Perfect Mendacity
By Jason Wells
Directed by A. Skola Summers
Walter Kreutzer, a microbiologist for a defense contractor, is being investigated by his employers over an incriminating memo that was leaked to the media. Walter thinks his Moroccan wife may have done the whistleblowing, and to protect her - and himself - Walter needs to learn how to defeat a lie detector, and fast. D'avore Peoples, a polygraph consultant, is happy to help - for a price, of course. But D'avore's technique will require Walter to look deep within himself, a terrifying prospect for a man hiding from himself.
With his best friend spying on him, his wife intent on opening old wounds, and D'avore uncovering dark secrets, Walter's desperate journey toward the perfect lie becomes a spiral into paranoia and bitter reckoning.
April 7-22
2017
at hyde park theatre
synopsis
playwright
Jason Wells
"There's always a price to pay for self-deception, whether we're talking about nations, ideologues, or just people. Sometimes we, the self-deceivers, pay the price. Sometimes others have to. I always think it's better to know than to not know. I think it but I don't always feel it. "Perfect Mendacity" is me getting into the middle of that struggle. We have a right to our secrets, surely, but which secrets? And who gets to know them, finally?"
bio
Jason Wells' plays include Men of Tortuga (Asolo Repertory Theatre), The North Plan (Portland Center Stage), Perfect Mendacity (Asolo Repertory Theatre) and The Engine of Our Ruin (Victory Theatre Center). All four plays have been featured as a part of Steppenwolf Theatre's First Look Series. He has also had staged readings at Manhattan Theatre Club and La Jolla Playhouse. Jason won the American Theatre Critics Association M. Elizabeth Osborn Award in 2010 and was nominated for the L.A. Drama Critics Award in 2016. This is the third play of Jason's that Street Corner Arts has produced.
REVIEWS
"Playwright Jason Wells has contributed a lot to the brand Street Corner Arts has established since their 2011 debut. Perfect Mendacityis the third of his oeuvre they've put on stage at the Hyde Park Theatre, which gives them a clean sweep of this Steppenwolf playwright's 2008 - 2016 work...Perfect Mendacity's two acts fly by in the stark floor-level space created in the playing area of the Hyde Park Theatre... (The) audience appreciated a clever well executed script and familiar faces giving strong performances. The evening had just the right mixture of suspense, contradiction and comedy."
(Entire Review)
Michael Meigs, CTX Live Theatre
"As directed by A. Skola Summers, this Street Corner Arts production places the dark humor of the script front and center to marvelous effect. The timing and pacing are perfect... She's also employed a top notch cast with impressive comedic chops...Street Corner Arts consistently delivers the goods with their productions and PERFECT MENDACITY continues their tradition in fine form. For a night out that will make you laugh hard and often while leaving you with a lot to consider, you can't go wrong with this production." (Entire Review)
Frank Benge, BroadwayWorld.com
CAST
Kenneth Wayne Bradley
Reggie Brown
Brock England
Indigo Rael
& Michael Stuart
cast & creative
Kenneth Wayne Bradley*
Walter kreutzer
reggie brown
d'avore peoples
indigo rael
samira kreutzer
Michael Stuart*
roger stanhope
This marks Ken’s second collaboration with Street Corner Arts. The first time was as Taggart in their very first production, MEN OF TORTUGA. For that performance, he was honored with the B. Iden Payne Award. Ken has appeared on the Hyde Park stage many times since 1993, including recent performances in HAND 2 GOD, YEAR OF THE ROOSTER, KILLER JOE, A STEADY RAIN., HUNTER GATHERERS, and THE PILLOWMAN which earned him an Austin Critics’ Table Award for his performance as Ariel. Some of Ken’s more recent stage performances away from HPT include THE KING OF TEXAS for Frontera Fest as Sam Houston, Claudius in HAMLET at the Mary Moody Northen Theatre. He originated the character Abner in his one-man show entitled WICKER CHAIRS and also penned WIND CHIMES AND VARICOSE CREAM, which was published in the Texas Theatre Journal. Ken has appeared on television in featured, co-starring or recurring roles in THE LEFTOVERS (HBO), LONGMIRE (A&E/ NETFLIX), QUEEN OF THE SOUTH (USA Network) REVOLUTION (NBC), FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS (NBC), DALLAS (TNT), KILLER WOMEN (ABC), CHASE (NBC),PRISON BREAK (FOX), and WALKER, TEXAS RANGER. He has also been featured and co-starred in OLYMPUS HAS FALLEN with Morgan Freeman, DRIVE ANGRY 3D with Nicolas Cage, ROOM––which ran at the Sundance and Cannes Film Festivals. Two films featuring Ken will be presented at the Hill Country Film Festival (April 27th -30 th) : LA BARRACUDA, and AS FAR AR THE EYE CAN SEE, and he just finished work on an upcoming ABC pilot with Jason Ritter called THE GOSPEL OF KEVIN. Ken came to Austin in 1991, lives in Leander with his wife Cathy, and is a graduate of the Fine Arts program at Sam Houston State University.
* Member Actor's Equity Association
Reggie Brown is an Austin Community College Adjunct Associate Professor and member of the Drama Department Faculty. He was most recently seen in Austin Shakespeare’s production of Macbeth in the role of “Banquo”. Since moving to Austin Mr. Brown’s other credits include ACC’s production of the Pulitzer Prize winning play, Water by the Spoonful in the role of “Chutes and Ladders”, and in As You Like It as “Dukes Senior & Frederick”, The Invention of Love as “Mark Pattison”, The Taming of the Shrew as “Horatio”, and Medea, as “King Aegeus” for Austin Shakespeare.
Indigo Rael studied visual art at the University of North Texas before moving to Austin to pursue acting for film and theatre. Notable film credits include Larry Clark's MARFA GIRL, Matt Muriel's THANK YOU A LOT and the self produced short film POLLY MERMAID. Behind a black mask, she puppeteers with Trouble Puppet Theatre and will be touring next year with Glass Half Full Theatre's collaboration with Mother Falcon, PETRA AND THE WOLF as the Duck. On stage, Indigo has played with Capital T Theatre in MARIE ANTOINETTE as the title character, EXIT PURSUED BY A BEAR as Sweetheart, THE PAIN AND THE ITCH as Kalina, and THE MOTHERFUCKER WITH THE HAT as Veronica. Other theatrical work includes Constance in SHE STOOPS TO CONQUER at Austin Playhouse, Glass Half Full Theatre's MISSIONARY POSITION as Annie Kopchovsky Londonderry Whataburger Hartman, and as Jonah in DOMAIN by ARCOS Dance. She was last seen on stage with Street Corner Arts as Tanya in THE NORTH PLAN, also by Jason Wells.
Michael is a member of the Austin playhouse Acting Company. Austin playhouse productions include Born Yesterday, The Importance of Being Earnest, Educating Rita, The 19 Steps, Misalliance, The Mousetrap, Frost/Nixon, The Fantasticks, Heroes, It’s a Wonderful Life:
A Radio Play, A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, Stones in His Pockets, Inherit the Wind, The Threepenny Opera, Moonlight and Magnolias, An Ideal Husband, The Night Hank Willliams Died, The Odd Couple, House and Garden, The Mystery of Edwin Drood, Rumors, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, Kiss Me Kate, Travesties, and The Dead Presidents’ Club. He directed Austin Playhouse’s production of Sylvia and co-directed Speed the Plow. For more than ten years, Michael was the Artistic Director of OnStage Theatre Company, producing, directing, and acting in over forty productions including Harvey, Shirley Valentine and Ten Little Indians. Michael was recently seen at St. Edwards University in The Crucible, in Breaking String Theatre’s production of Ghosts, and at ZACH Theatre in August: Osage County and most recently in Harvey as Dr. William R. Chumley.
* Member Actor's Equity Association
Brock England has been active in theater and film for over twenty years. Since his move to Austin in 2004, he has worked with such companies as The Rude Mechs, Hidden Room Theatre, Shrewd Productions, Trouble Puppet Theater Company, and Penfold Theatre. Recent credits include four seasons touring internationally with the Austin-based live action graphic novel The Intergalactic Nemesis (Timmy Mendez, Dr. Webster etc.) as a voice actor, and Penfold Theatre's A Christmas Carol live radiocast (Jacob Marley, Fred, etc.). In his free time he enjoys cooking, running strangely long distances, sailing, and working on anything mechanical. This is his first performance with Street Corner Arts and he is honored to work for a company of this caliber.
brock england
dr. doll
A. Skola Summers
Director
