The full list of artists has been announced for Theatre Aspen's fourth annual Solo Flights Festival, where several one-person new works are showcased, many performed by their own writers.
This year's festival, which runs September 7-14, will feature works and performances starring Bryce Pinkham, Jeff Hiller, Tony Award winner Judith Ivey, principal American Ballet Theatre dancer James Whiteside, Marsha Mason, and a new work by Golden Globe and NAACP Award winner Regina Taylor, directed by Tony winner Phylicia Rashad.
In celebration of its 40th anniversary, Theatre Aspen will also present a Community Cabaret directed by Beth Malone (Fun Home) September 6 at 5:30 PM and 7:30 PM, with an anniversary reception in between the performances. The cast will include past mainstage performers still residing in the Roaring Fork Valley.
The new works included in this year's Solo Flights Festival follow:
James Whiteside will perform Dead Center, an exploration of grief through dance, song, and high camp. Dead Center features music and lyrics by Whiteside and David Dabbon and direction by Lorin Latarro; September 12 at 4 PM and September 14 at 7 PM.
Bryce Pinkham's Dignity, also starring the Tony-nominated actor, centers on The Performer, a shaggy, 21st-century Buster Keaton-type fellow, who was washed up on an island so long ago that he can't remember much from before—only that he may have been a performer. Zack Fine directs; September 11 at 4 PM and September 13 at 7 PM.
Written by and starring Regina Taylor, Exhibit follows African-American Iris as she recalls pieces of her childhood integrating at a school in Muskogee, Oklahoma. Phylicia Rashad directs; September 8 at 7 PM and September 13 at 4 PM.
James Hindman's The Exhibitionist centers on a museum's unveiling of a recently discovered painting by Vincent Van Gogh. One floor below, McMillon Arts Museum intern Justin is one of a hundred other aspiring artists competing to have his artwork chosen as the grand prize winner. Jeff Hiller will star and Michael Rader will direct; September 7 at 7 PM and September 9 at 4 PM.
Directed by Sheryl Kaller and starring Judith Ivey, Kate Walbert's First follows the country's first Congresswoman in 1968 Georgia. Now 87 years old, she prepares for her trip to Washington to join the Women’s March against the Vietnam War. The play is inspired by the life and activism of Jeannette Rankin; September 12 at 7 PM and September 14 at 4 PM.
Starring Marsha Mason, Gary Dontzig's In That Little Village Near Perm spotlights Anton Chekhov's "three sisters" Olga, Masha, and Irina several decades and a revolution after where the classic play leaves off. Marc Atkinson Borull directs; September 7 at 4 PM and September 9 at 7 PM.
Visit TheatreAspen.org.
