Teatro delle Muse announces 2008-2009 season

by Shawn Parikh

Local playwrights take the stage all next year.

The new-ish theater company, Teatro delle Muse of Plano, seems to be trying something new this next season. The three shows for their mainstage season are all written by local playwrights: Rick A. Elina, Lon Rogers, and Donnie Wilson.

As for some other news, the company presented the new show First Kiss last season and it is being published. The publishing party is being Sunday, October 12. The event is free and will entail a screening followed by book signing with writer Rick A. Elina, director and cast, a wine and cheese reception, and copies of the published script will be available.

Here is what is coming next year:

• Losing Daniel, by Lon Rogers. From October 17 - 26. Matthew Shelton, a famous American playwright, loses his son Daniel in a tragic automobile accident. In an attempt to assuage his grief and give his son a touch of immorality, he writes a play about him but finds the story too painful to submit for publication. For twenty years the manuscript remains buried in a trunk in the basement of Matthew’s home. Then, after stumbling upon it by accident, he decides at last to put the play for production, but only if he can choose the actor who plays the young Daniel. Losing Daniel is the story of a playwright who has devoted his life to the smoke and mirrors of the stage, only to become entangled in his own blurred inner narrative. Directed by John M. Land.
• Donkey in Horse Heaven, by Rick A. Elina. From December 13 - 21. Poor little Horace has found himself in Horse Heaven. And he doesn’t belong. This is a fact that Horace is reminded of it all too often. For one thing, Horace is a donkey and donkeys simply don’t go to Horse Heaven. To add to his troubles, Horace finds himself among the most famous horses in history. As one character explains, “…war horses and race horses, a veritable who’s who of horses.” When questioned by these icons of equine history as to why Horace is even in Horse Heaven, the little donkey can’t seem to come up with an answer. When the great deeds of the other horses are recounted, Horace feels that perhaps a mistake was made. Until the end, when a simple deed is revealed that trumps all the rest. Donkey in Horse Heaven is a morality play about acceptance and how even the simplest of gestures from the unlikeliest of sources can affect the world. 100% of the ticket sales for this show will benefit the Brittany Stene Medical Fund. There will also be a Silent Auction in conjunction with the performance. Please keep an eye out for additional information coming soon. You can also email us at info@teatrodellemuse. Directed by Sarah VC Henderson.
• If By Chance, by Donnie F. Wilson. From February 20 - March 1, 2009. Sarah VC Henderson, Artistic Director for Teatro delle Muse, the theatre’s resident company, announced the selection, “This is an exciting piece and we are proud to be part of it. We announced at The Muse Awards last spring that we’d be doing a play that would reach out to the African American community, like Glass Menagerie did earlier this year.” Directed by Sarah VC Henderson.