three sides, that won’t be any more than four rows deep. It’s going to be a super personal experience.”
Constellations runs Oct. 6-30. Details at gulfshoreplayhouse.org
