The Bad Bruise of Billy MacBean

 

UNDER St. Marks Theater

January 2007

 

 

Part of a double bill with The Gringo of Deli Acapulco at UNDER St. Marks, The Bad Bruise of Billy MacBean is another new work by Eric Bland.

 

Bruise wittily deconstructs a relationship with verbal sparring, poetic interludes and contemplative vignettes. Billy and Klare like each other very much, that much is clear, but he simply won't leave his basement. A former child chess prodigy, Billy has become agoraphobic since the death of his father and no amount of coaxing can extract him from his home. This tender new play is a beautiful allegory for the power of communication.

 

CAST & CREW

 

Directed by:    Noah Burger

 

Written by:    Eric Bland

 

Charlie Hewson    as Billy

Kaytie Morris    as Klare

 

Graphic Art:    Abernathy Bland

Graphic Design:    Scott Eckert

Prop Design:    Rachel Sorey

Technical Operator:    Richard Jones

 

PRESS

 

"Wonderfully acted, impeccably directed and beautifully written," says New York Cool. "Bruise and Gringo is the kind of play that inspires us all to be better artists… downtown theatre at its best."

"Charlie Hewson and Kaytie Morris are magnetic; their performances are strong, vulnerable and engaging. They have lovely chemistry together and an intimate comfort with the production. In such a small space, the audience can see every eye movement and hair flip and both actors are vibrant and fully alive for every second of the play. Noah Burger's directing vision is clear and strong. Each scene is a poignant snapshot of Klare and Billy's time together."

Click here for a link to New York Cool's full review.

 

NYTheatre.com says "Bruise is terrific… we quickly come to care about these people and root for them."

"Burger's staging of Bruise, on a nicely cluttered set, is sensitive and smooth. Charlie Hewson is outstanding as Billy, allowing us flashes of a complicated and, yes, bruised history that he doesn't want to expose; he's also appealingly likeable and vulnerable."

Click here for a link to NYTheatre's full review.

 

The Columbia Spectator says Bruise is "a series of delightful moments, epiphanies and potent one-liners."

"Hard-hitting themes of tormented communication between warring minds determined to love each other and the palpable, tightening grip of death and mortality were mixed up in a salad of puns and amusing moments of physicality."

Click here for a link to The Columbia Spectator's full review.

 

PHOTOS