David Mamet’s provocative Oleanna comes to 35below.

Called “a clenched fist to the gut, and intellect” David Mamet’s tense, electrifying play Oleanna opens January 8 in the black box theatre 35below at Asheville Community Theatre. An examination of power and language, of relations and perceptions, this two actor drama co-stars local favorite Chelsey Lee Gaddy and, making his ACT debut, Kier Klepzig. Oleanna is directed by Chris Allison.

The play will open Friday, January 8 and run through Sunday, January 24, 2016 with performances Friday and Saturday nights at 7:30 p.m., and Sunday afternoons at 2:30 p.m. Tickets are available online, over the phone, or in person at the Asheville Community Theatre Box Office. All tickets are $15.

In the briskly moving play, a young, uncertain co-ed, seeks help from her professor, an academic, secure in his opinions, juggling his tenure nomination, a new house, a growing career. The two discuss education, understanding, society, and more. The next time they meet, all has changed. What happened? Who is right? Who is the powerful and who the powerless?

Though it opened in 1992, Oleanna remains “fiercely funny and trenchantly topical” (Time). “The play is a conflict of power through language,” says Director Chris Allison. “It ultimately demonstrates that ‘much of what we do… in the name of principles is self-serving.”

This modern classic by David Mamet is sure to engage and enrage and to provoke discussion long after the stunning ending. Oleanna stars Chelsey Lee Gaddy and Kier Klepzig; directed by Chris Allison.

For more information about Oleanna or about Asheville Community Theatre, please visit www.ashevilletheatre.org.

If You Go: Oleanna January 8-24, 2016. Performances Friday and Saturday evenings at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday afternoons at 2:30 p.m. Tickets: $15. Asheville Community Theatre, 35 East Walnut St., Asheville. (828) 254-1320 or visit www.ashevilletheatre.org.