by Sam Shepard
directed by Kim Tobin-Lehl

September 8 - September 30, 2016

True West

A modern American classic exploring themes of sibling rivalry, art as commerce, and what it means to 'be a man.' Like a runaway train, this dark comedy about two brothers and their mutual resentment takes audiences on a thrill ride into the dark side of the human psyche, with laughs and unexpected moments of revelation along the way. In its world premiere, the San Francisco Chronicle noted that True West is "clear, funny, naturalistic. It's also opaque, terrifying, surrealistic. If that sounds contradictory, you're on to one aspect of Shepard's winning genius-the ability to make you think you’re watching one thing while at the same time he's presenting another."

  • Nick Farco as Austin

    Drake Simpson as Lee

    Philip Lehl as Saul

    Sally Burtenshaw as Mom

  • Stage Manager | Michelle Ritter

    Assistant Director | Ian Dunn

    Set Design | Kevin Rigdon

    Lighting Design | Kevin Rigdon

    Sound Design | Yezminne Zepeda

    Costume Design | Leah Smith

    Properties Master | Jean Gonzalez

    Fight Choreographer | Josh Morrison

    House Manager | Juliana Olarte

    Carpenter/Painter | Claire A. “Jac” Jones

    Stage Crew | William Burke

  • One of the most influential and celebrated playwrights of the late 20th century, Sam Shepard developed an extensive body of work that was preoccupied with the myth of the vanishing West and dysfunctional families on the verge of tragedy. More existentialist and surrealist than romantic and conventional, Shepard often wrote plays that incorporated symbolism and non-linear storytelling while being populated with drifters, fading rock stars and others living on the edge. He also employed eccentric, inventive language - and sometimes music - to explore the parallel fantasy of disappearing from the known world. After getting his start with one-acts like "Cowboy" and "Icarus' Mother," Shepard won numerous awards with full length plays like "Curse of the Starving Class" (1978) and "Buried Child" (1978), the latter of which earned him a Pulitzer Prize in Drama. His playwriting career reached its zenith with the popular "True West" (1980), after which Shepard began focusing more on acting with roles in "The Right Stuff" (1983) and "Steel Magnolias" (1989). By time he was inducted into the Theater Hall of Fame in 1994, Shepard was far and away one of the greatest playwrights of his generation, as well as a movie star whose rugged good looks and deep intelligence made him a modern descendent of the likes of Gary Cooper. Sam Shepard died on July 30, 2017 on his farm near Midway, Kentucky of complications from ALS (Lou Gehrig's disease). He was 73.

    (Full Biography can be found at Turner Classic Movies)