Six Degrees of Separation
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Written by John Guare Winner of the 1993 Olivier Award for Best Play and the New York Drama Critics Circle Award Directed by Haley Murphy |
Synopsis:
Inspired by a true story, the play follows the trail of a young black con man, Paul, who insinuates himself into the lives of a wealthy New York couple, Ouisa and Flan Kittredge, claiming he knows their son at college. Paul tells them he is the son of actor Sidney Poitier, and that he has just been mugged and all his money is gone. Captivated by Paul’s intelligence and his fascinating conversation (and the possibility of appearing in a new Sidney Poitier movie), the Kittredges invite him to stay overnight. Things fall apart in the morning and they kick him out. Later, Ouisa and Flan discover that friends of theirs have had a similar run-in with the brash con artist. Intrigued, they turn detective and piece together the connections that gave Paul access to their lives. Meanwhile, Paul’s cons unexpectedly lead him into darker territory and his lies begin to catch up with him.
FLAN: Matthew Randall
OUISA: Marianne Meyers
PAUL: Christopher Holbert
KITTY: Erin Anderson King
LARKIN: J. Kevin Daly
WOODY: Jack Solano
TESS: Nicole Jacobs
BEN: Wayne Jacques
DR. FINE: Drew Scallion
TRENT: Michael Schaaff
HUSTLER: Joe Helein
DOUG: Michael Bertoni
RICK: Joel Piper
ELIZABETH: Emily Price
POLICEMAN/DETECTIVE/DOORMAN: Thomas Holman
GEOFFREY: Tim Griffin
Producer: Colleen Stock
Director: Haley Murphy
Stage Manager: Joan Lada
Asst Stage Manager: Michael Schaaff
Technical Director: Rick Wilson
Set Designer: Dawn Chila
Master Carpenter: Rick Wilson, Kevin King
Set Dressing/Props: Mike Smith
Lighting Design: Steve Barker
Master Electrician: Earl Boatman
Sound Design: Jeff Bender
Costume Design: Christine Spata
Assistant Costume Design: Jacquin Allen Pierce
I started working on Six Degrees at about the same time that I entered the world of Facebook. Facebook absolutely fascinates me – to have “friends”, and friends of friends, that are all connected through the web you create – but without the work of a real relationship. So much easier! The Facebook world sees only what you chose to show them. Today’s status: I have really great plans that are better than yours! We feel connected to all these people in our life, but it is an illusion. Would you even know if you were de-friended? You would in the real world, but not in the Facebook world. Your friend just quietly sneaks out. It is now almost 20 years since Six Degrees was written – in 1990 we were nowhere near Facebook, or emails, text messages, IMs, or even cell phones and laptops. Yet today we are more isolated than ever – despite all these ways to stay more connected. The heart of this play is more meaningful now than ever.
There is so much more to Six Degrees than this first layer, this overwhelming force that motivates these characters with the desire to connect and to have real, meaningful relationships. Desire leaps through this play like the bursts of color on a black canvas. There is desire for love, for passion, for power, and for truth. For status, for comfort, for art, for wealth. For order, for chaos! Desire pushes them forward, and ironically pulls them further apart. The contrasts abound, yet the contrasts are what make these characters incredibly fascinating – and real.
Ultimately this inner truth is what draws us into this beautifully written play. Although it is a uniquely New York story, the characters in Six Degrees face an existential crisis that is universal. We all go about our lives, continuing down whatever path we happen to be on – each choice we make taking us further and further along. What would it take to make us stop and question everything – why this path? Did I make the right choices? Do I have real connections? Do I have to keep going now or can I change directions – is it too late? We are accountable for our choices, it is never too late. If we look around us for the connections – they are there.
–Haley Murphy
“It’s not a conspiracy. It’s a family.”
—Flan Kittredge
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