Boston Playwrights' Theatre Presents THE RIVER WAS WHISKEY 10/27-11/20

Set inside the racial tensions of 1940s Mississippi, THE RIVER WAS WHISKEY pulses with revenge and retribution. Some things demand to be remembered, whether we like it or not-especially if we love someone we shouldn't.

The 1927 Flood in Mississippi is still remembered 20 years later by this small Delta town of Moonlight, and its devastation still lingers. WWII war hero Evans has wanted to lead his own church for decades, and as a Purple Heart recipient, he should have his own way. But a secret from the past haunts his dreams, and it may cost him the church and more-his true-love Nettie. This Southern Gothic ghost story features original music from its Tennessee native playwright.

Featuring Kenard Jackson, James Loutzenhiser, Sarah Newhouse and Alex Pollock and directed by James A. Petosa.

Will Fancher (Playwright) is a playwright, musician, educator, and actor, and a graduate of the Boston University with an MFA in Creative Writing/Playwriting. His one-act and full-length plays have been showcased in several national and regional venues, such as the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival, WordBRIDGE Playwrights Laboratory, Primary Stages, and the ALLIANCE THEATRE. His writing has been recognized by the Kennedy Center (Rosa Parks Playwriting Award) and the Eugene O'Neill Theatre Conference. Born in Tennessee, he currently lives in Boston.

Jim Petosa (Director) has been the artistic and educational leader of the Boston University School of Theatre since 2002, as well as Artistic Director of Maryland's Olney Theatre Center for the Arts since 1994. He also serves as artistic director for the National Players educational touring company and as one of three artistic directors for the Potomac Theatre Project (PTP/NYC), a company devoted to the presentation of political works in New York City. Petosa has directed more than 35 plays in the last five years. OTC directing credits include: THE GLASS MENAGERIE, DEMOCRACY, COPENHAGEN, THE LARAMIE PROJECT, ART, LOOK! WE HAVE COME THROUGH! (Charles MacArthur Award nomination for Outstanding New Play), Jacques Brel IS ALIVE AND WELL LIVING IN PARIS (Helen Hayes Award for Outstanding Director), and THE MIRACLE WORKER. For Potomac Theatre Project: CLOSETLAND, MARISOL, GOOD, and THE TRIAL OF THE CATONSVILLE NINE. National Players' productions include: MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING, The TAMING OF THE SHREW, and OTHELLO. As a guest artist, he has directed at the John F. Kennedy Center, Studio Theatre, Round House Theatre, and Rep Stage. Petosa also directed the Theater J production of COLLECTED STORIES, for which he received a 2001 Helen Hayes Award nomination for outstanding direction. For Boston University, Mr. Petosa has directed the School of Theatre mainstage plays TRUMPERY, STUFF HAPPENS, RED NOSES, SCENES FROM AN EXECUTION, MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG, and AMADEUS, and the Opera Institute productions of POSTCARD FROM MOROCCO, THE RAPE OF LUCRETIA, CARMEN, and A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM. For New Repertory Theatre he has directed productions of OPUS and THE LAST FIVE YEARS. In 2009 he established the Boston Center for American Performance, the professional production extension of the Boston University School of Theatre. Petosa has served on the faculty of the Catholic University of America, the University of Maryland College Park, and the Heifetz International Music Institute at St. John's College. He has been a visiting professor at Middlebury College, an artist-in-residence at George Washington University, and a guest artist at Georgetown University, Wolf Trap, and the Smithsonian Institution. In 2008, Petosa was named Montgomery County's Outstanding Artist/Scholar at the Montgomery County Executive's Excellence in the Arts and Humanities Awards ceremony in Maryland. He has served as director for the New York Theatre Studio, Theatre Matrix, and as performing arts coordinator for the Cathedral of St. John the Divine in Manhattan. A member of Actors' Equity Association and the Dramatists Guild, Petosa has served on the board of the Society of Stage Directors and Choreographers, Catalyst Theatre, and Playwrights Forum.

David Wilson (Music and Sound Design) has designed lighting or sound for over 300 productions of opera, theater, concert and dance. He served on the faculty of Brandeis University for 26 years, heading the graduate program in sound design, and six years as resident lighting designer for Central City Opera. Other area productions include sound design and music for NEIGHBORS and BOOK OF GRACE at Company One, A COMEDY OF ERRORS at Commonwealth Shakespeare Company (Elliot Norton Award for Best Sound Design), BAD DATES at Shakespeare & Co and Merrimack Rep; Actors' Shakespeare Project's MACBETH (IRNE Nomination), A HOUSE WITH NO WALLS at New Rep, GIZMO LOVE at W.H.A.T., The Nora Theater Company's A DUBLIN CAROL (sound and lighting design), Stoneham Theater's A CHRISTMAS CAROL (sound design) and George M. Cohan TONIGHT! (Lighting Design).

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