By Kate Berry
Creede Repertory Theatre (CRT) is thrilled to offer a virtual presentation of Beth Kander’s gripping new work, To the Moon. Kander’s work was last seen at CRT in the 2019 Henry Award-winning play Hazardous Materials, universally praised by audiences.
Now in development as part of our Headwaters New Play Program, she returns to CRT to workshop this stunning docudrama based on more than 200 surveys and 20 in-person interviews with survivors of domestic violence. To the Moon lifts up the riveting stories of these survivors, complete with humor, revelation and tragedy.
“Statistics are not the most powerful way to change someone’s mind. Stories are.”
For To the Moon, CRT is partnering with Rise Above Violence, a private nonprofit organization located in Pagosa Springs, CO whose primary mission is to assist victims of Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault. Rise Above Violence is offering facilitation and support services to our artists, staff, and patrons (through post-show talkbacks) as we explore this subject matter.
Their 24-Hour Hotline is (970) 264-9075. Call (970) 264-1129 to learn about volunteer opportunities.
Denver-based director Betty Hart will helm this stunning ensemble piece featuring CRT alumni Diana Dresser (“Bad Dates,” “August: Osage County”), Rachel Fowler (“The Secret Affairs of Mildred Wild”), and Kathryn Grody (“A Mom’s Life”); along with faces new to CRT: Laura Chavez, Lynnette Freeman, Delia Kropp, Kat Peña and Kariana Sanchez.
The creative team includes Mikki Stith (scenic rendering artist), Elly Hunt (costume design, CRT alum), Katharine Horowitz (sound design and composition), Lynde Rosario (dramaturgy), Karen Schleifer (stage management), and Brittni Shambaugh Addison (equity, diversity and inclusion facilitation).
Live performances are set for 6pm on March 5 and 2pm on March 6. A facilitated talk back will follow both live performances. It will be available for streaming March 15 to April 11.
All tickets are free thanks to the generous support and advocacy of David Katz. Though tickets are free, they must be reserved via our website, www.creederep.org, or by phone, (719) 658-2540.
More on Beth Kander
Beth Kander is an author and playwright with roots in the Midwest and Deep South. She has an MFA in cre- ative writing from Mississippi University for Women, where her double concentration was in fiction and playwriting, and also holds a master of social work degree from the University of Michigan and a BA from Brandeis University. Intertwining storytelling and advocacy is a theme of Kander’s writing, as well as her life.
Playwriting honors include the Henry Award for Best New Play or Musical for her play “Hazardous Materials,” directed by Kyle Haden in its world premiere at Creede Repertory Theatre; ATC CORE Residency; Headwaters New Play Award; Equity Library Theatre Access Award; Ashland New Plays Festival Awards; Eudora Welty New Play Awards; and Charles M. Getchell New Play Award. She is a founding member of Fondren Theatre Workshop in Jackson, MS, and served as a 2010-2011 Mississippi Arts Commission Playwriting Fellow.
As an author, Kander’s stories often put a new twist on old tropes. Her dystopian trilogy “Original Syn” was honored with a Foreword INDIES Award; her ghost story “13 Jericho Lane” was a Pitch Wars selection and she has at least two new books coming out in the next two years. The granddaughter of immigrants, she is interested in the intersection of new ideas and identities with old stories, secrets and legends.
She lives in Chicago with her favorite characters (her quirky little family). To learn more, visit www.bethkander.com.
To the Moon was originally developed as a commission for American Theatre Company in Chicago. The greatest gratitude and solidarity is owed to all the survivors who shared their stories directly and through an anonymous survey; without those willing to tell their stories, the world would never change.
More on Betsy Hart
Betsy Hart is elated to be helming Kander’s powerful play To the Moon, her directorial debut at CRT. Through April 2021, Hart is directing the theatrical film devised by the cast of the University of Colorado called 2020 Speaks. In 2020, Hart directed the Vintage Theatre production of the musical The Scottsboro Boys, which was nominated for three Henry Awards. She also directed the staged reading of Vroom Vroom by Josh Koenigsberg for Local Theater’s Local Lab. Unfortunately, due to COVID shutdowns, audiences never saw this piece.
Additional Colorado directing credits include Crowns (Vintage Season Award for Outstanding Director, 2019), and Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar and Grill; Aurora Fox Theatre: Hooded, or Being Black for Dummies, which broke box office records and became the third highest selling show in the theater’s history; Denver Center’s Garner Galleria: Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar and Grill.
In the future, Hart will assistant direct the world premiere of a new immersive theatrical production called “Theater of the Mind” in collaboration with co-creators David Byrne and Mala Gaonkar and co-produced by the Denver Center for the Performing Art’s Off-Center.
In the fall of 2020, Hart was elected as the president of the Board of Directors for the Colorado Theatre Guild, and is a member of Actor’s Equity Association. Hart is an associate artist with Local Theatre Company. She moved from Atlanta, GA, seven years ago.