by Elizabeth DeSchryver
directed by Steven Carpenter
Friday, April 12—May 5, 2024
When Agatha Ganner discovers a mystery painting in her deceased husband’s art collection, she engages an energetic graduate student to research it for her. As disturbing crimes of the past are unearthed, Agatha must decide to either right the wrong – and possibly ruin lives – or leave the past in the past. Is doing the right thing always the right thing to do? A World Premiere.
>There will be a post-show discussion with members of the cast and company of AN UNBUILT LIFE following this Sunday’s matinee performance (April 21).
“This mystery is for art lovers and those captivated by the thrill of research, discovery, and the pursuit of truth no matter the cost.” — DC Theater Arts
“HIGHLY ENGAGING…building tense, human drama out of a heady blend of philosophy and mystery.” — MD Theatre Guide
Susan Holliday as Agatha
JC Payne as Scott
David Bryan Jackson
as Paul
Steve Carpenter (Director)
is the Associate Artistic Director of the Washington Stage Guild, where his directing credits include Major Barbara, Sam & Dede, Resolving Hedda, Red Herring, Opus, and The Underpants, among others. Other area productions include God of Carnage at Compass Rose, The Cripple of Inishmaan at 1st Stage, The Price, and ART at Bay Theatre, Barrymore, Hysteria, and Trumbo for Rep Stage, and The Chosen at Theater J. He received a Helen Hayes Award nomination for his production of Thief River at Theatre Alliance and was a recipient of the Mary Goldwater Award for Directing. Steven appeared on stage at WSG earlier this season as the men in The Victorian Ladies’ Detective Collective and was also seen here in Memoirs of a Forgotten Man, Bloomsday, Hard Times, Pygmalion, and The Philanderer (Helen Hayes nomination) along with numerous others. A third Helen Hayes nomination came for providing the onstage sound effects for the Guild’s It’s A Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play.
Elizabeth DeSchryver
is an award-winning playwright, short story author and poet. She earned her PhD at Northwestern University, specializing in Victorian Literature with a Shakespeare chaser. Logically, she then spent 24 years working for a technology consulting firm before leaving to write full-time. Her short plays have been produced at Chicago Dramatists, 2nd Act Players, and most recently at the 8×10 Eileen Moushey TheatreFest (Weathervane Playhouse). She is a member of the Dramatists Guild, a Network Playwright with Chicago Dramatists, and a founding member of the Telling Humans Playwright Studio. She is thrilled to be having her world premiere at the Washington Stage Guild, and grateful that they were willing to take a chance on a newbie.
