Palm Beach Dramaworks
announces
The World Premiere of Bruce Graham’s
The Duration
Opens Friday, February 18
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
West Palm Beach, Fla.- (Monday, February 7, 2022) - Audrey Batten has left the building. And the city. And quite possibly, according to her daughter Emma, her senses. Can two strong women with very different coping strategies on the journey from grief to release meet each other somewhere in the middle – out in the middle of nowhere?
Bruce Graham’s The Duration, a powerful, moving family drama laced with humor that explores timely and timeless issues through the prism of personal loss, receives its world premiere at Palm Beach Dramaworks on Friday, February 18 (8pm). Performances continue through March 6, with specially priced previews on February 16 and 17 (7:30pm). J. Barry Lewis directs
The Duration found its way to PBD’s mainstage through The Dramaworkshop. The play was given a virtual reading by Drama(in the)works last year, and made such an impact that Producing Artistic Director William Hayes decided it deserved a full production. The Duration will be the second of Graham’s plays to be produced at PBD. Back in the 2003 - 2004 season, the company staged Early One Evening at the Rainbow Bar & Grille.
This world premiere production features Elizabeth Dimon as Audrey Batten, Caitlin Duffy (PBD debut) as Emma Batten, and John Leonard Thompson as Douglas Kelly, Audrey’s colleague and friend. Scenic design is by Michael Amico, costume design is by Brian O’Keefe, lighting design is by Kirk Bookman, and sound design is by Roger Arnold.
Bruce Graham is a prolific playwright whose work includes Burkie, Early One Evening at the Rainbow Bar & Grille, Moon Over the Brewery, Minor Demons, Belmont Avenue Social Club, According to Goldman, Desperate Affection, Stella and Lou, Coyote on a Fence, The Champagne Charlie Stakes, Funnyman, The Craftsman, North of the Boulevard, Rizzo, The Philly Fan, Sanctions, and Gary. Graham won consecutive Barrymore Awards for Best New Play (Something Intangible, Any Given Monday), the Joseph Jefferson Award (The Outgoing Tide), and received a Jeff nomination for White Guy on the Bus, which was also nominated for an Offie (London’s version of the Obie Awards). Two new plays, Good Americans and The Flatlanders, open next season at Florida Rep and 1812 Productions, respectively. His work is included in The Best New Ten-Minute Plays anthologies of 2015, 2016, and 2018. Movies: Dunston Checks In, Anastasia, The Hunt for the Unicorn Killer. TV: Roseanne, Leg Work, Cedar Cove, The Most Wonderful Time of the Year, Trading Christmas, Good Witch. Graham recently returned to acting, and has appeared as Ben Hecht in Moonlight and Magnolias, Ernie in Rumors, Eddie in Lost in Yonkers, Richard in Time Stands Still, Milt in Laughter on the 23rd Floor, Artie in Hurlyburly, and Arthur in Pterodactyls. Along with Michele Volansky, he is the author of The Collaborative Playwright. Graham is a graduate of Indiana University of Pennsylvania and teaches playwriting and film courses at Drexel University. He divides his time between Elkton, Maryland and South Philly with Stephanie.
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Palm Beach Dramaworks is a professional, nonprofit theatre company founded in 2000 and located in the heart of downtown West Palm Beach. Each season, the award-winning company produces five mainstage shows and offers a wide variety of programs for students at the theatre, in schools, and online. Committed to fostering the future of theatre, PBD has become a hub for playwrights in Florida and around the country to nurture their work through initiatives including Drama(in the)works and the annual New Year/New Plays Festival. PBD is a member of Theatre Communications Group, Florida Professional Theatres Association, and the Cultural Council of Palm Beach County. www.palmbeachdramaworks.org
Evening performances are Wednesday and Thursday at 7:30pm, Friday and Saturday at 8pm, and select Sundays at 7pm. Matinee performances are on Wednesday, Saturday, and Sunday at 2pm. Post-performance discussions follow Wednesday matinee and Sunday evening performances. Individual tickets are $79, with specially priced preview tickets at $59 and opening night tickets at $94. Student tickets are available for $15, and Pay Your Age tickets are available for those 18-40. Tickets for educators are half price with proper ID (other restrictions apply). Group rates for 20 or more and subscription packages for four or five plays are also available. Tickets can be purchased through the box office, in person or by phone (561.514.4042 ext 2), and online 24 hours a day at palmbeachdramaworks.org.
The Don & Ann Brown Theatre is located in the heart of downtown West Palm Beach, at 201 Clematis Street. For ticket information contact the box office at (561) 514-4042, or visit www.palmbeachdramaworks.org.
