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Denotes Timothy D. Turner’s involvement

Briton's play opens Sands Theater season
Daytona News Journal

By BARBARA McINNIS
Staff Writer

Last update: August 17, 2005

DELAND -- A man walks into a Toronto emergency room suffering injuries from a beating that has left him with no memory of who he is, what's happened, or where he comes from.

This is the news account that inspired English actor Philip Ralph to write the play "Mr. Nobody," opening Friday at the Sands Theater.

Even after extensive media coverage, nobody came forward to say they knew the homeless man. "This sparked off a series of questions in me -- how do we know we are who we say we are? What is self anyway? Don't we just construct our personalities to stop us from going insane?" Ralph wrote in an e-mail interview.

Ralph said he began writing seriously about three years ago and considers himself fortunate to be taken on as a "writer on attachment" at the Soho Theatre in London. "As part of my attachment, I was commissioned by them to write a play about anything I wanted."

The play being performed on the intimate black box stage at the Sands started out as a longer piece, but Ralph said it soon became clear the drama was all in one room in one scene. "The play is something of a Chinese box puzzle . . ." said the author. "My main intention with this play, as with anything I write, is to give the audience food for thought -- to ask them more questions than I provide answers to."

According to Gary Norris, director, the story takes place in the loft of a church across the street from the social worker's home. The time is contemporary -- any day except Sunday.

Bill Crippen, who plays the homeless man with amnesia, said, "It's definitely a drama." Crippen said the character, Tommy, has been a challenge to portray.

"It's a psychological drama," said Gail Fleming Crippen, who is Crippen's wife in real life. "My part is very emotional, lots of crying."

The character she portrays, Claire, claims to be Tommy's wife and when a social worker played by Chelsea Cox, DeLand, brings the couple together, questions whirl: Who are they really, what do they want, where are they going and what's so special about tuna sandwiches, anyway?

On Friday, Ralph's play makes its North American debut. According to the actor/playwright, "Mr. Nobody" has been performed in Germany and Denmark. Ralph will not be able to attend Friday's opening in DeLand because he is at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival performing his latest piece, "Hitting Funny," a one-man show about a stand-up comedian.

Some may wonder how the Sands Theater discovered Ralph's relatively new play. According to both Ralph and president of the theater's board, Rene Sands, Ralph's aunt --a friend of Audrey Coldron, who is also from England and has been artist in residence at the Sands for the last 15 years -- submitted a copy of the play to the theater. The board reviewed and chose the play in 2004 for the current season.

IF YOU GO

WHAT: "Mr. Nobody."

WHEN: 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday and Aug. 25-27; 2:30 p.m. Sunday and Aug. 28

WHERE: Sands Theater Center Stage II, 600 N. Woodland Blvd., DeLand

TICKETS: $12 for adults, $6 for students.

INFORMATION: For reservations, call (386) 736-7456.

THEATER OFFERS VARIETY IN 2005-06

DELAND -- The 2005-06 season of plays, events, and productions on the Main Stage at the Sands Theater, 600 N. Woodland Blvd., DeLand, features:

· Sept. 16-Oct. 2: "Camelot," book and lyrics by Alan Jay Lerner, music by Frederick Loewe.

· Oct. 28-Nov. 6L: "Dracula: A Tale Told by Mina Harker," adapted from Bram Stoker's "Dracula" by Darlene Lentz-Stewart, and co-produced with Storybook Theater Company.

· Nov. 27: DeLand Little Symphony, concert performance.

· Jan. 20-29: "Da," by Hugh Leonard, winner of the Tony Award for Best Play and other prestigious awards.

· Feb. 26: DeLand Little Symphony, concert performance.

· March 17-26: "Enchanted April," a romantic comedy by Mathew Barber, from the novel by Elizabeth Von Arnim.

· May 5-21: "Pippin," music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz, book by Roger O. Hirson..

Plays scheduled for Stage II:

· Aug. 19-28: "Mr. Nobody," the North American debut of a psychological drama by Philip Ralph.

· Oct. 14-23: "The Real Queen of Hearts Ain't Even Pretty," by Brad Bailey.

· Nov. 11-20: "First Baptist of Ivy Gap," an award-winning new play by Ron Osborn.

· Feb. 10-19: "A Golden Age from the Sands of Time," light-hearted musical entertainment by the touring company.

· April 21-30: "The Anastasia File," a spellbinding play with an unusual twist by Royce Ryton.

Storybook Theater offerings:

· Nov. 12 &19: "The Magic Pinata," book and lyrics by Karen Zacarias, music by Deborah Wicks La Puma.

· Dec. 9-18: "The Nutcracker," adapted by June Walker Rogers, produced in partnership with The Academy of Dance Arts for a play version of the Tchaikovsky ballet.

· March 4: "Storywagon: African Tales," by Darlene J. Stewart.

· March 11: "Edgar Allan Poe," by Timothy Turner and Kylie Koscoe.

· June 9-18: "The Martian Chronicles," by Ray Bradbury.

· July 8 & 15" "Pig Tales," a collection of porcine stories for young children.

· July 21-30: "The Phantom Tollbooth," by Susan Nanus.