With rehearsals underway for Defibrillator’s production of Stephen Karam’s Speech and Debate opening at Trafalgar Studios on 24 February, the company announces a revival of Sam Shepard’s A Lie of the Mind. Defibrillator Artistic Director James Hillier directs the production opening at Southwark Playhouse on 8 May, with previews from 4 May.
America. The great wide open. Two families torn apart by more than one brutal marriage. Out of this bleak landscape emerges a human spirit that burns bright in its fight for salvation.
At heart a love story, this poetic and gritty play explores the ambivalence of family relationships, of love lost and found, against the backdrop of a macho American West. Humorous, dark and mystical A Lie of the Mind was written by Sam Shepard at the height of his powers.
James Hillier said today, “In 2017, with a post-truth President in the White House, this play which charts the carnage that ensues from self-deception is as relevant now as when first performed in 1985.”
Casting Update, 10th March 2017:
Gethin Anthony (Jake), Kate Fahy (Lorraine), Robert Lonsdale (Mike), Laura Rodgers (Sally) and John Stahl (Baylor)
Casting Update, 23rd March 2017:
Nancy Crane (Meg), Alexandra Dowling (Beth) and Michael Fox (Frankie)
