BlackJack Opens October 8

City Park Players is pleased to announce the upcoming presentation of BlackJack : A Thief of Possession, October 8 -18 at the Hearn Stage in downtown Alexandria, LA. Performances are scheduled Thursday – Saturday Evenings at 7:30 and on Sundays at 2:30 in the afternoon.

Black Jack is a play by Rosary Hartel O’Neill directed by Dan Forest. It follows an eccentric New Orleans family as it is squeezed into the close quarters of a Mississippi Riverboat cruise for the New Year’s holiday. Irene, the matriarch of the family, suspects a rift in her estranged daughter's second marriage. Her Latin assistant sets her sights on the grandson, a successful rock star. Kaitlyn, the daughter, is convinced that she is channeling the poet Baudelaire, and certain that her husband, Beau, a brilliant novelist, is having an affair with a larger-than-life character, Rory DeBango. Everyone dons costumes for a New Year's Eve Party, casting off their old identities. As fireworks explode, cracks are revealed in the family’s façade and ugly truths belie frivolity.

Theresa Louviere is the wealthy New Orleans Garden District matriarch, Irene Soniat DuBonnet. Her daughter, Kaitlyn Dubonnet Ellis, is portrayed by Kim Patton. Beau Ellis is played by Casey Scarbrock and Susan Hathorn is Rory DeBango. Bunky Dubonnet Legere is played by Danny Higdon with Christal Workman as Luisa.

We are especially excited to welcome the playwright, Rosary Hartel O’Neill, to Alexandria on October 10 for the Saturday evening performance at 7:30pm. There will be a Talkback Forum in the Lobby after the presentation of the play.

Rosary is the author of fourteen plays, produced internationally by invitation of the American embassy in Paris, Bonn, Tibilisi, Georgia, Budapest, Hungary, London and Moscow. Her play Uncle Victor was chosen Best New American Drama by the Cort Theater, Hollywood, and celebrated in the Chekhove Now Festival in New York. Blackjack was selected for Alice's Fourth Floor Best New Play Series. She was founding artistic director at Southern Rep Theater from 1987 to 2002. she has been playwright-in-residence at the Sorbonne University, Paris; Tulane University, New Orleans; Defiance College, Ohio, the University of Bonn, Germany and Visiting Scholar at Cornell. And she is the mother of four fabulous children: Barrett, Dale, Rachelle and Rory.

In the continuation of our Community Connections initiative we salute Central Louisiana Arts & Healthcare, a not for profit organization whose mission is to bring innovative arts experiences into healthcare settings. They work to enhance the environment of hospitals and healthcare facilities by providing public performances in lobbies and waiting areas, rotating art galleries, and in-room healing arts experiences for patients and families. We invite you to view the "Chairs For Charity" exhibit on display in the lobby of The Hearn Stage. Twelve chairs creatively decorated and painted by Studio Artists at Ethel Dixon's Studio are being auctioned (final bidding takes place Oct. 16). Proceeds will go to help Central Louisiana Arts & Healthcare continue its healing arts programs.

Reservations are urged. Tickets are available for purchase at the box office before the show. Ticket prices: Adults $12 – Seniors (over 65) $10 - Students $5. The Hearn Stage is located at 3rd & Johnston in Downtown Alexandria in the Rapides Foundation Bldg. Discounted group ticket sales are available. Please contact City Park Players at (318) 442-1800 or email cityparkplayers@gmail.com.