Theater News

Axis Theatre Stages the World Premiere of Randy Sharp's The Vast Machine

Sharp also directs the production.

Brian Barnhart, Sean Patrick Monahan, Julian Rozzell, Brian Carter, and George Demas in The Vast Machine.
Brian Barnhart, Sean Patrick Monahan, Julian Rozzell, Brian Carter, and George Demas in The Vast Machine.
(© Dixie Sheridan)

The world-premiere production of The Vast Machine, a new play written and directed by Randy Sharp, is currently running at the Axis Theatre. Performances will run through November 7.

The Vast Machine draws from Marcus Rediker’s book The Slave Ship: A Human History, which won the 2008 George Washington Book Prize. The plot focuses on the dilemmas facing the crew of a slave ship at sea in the Middle Passage. Following an unsuccessful slave insurrection, the crew is almost completely decimated by illness, alcohol and accident, and is quickly running out of food and water, so the remaining five members must decide what to do with the 235 living people beneath the deck.

The Vast Machine features Brian Barnhart, Brian Carter, George Demas, Sean Patrick Monahan, and Julian Rozzell. The production includes set design by Chad Yarborough, lighting design by David Zeffren, costume design by Karl Ruckdeschel, and sound design by Steve Fontaine.

For tickets and more information, click here.

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The Vast Machine

Closed: November 7, 2015