Joshua Gonzales, Kelly Nickell Set for Greyman WAKING UP, 3/3-11

Greyman Theatre Company has announced the cast and creative team for their March 3-11 World Premiere production of the short play WAKING UP, a humorous and heartfelt look at what happens before and after we sleep.

The performances at WaterTower Theatre’s Out of the Loop Fringe Festival will feature Joshua Gonzales (WaterTower’s SPRING AWAKENING, Greyman’s DANI GIRL); Kelly Nickell (Greyman’s DANI GIRL, Baylor University’s THE RUBY SUNRISE); Francisco Lopez, Jr. (Summerstock Austin’s CABARET, Baylor’s JEKYLL & HYDE); and Nellsyn Hill (Baylor’s THE SKIN OF OUR TEETH).

Emily Christine Smith will direct and design the play by Kelsey Ervi, who directed Greyman’s critically acclaimed DANI GIRL at the same Festival last year. Tyler Afflerbach (Baylor’s JEKYLL & HYDE) will stage manage the production.

“Giving the audience glimpses into the lives of 11 people, WAKING UP captures trust, doubt, fear, and love, and shows the characters at their most comfortable and their most vulnerable,” Ervi describes. “The play touches on the emotions beneath the things we wake up for or go to bed with and the reasons we don’t wake up at all.”

A fundraising campaign to mount the production was announced Jan. 1, and has since generated over $800 in donations. The campaign will be live through Jan. 30 at http://kck.st/u5o3QC.

The Out of the Loop Fringe Festival provides opportunities for existing and emerging theatre, dance, and music companies and artists to present work that may vary in form and presentation from their typical content. Together, these companies provide the North Dallas and surrounding areas with a diverse range of artistic endeavors. The Festival typically hosts around 20 organizations presenting over 50 individual performances and drawing over 4,000 arts lovers each year.

Greyman Theatre Company was created in 2009 by Baylor students and continues to run under the leadership of Artistic Director Matt Tolbert and Managing Director Joshua Gonzales. Greyman’s production history has included two regional premieres, DANI GIRL and HOMEMADE FUSION, by the writing duo Michael Kooman (music) and Christopher Dimond (book and lyrics). The mission of Greyman is to operate as a launching platform for theatrical artists, from writers to actors to directors to designers, to showcase their works. Contemporary works play a vital role in reflecting society’s views and questions about the life of the time. Greyman serves to document and preserve that history. For more information on Greyman, please visit www.greymantheatreco.org.

WAKING UP will be performed Mar. 3 at 8 p.m., Mar. 6 & 8 at 7:30 p.m., and Mar. 10 & 11 at 2 p.m. in the Studio Theatre at the Addison Theatre Centre. Single tickets ($10) go on sale Feb. 14. For tickets and information, call (972) 450-6232 or visit www.watertowertheatre.org. The Addison Theatre Centre is located at 15650 Addison Road in Addison, Texas.

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