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September 15, 2003

Purdue Theatre season opens with 'Proof'

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – Purdue Theatre opens its 2003-04 mainstage season in September with "Proof," David Auburn's story of daughter who attempts to cope with her father's life and death.

Scene from "Proof"
Download photo - caption below

Called "the best play on Broadway" by the Hollywood Reporter, "Proof" won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama and the 2001 Tony Award for Best Play. It will run from Sept. 25 to Oct. 5 in Stewart Center's Experimental Theatre.

Guest artist Jeff Casazza directs the production, which also features professor of theater Dale Miller in the role of Robert.

On the eve of her 25th birthday, a young woman who has spent years caring for her brilliant – but unstable – father must deal with his death, the arrival of her estranged sister and the attentions of a former student of her father's who hopes to find valuable work in the 103 notebooks her father left behind. The discovery of a mysterious notebook draws her into the most difficult problem of all: How much of her father's madness – or genius – did she inherit?

"I'm pleased to be directing on the mainstage," said Casazza, director of last season's studio production, "The Diviners." He sums up the basic question of "Proof" this way: "It's Nature vs. Nurture – How much of ourselves do we inherit from our parents? This issue permeates the play, as it explores the possibilities of both genius and insanity.

"'Proof' is a great word for the title of this play, a play filled with questions. A proof, by definition, is a written document that compels the mind to accept an assertion as true. It is, therefore, within the framework of a mathematical discovery that Auburn set this play. The goal of a proof is to come to a provable conclusion. The fundamental question of the play is explored, but not answered. It begs the audience to complete the proof in their own minds."

"Proof" opens Thursday, Sept. 25, at 8 p.m. Additional performances are at 8 p.m. Sept. 26-27 and Sept. 30 through Oct. 4. Matinees will be at 2 p.m. on Sept. 28 and Oct. 5. Tickets are on sale at campus box offices. "Proof" contains adult language and situations.

General public tickets are $14 and $16. Senior citizen tickets are $10 and $12, and student tickets are $8 and $10. Tickets may be purchased at the Loeb Box Office in Stewart Center, or by calling (765) 494-3933 or toll-free at (800) 914-SHOW. Select tickets also are available online at TicketMaster.com. Processing fees apply. Groups of eight or more can reserve discounted tickets by calling (765) 494-3084.

CONTACT: Lori Sparger, Purdue Theatre marketing director, (765) 494-3084. theatre@purdue.edu.

NOTE TO JOURNALISTS: Photographers may take still photos of rehearsal from 8-10 p.m. on Mon., Sept. 22, in the Experimental Theatre. Call Lori Sparger at (765) 494-3084 to make arrangements.

 

PHOTO CAPTION:
Hal (James Alan Harris) and Catherine (Erin E. Reitz) discuss Hal's interest in her father's work, as Robert (Dale Miller) looks on, in a scene from David Auburn's "Proof." Winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Drama and the Tony Award for Best Play, "Proof" runs from Sept. 25 to Oct. 5 in the Experimental Theatre, Stewart Center. (Purdue Theatre photo)


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