The year is 1827 and the rising young Shakespearean actor Edwin Forrest is preparing to play King Lear when a young woman interrupts him with a proposal: Meet the perfect Lear, her father. If Edwin follows this stranger is it an act of kindness, lunacy, or an actors dream come true. What is the price of perfection?
CORNELIA LAMB: A Quaker woman who supervises Friends Asylum
EDWIN FORREST: The rising young Shakespearean actor, twenty-one years old, who is preparing for his production of King Lear .
BENJAMIN LAMB: Cornelia's father, a former schoolteacher, now a patient at Friends Asylum, who believes he is King Lear.
SETTING Walnut St. Theatre/Friends Asylum, Philadelphia/Bowery Theatre, NYC
Spring, Summer and Winter, 1827
Lunacy received it's world premier at the 2007 Cleveland Play House Fusion Fest, with a widely praised production by Dobama Theater. Set in early 19th century Philadelphia, Cornelia beseeches Forrest to use Shakespeare to connect with her father, bringing resolution to the stage and audience. Lunacy features just enough history to add a layer of complexity and plausibility to the confusion.
Step backstage with the cast to explore what is real, imaginary and how can we benefit from both. While truly an odd pair visits the asylum, Forrest studies for the role of a lifetime, Cornelia finds a new way to communicate with her father and reconcile with her father's impending death, while Benjamin regains his vibrancy and finds a path towards ultimate resolution.
The characters present effective contrasts, challenging the actors.
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© 1998 Halem Studios
Last update June 2008
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