Eric Bryant submitted three scripts to possibly direct for Carmel Community Players this season.
The Fishers resident was delighted when one of them, Sam Shepard’s “True West,” was selected for him to direct.
The CCP production about two brothers is set for April 21 to 30 at Ivy Tech Community College/Hamilton County in Noblesville.
“I have always loved the play, and having a younger brother (I) can relate to the sibling rivalry,” Bryant said. “The thing that intrigues me about this play in particular is the idea of two brothers, both lonely, both desperate to change their circumstances, and both dissatisfied with the choices they have made in life.”
Indianapolis resident Robert Webster Jr., who plays Austin, saw the play several years ago in downtown Indianapolis.
“I remember thinking this piece was such an amazing script for actors since the show is mainly carried by the two brothers, Austin and Lee,” Webster said. “In addition to that, the set they had built blew me away as it looked and worked exactly like a kitchen you would see in anyone’s house in (the 1970s) in America. It wasn’t until I read the script and the notes Sam Shepard had put into it that I realized how important the sounds and staging of the play are. The spiral that both brothers go down is something that I love to immerse myself in and portray on stage in a way that the audience will not only be able to see, but hopefully feel inside themselves.”
Indianapolis resident Matthew Walls, who plays Lee, views the play as a true American classic.
“It’s a play that’s important but seldom done,” Walls said. “I like that Lee has about as short of an attention span as I do. It’s great acting across from Robert and trying to match his energy while remaining aloof. Lee has lived a life that I will never know. So, living that life on stage for an hour and a half is a challenge.”
Walls has seen John Malkovich and Gary Sinise’s performances of “True West.”
“I wish I could have seen Philip Seymour Hoffman and John C. Reilly switch roles every night (on Broadway),” Walls said.
For more, visit carmelplayers.org.
