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Who We Are |
Latest NewsStagedirect Presents The HaintA Southern Gothic ghost story with 13 outlandish characters-and a cast of one, Troy Mink.Portland, OR-October 15, 2001-StageDirect, America's leading producer of fringe theater videos, is bringing The Haint to Portland this November for six late-night showings. The one-man Southern Gothic tour-de-force will appear at CoHo Productions' new 90-seat theater in Northwest Portland. StageDirect is sponsoring the live performances to celebrate The Haint's national release on video. Written by Troy Mink, Tom Fitzmacken and Jeff Pozarski, The Haint revolves around a murder/suicide in the fictitious, tight-knit southern town of Midway, Tennessee. In coming to grips with the tragedy's ghostly aftermath, the good townspeople almost all agree that a disembodied spirit will make the perfect tourist attraction. The Haint's 13 eccentric characters are played by just one actor, Troy Mink. From a sleazy gee-aw-shucks mayor, to a chain-smoking lesbian atheist, to a shrimp-dip obsessed town simpleton, to an effeminate new-age spiritualist-each character is played by Mink, who draws upon a bizarre repertoire of distinct personalities, voices and facial expressions. "The characters, in large part, are based on people I grew up with in Lexington, Kentucky," explains Mink. "I have a lot of compassion for these people-weird as they may be-and it shows." Since the play's debut at the 1996 Seattle Fringe Festival, The Haint has attracted an almost cult-like following. "People return for a second or third or even fourth time to hear their favorite characters utter their favorite phrases," says Mink. "It's clear that these characters go home with the audience at night. And of course, I have no choice but to take them home." Mink says his most challenging scene is a lights-out séance in which five different townspeople seamlessly interact. "It's a matter of mind over vocal cords," he says. "The Haint will smash your preconceptions of what small theater is all about," says StageDirect Founder and CEO Gary Cole. "Mink is phenomenally talented." What: The Haint StageDirect captures the best of fringe theater for distribution on VHS and DVD. Established in 2001, the Portland-based company scours the Western Hemisphere for high-caliber, offbeat shows that challenge the American stereotype of "theater." Every effort is made during taping and editing to preserve the intimacy and uncommon energy of live performance. StageDirect videos are available on the company's web site, slated for launch November 1. www.stagedirect.com |
Media ContactJody Nichols |
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