About This Show
New Repertory Theatre presents the Boston area premiere of Topdog/Underdog, written by Suzan-Lori Parks. Directed by Kent Gash in association with Alliance Theatre Company of Atlanta, GA and Trinity Repertory Company of Providence, RI.
Bursting with big ideas, Topdog/Underdog earned Suzan-Lori Parks distinction as the first African-American woman to win the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 2002. Directed by Kent Gash, who helmed the Elliot Norton Award Winning production of Pacific Overtures, with scenic design by 2004 Tony winner Eugene Lee.
A darkly comic fable of brotherly love and family identity, Topdog/Underdog tells the story of Lincoln and Booth, two brothers whose names were given to them as a joke. The younger of the two, Booth, wants to be a legendary three-card monte street hustler like his brother. Lincoln has given up the street life to go legitimate as an Abraham Lincoln impersonator at an arcade. He dresses up in a beard, paints his face white, dons a stove-pipe hat, and allows patrons to “shoot” at him as if they were John Wilkes Booth. This thrilling comic-drama digs deep into the existential dilemmas of being African-American and male in the United States. Exploring how history defines us, the play tells a lifetime of sibling rivalry and resentment.
Student, senior, and group discounts available Matinee and evening performances.
This play contains strong language.
