HART will open its 2015 season with a drama near and dear to Director Steve Lloyd’s heart, probably because he wrote it, and toured in the award winning drama for nearly seventeen years.
In fact it’s not an exaggeration to say that “The Actor and The Assassin” made HART possible. In 1990 when Lloyd approached HART about working for the theatre, HART had no financial resources to pay him. It was the income from “The Actor and The Assassin” that paid Lloyd’s bills in the early years.
This is not the first time the play has been done at HART. Lloyd performed it in 1989, and again in 2001 but in 2005 he and fellow actor Jerry Sipp retired the show. The two historical characters in the play, actor Edwin Booth and his brother John Wilkes Booth are supposed to be 33 and 26 years old. After seventeen years the two actors agreed it was time to walk away.
As part of the 105th Anniversary of the Civil War, and Waynesville holding the distinction as being the location of the last shot fired east of the Mississippi, a series of local events are planned as a commemoration. HART was approached by the Town, and Downtown Waynesville Association and asked if it would be possible to bring the play back. Thanks to a grant from the N.C. Arts Council Lloyd was able to hire in appropriate actors for the two roles.
Edwin and John Wilkes Booth were two of the most famous actors of the 19th Century, but it was their bitter rivalry that the drama focuses on. John was obsessed with fame and being remembered and his assassination of Abraham Lincoln insured that he would be. Drawing from letters and diaries “The Actor and The Assassin” makes the events of the era personal. Casting the play is difficult, however, because both are historical figures. In fact, it was Lloyds strong resemblance to Edwin that inspired him to write the play.
For this new production, being directed by Lloyd, two young professional actors are being brought in. Adam Kampouris, who will play John, now lives in New York, is from Waynesville and spent a great deal of time on the HART stage before heading off to get a degree and persue a career. He has worked with the N.C. Shakespeare Festival, Triad Stage, and has performed in “Cymbeline” and “Twelfth Night” in New York. Ben Apple, who plays Edwin, holds his B.F.A. in acting from UNC-G and has also appeared with the N.C. Shakespeare Festival and Triad Stage.
In addition to the usual weekend performances a special performance is being given on Tuesday, April 14. That is the 150th anniversary of the night Lincoln was shot at Ford’s Theater. An event reenacted in the play. Each performance will be followed by post show talk back sessions with the actors and the production will kick off a series of commemorative events in the community in the coming weeks.
If You Go: Performances are April 10, 11, 14, 17 & 18 at 7:30 p.m., and April 12 and 19 at 3 p.m. Tickets are available on line at www.harttheatre.org or by calling the HART Box Office, at (828) 456 6322 Tues-Sat. from 1-5 p.m. Performances are at the HART Theatre, 250 Pigeon St. in Waynesville.