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NPSS: A Night With the Family

By Matthew Ivan Bennett

Monday, October 24, 2011 @ 7 pm

A love letter to Kaufman and Hart
An oddball play with a twist toward 21st century problems

Director Mark Fossen
Cast Michael Gardner, Mark Gollaher, JJ Peeler, Teresa Sanderson, Richard Scott, Cassandra Stokes-Wylie

A NIGHT WITH THE FAMILY is a comedy surrounding a character-driven, dysfunctional family who has gathered together in Salt Lake City. Playwright Matthew Ivan Bennett describes his script as "a love letter to the Kaufman and Hart, an oddball play with a twist toward 21st century problems." In A NIGHT WITH THE FAMILY, we meet: Donald- a New Age hoarder, Diane- a micromanager and a cougar, Antoine- a French-Canadian modern dancer and soon-to-be stepdad, Bree- a Mormon convert whose husband has an internet porn addiction, and Donny- a newlywed with anxiety attacks. We meet a family..... full of advice.

We are thankful to the Jarvis and Constance Doctorow Family Foundation and the Dramatists Guild Fund for their generous support of SLAC's New Play Sounding Series program.

 

Playwright's Note

"When I was in my early 20s, my attitude about my family was that I was so obviously, completely, deeply, and intrinsically different from them. In my early 30s, my attitude is that I used to be a dumbass. Family is so much a part of who you are, it's impossible to see sometimes. A NIGHT WITH THE FAMILY is a play about a family in crisis (or a whole family involving themselves in a son's crisis), how we directly sabotage each other even as we're trying to help, and how relationships are always, always messy--and, mercifully, hilarious."

Playwright's Bio

Matthew Ivan BennettMatthew Ivan Bennett is the Resident Playwright of Plan-B Theatre, where he's premiered several plays. BLOCK 8, his play about the Japanese-American internment at Topaz, was supported by the NEA. His radio adaptation of FRANKENSTEIN received the Best Feature Program award from the Utah Broadcasters Association. His works have appeared at Chicago's Circle Theatre, at Hunger Artists in LA, and in the Source Festival in Washington DC. He's published in Smith & Kraus' 161 One-Minute Monologues from Literature. He acted in the SLAC production of Harold Pinter's THE CARETAKER. Matt earned a Bachelors' of Theatre Arts at Southern Utah University.

We thank the Jarvis and Constance Doctorow Family Foundation and the Dramatists Guild Fund for their generous support of our New Play Sounding Series program.

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