SAN JOSE
– Ever want to take a break from your high-stress job and rent a
country house for a get-a-way vacation with some friends?
SAN JOSE – Ever want to take a break from your high-stress job and rent a country house for a get-a-way vacation with some friends?
Four urban hotshots do just that in Eric Bogosian’s new psychological thriller, “Humpty Dumpty” and discover that rural life demands a new set of survival skills.
What was to be a week of gourmet food and wine in a renovated barn is interrupted by an increasingly terrifying crisis that tests the boundaries of who they really are. Under the direction of Associate Artistic Director John McCluggage, the West Coast Premiere of “Humpty Dumpty” begins performances at San Jose Repertory Theatre Saturday and continues through April 20. Opening night is March 28.
Max is a notable short story writer who is waiting to hear about a big movie deal, and his wife, Nicole, is an editor at a major publishing house. Joining them at their vacation retreat are Troy, a screenwriter and old college friend of Max, and his actress girlfriend, Spoon. Not long after their arrival, the electricity to the house is cut off. The television won’t work and the radio receives only static.
Gasoline is in short supply, the water is shut off, supplies run low, the National Guard has blocked off the roads and shotgun blasts are heard threateningly in the distance. With all contact with the outside world terminated, only the local handyman appears to have the tools to survive in this brave new world.
Written before the tragic events of 9/11 and significantly revised since its initial production, “Humpty Dumpty” is a provocative and timely trip into the American psyche.
Eric Bogosian is one of America’s premier performers and most original playwrights, renowned for his disturbing, comic appearances on stage, on film and on the page. His two best known plays, Talk Radio and subUrbia, were each translated into films.
Bogosian wrote the screen adaptations for both and received the Berlin Film Festival’s Silver Bear for his work as both author and star of Talk Radio. The recipient of three Obie Awards and a Drama Desk Award, Bogosian’s credits as playwright also include
“Red Angel,” “Humpty Dumpty”, “Griller” and “Bitter Sauce.” His award-winning solos include “Sex, Drugs,” “Rock & Roll,” “Pounding Nails in the Floor With My Forehead,” “Drinking in America” and “Wake Up and Smell the Coffee” (Drama Desk Award nomination). His novel “Mall” was published last year by Simon & Schuster and his novella Notes from Underground was published by Theatre Communications Group in 1995. Bogosian has made numerous film and television appearances, working with some of the leading directors of our time.
