EUGENE O'NEILL THEATER CENTER'S NATIONAL THEATER INSTITUTE TACKLES UNITY, LIFE, AND LOSS

IN THE WAKE OF HURRICANE SANDY

ORIGINAL WORK DURING FINAL PROJECT WEEKEND BASED ON SHAKESPEARE’S THE TEMPEST AND COMEDY OF ERRORS

After fourteen weeks of vigorous training in a variety of disciplines including acting, directing, playwriting, design, movement and voice, the thirty-one students of the National Theater Institute’s (NTI) fall ensemble present their final project, "They Were Under."

An original work, "They Were Under" will feature first-hand and journalistic accounts, weather forecasts, and documentaries from Hurricane Sandy and the Hurricane of 1938. Including original, student-composed music, the performance is set against Shakespeare’s two well known “Shipwreck Plays,” The Tempest and Comedy of Errors; weaving together themes of loss, tragedy, and community unity experienced throughout the East during the two storms.

During Final Project, students are assigned subject matter and produce, cast, score, and design the full production in just two weeks. It is the product of 14 weeks of training, bringing the fruits of an intense semester forward to bear.

Final Project performances are at 7:30pm on Friday, December 14 and Saturday, December 15 in the Dina Merrill Theater at the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center, 305 Great Neck Road, Waterford. Performances are free and open to the public.

For more information, please contact (860) 443-5378, email theaterlives@theoneill.org, or visit www.theoneill.org/nti