True West
by Sam Shepard
Directed by Michael H. Arve
Presented in June 2009 by GRRC
True West came at the pinnacle of one of the most explosive creative outpourings ever by an American playwright. Between 1966 and 1980 Sam Shepard wrote more than forty plays – the bulk of his output exceeded only by its stunning originality. In the course of those years Shepard’s writing style went from wildly experimental, seemingly random exercises to sturdy, taut, quasi-realistic dramas. One could make a strong argument that True West is the sturdiest, tightest, most realistic Shepard play of all. But, though it is imperative that this play look and feel “real”, to focus entirely on the “realism” in True West is to lose sight of the mythic scope of Shepard’s characters and themes.
- from the director's notes
for this production
True West won acting awards at the 2009 TANYS Festival for Louie Podlaski and Jeff Zielinski. The Mary Eva Duthie Award was given to director Michael H. Arve of Greater Rochester Repertory Companies for excellence in directing.
Cast (in order of appearance)
| Lee | Louie Podlaski |
| Austin | Jeff Zielinski |
| Saul Kimmer | Stephen Elliott |
| Mom | Diane Chevron |
Click here to read the City Paper review.
Click here to view the program.
Click on the poster for a full size version.
Poster design by Louie Podlaski, used by permission.
The cast of GRRC's production of True West
Left to right - Jeff Zielinski, Louie Podlaski, Stephen Elliott and Diane Chevron
TANYS Festival award winners Jeff Zielinski as Austin and Louie Podlaski as Lee in GRRC's True West.
