CONTACT: Karen Gahagan
kgahagan@salemstate.edu
978.542.7890
What: Poison of Choice by William Cunningham
When: Nov. 29, 30/Dec. 1, 7:30 pm; December 2, 2 pm; Dec. 6-8 7:30 pm; Dec. 9, 2 pm
Where: Sophia Gordon Center for Creative and Performing Arts, 356 Lafayette Street
Tickets: $20 adult/$15 seniors and students 18 and above/under 18 admitted free
Additional information: salemstatetickets.com or 978.542.6365
Salem State Theatre Premieres New Play, Poison of Choice
SALEM, MA – Salem State University’s award-winning theatre department premieres William Cunninghams’ new play, Poison of Choice. The production runs in the Sophia Gordon Center for Creative and Performing Arts, November 29 – December 9, Thursday through Sunday. The December 8 performance is “Salem Night” with Salem residents receiving free admission.
Author Alan Lubeck has built a successful career as a graphic novelist. His most recent work, Terror Cell, has left him mentally exhausted and obsessively preoccupied with the novel’s world. Even trying to kill off the main character of the novel, Caleb Lange, hasn’t released Lubeck from a kind of creative madness that is taking over his life. When an old friend offers Lubeck a job that will put his talents to “better use” he jumps at the chance. In short order he finds himself in a world mirroring his novel as he questions the motives and actions of everyone around him. His poisoned mind can’t tell which world he is in, the real or the imagined.
Playwright and director William Cunningham places the audience inside a graphic novel. With a touch of film noir and a splash of the Shakespearean the action of the play takes place in a world that reeks of political corruption, sex, murder, addiction, and plenty of moral ambiguity. If you’ve been thinking, “Has the world gone mad or is it just me”, this wild night of theater dares you to answer that question.
Performances are: Nov. 29, 30 and Dec. 1 at 7:30 pm; December 2 at 2 pm; December 6-8 at 7:30 pm and December 9 at 2 pm:.A pre-show conversation will take place on Thursday, December 6 starting at 6:30 pm. For mature audiences.
Tickets: $20 general/$15 seniors and students 18 and above/free for students under 18. Purchase at salemstatetickets.com or 978.542.6365. The production will be participating in Salem State’s holiday toy drive. Show attendees will receive one free admission per unwrapped toy they bring to the box office for performances taking place December 6-9.
This production is presented by Salem State University’s theatre department and Center for Creative and Performing Arts (salemstate.edu/arts).
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About Salem State
Salem State University, established in 1854, is a comprehensive, public institution of higher learning located approximately 15 miles north of Boston, Massachusetts. One of the largest state universities in the Commonwealth, Salem State enrolls over 9,000 undergraduate and graduate students. It offers 32 undergraduate programs and graduate programs that offer degrees in 24 fields. The university also has a continuing education division that offers both credit and non-credit programs. Known for the academic strength of its faculty, Salem State was named a Top Producer of U.S. Fulbright Scholars in 2011 and for the 2016-2017 academic year. The university is designated a Military Friendly School by G.I. Jobs, a Top College and University by Military Advanced Education, and a Best for Vets College by Military Times.
