NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Rising Middle East tensions and self-centered government policies serve as the backdrop for Lee Blessing’s drama "Two Rooms," Vanderbilt University Theatre’s next production April 4, 5, 10, 11, 12 at 8 p.m. and Sunday, April 6 at 2 p.m. in Neely Auditorium on the Vanderbilt campus.
Directed by Jeffrey Ullom, assistant professor of theatre, the drama places an American hostage, held captive in a featureless cell, beside his wife, who has stripped a room in their home of furnishings to better understand his deprivation. An aggressive journalist bent on getting the story and an unfeeling State Department official invade her sanctuary as the couple, communicating only through imagination, provide each other the strength needed to transcend their ordeal. Written after the Lebanese hostage crisis in the 1980s, "Two Rooms" has taken on a new significance as a critical examination of the personal politics of terrorism brought home to America.
"Blessing’s play offers a timely and insightful look behind stated intentions as well as the dilemma faced by innocent victims caught in the middle," said Ullom.
The presentation is open to the public. For reservations and ticket information, call 322-2404 or e-mail: lisa.l.barksdale@vanderbilt.edu. General admission is $7. Tickets are free for Vanderbilt undergraduate students (with Vanderbilt ID) and $4 for Vanderbilt graduate students (with Vanderbilt ID).
Neely Auditorium is located on campus between Sarratt Student Center and Kirkland Hall. For more information see the VUT web site: http://www.vanderbilt.edu/theatre.