The world premiere of Natalie Parker-Lawrence's "A Box of Yellow Stars," a Women's Theatre Festival of Memphis, Inc. (WTFM) presentation, begins rehearsals in September at TheatreWorks where it will open on November 13, 2015. Directed by WTFM Founder/Producer Ruby O'Gray, previews begin November 12 and performances continue through November 22.
In "A Box of Yellow Stars," playwright Natalie Parker-Lawrence unpeels the legacy of an American Christian man who married 15 Jewish women to save them from going to the Auschwitz Holocaust Concentration camps during World War II. A riveting and powerful memoir about the Jewish women who were saved and the strange way powerful bonds are formed with people who are "kin" through shared experience and perspective. This play is inspired by the untold true story of the uncle of one of Parker-Lawrence's students.
Natalie Parker-Lawrence is a playwright whose work has been presented as staged readings or full productions at The San Miguel's Second Annual International Festival, The Morris Theatre Guild (Chicago, IL), Rhodes College, TheatreWorks, Adelphi University (NY), The Women's Playwright's Initiative (Orlando, FL) The University of Memphis and the Women's Theatre Festival of Memphis. Her essays have appeared in Slice of Life Magazine, The Barefoot Review, Stone Highway Review, The Literary Bohemian, Knee-Jerk Magazine, Edible Memphis, Unlikely Stories, The Commercial Appeal, World History Bulletin, and The Pinch. When she's not writing, Parker-Lawrence serves as an adjunct instructor in the Communication department at The University of Memphis, and teaches AP English Literature and AP World History at Houston High School in Germantown, TN.
Auditions for the play were held in May and an all star cast was selected which includes: Dana Terle as Patsy, Donna Lappin as Sonia, Janie Paris as Helena and Daniel Martine as Lea.
Janie Paris is appearing as a courtesy from Actors' Equity, with numerous credits, including A Curious Savage, Courtin' Time, View From the Bridge, Death of A Salesman, Over the River and Through the Woods, Steel Magnolias and HeartStrings. Paris was last seen in New Moon Theatre's Haint at TheatreWorks to great reviews.
Dana Terle is a trained professional dancer, but transitioned to acting in drama and comedy in such plays as The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, The Glass Menagerie, at Germantown Community Theatre, The Curious Savage and Sisters of the Cloth at The Circuit Playhouse.
Donna Lappin has appeared in numerous productions in Los Angeles before moving to Memphis. Some of her favorite shows are Young Frankenstein, Lost in Yonkers, and Les Miserables. Donna most recently appeared in the Best of Broadway 3 at Stage Door Productions and at TheatreWorks in Standing on Ceremony.
Daniel Martine has performed in summer stock, off-Broadway, touring companies since his early twenties. Daniel's theatrical credits include plays from LA to NY which include: Streetcar Named Desire, Jesus Christ Superstar, Tooth of Crime, Julius Caesar, Extremities, Hair, Boom Boom Room, Pericles, Prince of Tyre, Tamerlane, and Dracula at Theatre Memphis.
Tickets will go on sale in September. Call the WTFM Box Office at 901.213.7566 for Group Sales & Fundraiser opportunities.
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