Thursday, April 15, 2010

The University of North Carolina Wilmington Department of Theatre presents Dead Man's Cell Phone in the Mainstage Theatre of the Cultural Arts Building, April 22-26. Written by Sarah Ruhl, the play will be directed by theatre professor Paul Castagno.

Dead Man's Cell Phone, described on the theatre department's posters as a "wacky yet poignant statement on technology and the desire for human connection," focuses on a dead man, Gordon, his cell phone, and the beautiful stranger, Jean, who answers his calls, connecting her to a strange world.

Director Paul Castagno notes that the cell phone has become an invaluable body part in today's society, an extension of the human arm and the "sine qua non of people's lives and being." The immediate impulse to answer a call or text usurps the moment, curtailing or interrupting real human contact and intimacy. The play deals with this issue comically, while it also addresses the very serious issue of the illegal trade in human body parts.

"This play could be considered a romantic comedy with an edge," said Castagno. "At the heart of the play is the love story of Jean (Erica Mutton) and Dwight (Charles Johnston). In old form traditional comedy, you always had the 'blocking character' the prevented the lovers from consummating their love. In Dead Man's Cell Phone, the blocking character is the cell phone that interrupts, always at the most inopportune times."

Castagno said that in directing this production he wanted a fluid or seamless interpretation of the play. He opted for moving scenery and projections that capture the transient essence of the cell phone culture, while moving the audience through space and time, whether real or imagined.

"It's kind of a Facebook world, where we upload songs, photos and friends that blur the virtual with the real," he explained.

Dead Man's Cell Phone will be performed at 8 p.m. Thursday through Saturday, April 22-24, and Monday, April 26. A matinee performance will take place at 2 p.m. Sunday, April 25. All performances will be in the Mainstage Theatre in the Cultural Arts Building on the UNCW campus.

Individual show tickets for all performances are $12 general public, $10 UNCW employee/alumni or senior citizens, and $5 students. Patrons may also save by purchasing a Punch Card of four tickets at $40 general public and $30 UNCW employee/alumni or senior citizens in advance at the Kenan Auditorium Box Office, 910.962.3500.

All other tickets are available at the door only. The Cultural Arts Building Box Office is open one hour prior to performances for day-of-show ticket purchase and will-call pickup. For group rates or special accommodations, call 910.962.2061 or e-mail theatre@uncw.edu.

Media contact:
Dana Fischetti, media relations manager, 910.962.7259 or fischettid@uncw.edu

Video, photo and interview opportunities available with director Paul Castagno and cast members, and media are invited to attend play rehearsals.

Photo caption: Erica Mutton as Jean and Charles Johnston as Dwight in Dead Man's Cell Phone, which will be presented by the UNCW Department of Theatre April 22-26 in the Cultural Arts Building Mainstage Theatre.