OTHER DESERT CITIES
A Contemporary Dramatic Comedy
AUGUST 22
- SEPT 6
By JON ROBIN BAITZ
Directed by ROBERT EGAN
ABOUT THE PLAY
When Brooke arrives at her parents’ Palm Springs mansion with the manuscript of her tell-all memoir in tow she unearths a devastating family secret—throwing her parents into a panic that threatens to rip the clan apart. With biting wit and razor-sharp insight, this gripping story, a finalist for the 2012 Pulitzer Prize for Drama, skillfully navigates the complex dynamics of family loyalty, political divides, and buried truths. It will leave you questioning the price of secrets and the ties that bind.
“The most richly enjoyable new play for grown-ups that New York has known in many seasons…In his most fully realized play to date, Mr. Baitz makes sure our sympathies keep shifting among the members of the wounded family portrayed here. Every one of them emerges as selfish, loving, cruel, compassionate, irritating, charming and just possibly heroic…leaves you feeling both moved and gratifyingly sated.”
“Spending time with these messed-up, complicated people is a genuine pleasure.”
SCHEDULE
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FRIDAY, August 22 - 7:30 PM (PREVIEW)
*SATURDAY, August 23 - 7:30 PM (OPENING NIGHT)
SUNDAY, August 24 - 2:00 PM
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WEDNESDAY, August 27 - 2:00 PM
WEDNESDAY, August 27 - 7:30 PM
THURSDAY, August 28 - 7:30 PM
FRIDAY, August 29 - 7:30 PM
SATURDAY, August 30 - 2:00 PM
SATURDAY, August 30 - 7:30 PM
SUNDAY, August 31 - 2:00 PM
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WEDNESDAY, September 3 - 2:00 PM
WEDNESDAY, September 3 - 7:30 PM
THURSDAY, September 4 - 7:30 PM
FRIDAY, September 5 - 7:30 PM
SATURDAY, September 6 - 2:00 PM (Closing Performance)
MEET THE CAST
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Jayne Atkinson has been delighting audiences for over three decades. Her work includes major theatre productions, feature films and being part of some of the most well known and award winning television of the last 20 years. Her feature credits include Free Willy 1 and 2, The Village, Syriana and Baby Ruby opposite Kit Harrington which is currently streaming on Hulu. On television, Jayne played the iconic role of Cathy Durant on the mega-hit Netflix series House of Cards in addition to series long arcs on 24 and Criminal Minds. In 2019, she was a Series Regular on the NBC series Bluff City Law. In 2024, she was seen in the Hulu limited series Death and Other Details opposite Mandy Patinkin. In the same year, she also returned to the New York theatre scene in the critically lauded play STILL opposite Tim Daly. A graduate of Northwestern University and The Yale School of Drama, Jayne resides in the Berkshires with husband and fellow actor Michel Gill.
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Michel is thrilled to be making his Dorset Theater debut. He is a 1985 graduate of the Juilliard Drama School, which means he’s loved this acting thing for a very long time. You might recognize him from House of Cards, Mr Robot, The Gilded Age, The Dropout or a few other shows … but in the end … tonight is what matters. This performance is dedicated to the glorious and deeply missed Treat Williams.
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Jeremy Gill (Trip Wyeth) is honored to collaborate with such an exceptionally talented team on Other Desert Cities at the Dorset Theatre Festival. A 2021 graduate of UNCSA, Jeremy’s recent credits include Homunculus with IRT Theater, a guest appearance on Law & Order: SVU, and a role in the feature film Cat Person, written by Susanna Fogel and based on the provocative and widely discussed short story of the same name. He’s grateful for the opportunity to tell meaningful stories and looks forward to what’s ahead.Jeremy Gill (Trip Wyeth) is honored to collaborate with such an exceptionally talented team on Other Desert Cities at the Dorset Theatre Festival. A 2021 graduate of UNCSA, Jeremy’s recent credits include Homunculus with IRT Theater, a guest appearance on Law & Order: SVU, and a role in the feature film Cat Person, written by Susanna Fogel and based on the provocative and widely discussed short story of the same name. He’s grateful for the opportunity to tell meaningful stories and looks forward to what’s ahead.
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Laila was recently seen in Ryan Murphy’s anthology series American Horror Stories and recurring on the Amazon series The Boys. She reprised her role of ‘Colonel Grace Mallory,’ on the The Boys’ spin-off series Gen-V. Previously, Laila starred opposite Amanda Seyfried in the Apple+ limited series The Crowded Room and in the Hulu limited series Dr. Death. Laila recurred memorably on the NBC series The Blacklist and had a major arc on the last season of AMC’s The Walking Dead. She has appeared in many films including Eye in the Sky, Side Effects, Blumenthal, Concussion, Multiple Sarcasms, The Good Shepherd, An Innocent Man, Welcome Home Roxy Carmichael, True Crime and Planes Trains and Automobiles. She appeared on Broadway in Heartbreak House, Frozen, and The Herbal Bed. Laila has performed in numerous classical plays regionally including: A Streetcar Named Desire, Antony and Cleopatra, Lion in Winter, and The Three Sisters.
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Elizabeth Stahlmann (Brooke Wyeth) led the world premiere of Tectonic Theater Project’s Here There Are Blueberries directed by Moisés Kauffman which performed at New York Theater Workshop (Lucille Lortel for Outstanding Play), Shakespeare Theater of DC (Helen Hayes Nomination for Best Lead) and La Jolla Playhouse. Other theater credits include: Slave Play (Mark Taper Forum, understudy for Broadway), The Inspector (Yale Rep), Grounded (Westport Country Playhouse-CT Critics Circle Award); The Alley Theatre; The Acting Company (three seasons); The Guthrie Theater; Compagnia de’ Colombari; KrymovLab NYC. TV/film credits include: “City on a Hill,” “The Equalizer,” “Law & Order: SVU,” The Snare. Graduate of University of MN/Guthrie Theater (BFA), Yale (MFA). Member of The Actors Center.Elizabeth Stahlmann (Brooke Wyeth) led the world premiere of Tectonic Theater Project’s Here There Are Blueberries directed by Moisés Kauffman which performed at New York Theater Workshop (Lucille Lortel for Outstanding Play), Shakespeare Theater of DC (Helen Hayes Nomination for Best Lead) and La Jolla Playhouse. Other theater credits include: Slave Play (Mark Taper Forum, understudy for Broadway), The Inspector (Yale Rep), Grounded (Westport Country Playhouse-CT Critics Circle Award); The Alley Theatre; The Acting Company (three seasons); The Guthrie Theater; Compagnia de’ Colombari; KrymovLab NYC. TV/film credits include: “City on a Hill,” “The Equalizer,” “Law & Order: SVU,” The Snare. Graduate of University of MN/Guthrie Theater (BFA), Yale (MFA). Member of The Actors Center.
ABOUT THE CREATIVE TEAM
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Jon Robin Baitz’s plays include The Film Society, The Substance of Fire, The End of the Day, Three Hotels, A Fair Country (Pulitzer Prize finalist 1996), Mizlansky/Zilinsky, Ten Unknowns, and The Paris Letter, as well as a version of Hedda Gabler (Broadway 2001). He created Brothers & Sisters, the TV series which ran for five seasons, until 2011. Other TV work includes PBS’ version of Three Hotels, for which he won the Humanitas Award and episodes of The West Wing and Alias. He is the author of two screenplays: the film script for The Substance of Fire (1996) and People I Know (2002). He is a founding member of Naked Angels Theatre Company and on the faculties of the MFA programs at The New School for Drama and SUNY Stony Brook/Southampton. His play Other Desert Cities was a Pulitzer Prize finalist (2012) and won the Outer Critics Circle Award in 2011.
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Robert is recognized as one of the leading producers, directors and dramaturges of new work for the American theatre over the last 40 years He has developed well over 1,000 new plays during his career in the various programs he has created and led. He is the former Producing Artistic Director of the renowned Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles for 22 seasons, and the Founding Artistic Director of its acclaimed New Work Festival, where Pulitzer Prize winners, Angels in America by Tony Kushner and Kentucky Cycle by Robert Schenkkan, were developed under his leadership -- along with plays by Jon Robin Baitz, Anna Devere Smith, August Wilson and George C. Wolfe. Robert is also the former Associate Artistic Director of the Seattle Repertory Theatre and the creator of its development program, The Other Season, where the legendary Studs Terkel developed his first play, American Dreams Lost and Found, and Arthur Miller developed The American Clock. Robert is the founding Artistic Director/Producer of the award-winning Ojai Playwrights Conference. Having led that organization for 22 years, he inspired its mission to develop new plays that speak to the burning social, cultural and ethical issues of our day. Artists served in that program include Stephen Adly Guirgis, Danai Gurira, Terrence McNally, Danya Taymor, Will Arbery and Jeanine Tesori. Plays developed under Robert’s leadership have been nominated for hundreds of Tony Awards, numerous Pulitzer Prizes for Drama and have been produced on Off and On Broadway, in regional theaters nationally, and in major international theatres from London to Tokyo. Robert is honored to continue his long standing collaboration with Jon Robin Baitz that spans over 35 years and includes dozens of collaborations in theatre, television and film.
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Dorset: Dig, Queen of the Night, Wait Until Dark, Scarecrow, Thirst, The Beauty Queen of Leenane, True Art. Previous designs with: Goodspeed Musicals, Signature Theatre, Hartford Stage, Indiana Repertory Theatre, Dallas Theater Center, Geva Theatre Center, Two River Theatre, Alabama Shakespeare Festival, People’s Light, George Street Playhouse, Everyman Theatre, Miami New Drama, Resident Ensemble Players at UD, Weston Theater, Primary Stages, Red Bull Theater, Fiasco Theater, Tectonic Theater Project, The New Victory Theatre, Classical Theatre of Harlem, Bristol Riverside Theatre, Lincoln Center Education, York Theatre Company, SpeakEasy Stage Company, Penguin Rep, Shadowland Stages, IBEX Puppetry, Trusty Sidekick, A$AP Rocky, Sotheby’s, 2020 Summer Olympics, Big Apple Circus, National Geographic. www.cjswaderdesign.com
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Elivia is a costume designer based in NYC. Recent work: Once Upon A Mattress at Central City Opera in CO and Faust at Heartbeat Opera in NYC. She has designed tons of Shakespeare—a favorite is As You Like It at Notre Dame Shakespeare, directed by Sara Holdren. Elivia has worked in various roles on costume teams for Broadway & Regional theaters, most recently as the Associate Costume Designer for Real Women Have Curves on Broadway. Other spots you may have seen her costume magic & designs include The Guthrie Theater, The Public Theater, Alliance Theatre, Lincoln Center, Manhattan Theatre Club, Two River Theater, Papermill, Hartford Stage, Yale Rep, LaMaMa, Ars Nova, NYU, CapRep, Barrington Stage, and Berkshire Theatre Group. MFA: Yale School of Drama. Elivia is also a professor and has taught Fashion History at FIT and Theater Design & Costume Design at Queens College. Member USA 829. www.eliviabovenzi.com IG: @eliviaseyes
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Patricia is based in New York and her work has been seen Off-Broadway, on National Tours, and in regional theatres across the country. Off-Broadway credits include: How Alfo Learned to Love, Broken, Splintered Souls, Fidelity Futurestage at New World Stages, Because I Can, and Safety. Tricia was a part of the artistic team for The Elf on the Shelf, A Christmas Musical National Tour and The Gazillion Bubble Show National Tour. Her regional theatre credits include her work at: Berkshire Theatre Group, Wellfleet Harbor Actors Theatre, Cape Rep Theatre, and Skyline Theatre Company. Tricia has worked as the Associate Lighting Designer for the Broadway and all domestic and international productions of Jersey Boys, as well as, served as the Associate Lighting Designer on Broadway’s Pirate Queen, Freeman of Color, and the Broadway and all touring productions of Billy Crystal’s 700 Sundays. She has assisted many designers on Broadway productions both in and out of town. Tricia has been a United Scenic Artist member since receiving her MFA in Lighting Design from University of California San Diego.
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Mr Lundeberg is a CBS/Sony recording artist and composer. His works have been performed at festivals throughout the world. Theater and ballet music includes scores for Brooklyn Academy of Music, American Repertory Theater, Geffen Playhouse , American Conservatory Theater, Center Stage, Seattle Repertory Theater, ACT Seattle, Arizona Theater Company, South Coast Repertory Theater, La Jolla Rep, Old Globe Theater, Kirk Douglas Theater, Mark Taper Forum, Pan Asian Repertory Theater, Ahmanson Theater, Schubert Theater Chicago, Chicago Shakespeare, Shakespeare Theater DC. Karl served as composer in residence at the Mark Taper Forum at the Los Angeles Music center and was the musical director/composer for the Ahmanson Theater Shakespeare Repertory Measure for Measure, Midsummer Nights Dream and Romeo and Juliet, all directed by Sir Peter Hall
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Joe is has worked extensively in theater with Caparelliotis Casting since 2014, as well as with Meredith Tucker Casting in film & television. His most recent theater credits include the Broadway productions of Good Night and Good Luck, Grey House, Ohio State Murders, Sam Gold's Macbeth, and The Minutes, as well as off-broadway productions at Signature Theatre, New York Theatre Workshop, The Vineyard, and Ars Nova. Television credits include all three seasons of The White Lotus (HBO), Godfather of Harlem (EPIX), Ray Donovan (Showtime), and the final season of The Bold Type (Freeform).
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Nikolai Gogol's The Inspector, Escaped Alone (Yale Rep) Marys Seacole, How to Live on Earth, HELLYOUTALMBOUT, Measure for Measure (Yale University); Three Sisters, Dindin, Buried Child, The Ballad of Bobby Botswain, Liv at Sea (Harbor Stage Company); Romeo and Juliet, Pride and Prejudice (UMass Boston). MFA, David Geffen School of Drama at Yale University. Thank you to Megan for marrying me.
ADVISORY: TBA
RUNTIME: APPROXIMATELY 2 hours 15 minutes W/ a 15 minute intermission
OTHER DESERT CITIES is produced by Dorset Theatre Festival.
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Support for the 48th season is provided by the Rodgers Family Foundation, The James H. & Irene M. Hunter Charitable Trust, and the members of the Festival’s World Premiere Circle.
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