Quite Intelligent but somewhat Twisted, Cheray Martin stars in STONEWALL JACKSON'S HOUSE, an Outrageous New Comedy by Jonathan Reynolds. Photo by Doug Kilgore
Main Street Theater
Presents
STONEWALL JACKSON'S
HOUSE
HOUSTON, TX - Main Street Theater continues its groundbreaking 24th season with the regional
premiere of Jonathan Reynolds' hilarious new "play within a play," Stonewall Jackson's House,
beginning in previews Saturday, September 26; Sunday, September 27, and Wednesday,
September 30,1998, at 2540 Times Boulevard in Rice Village. Regular performances begin
Thursday, October 1, and run through Sunday, November 1. Tickets are available by calling
713-524-6706.
While leading a tour of the haphazardly restored home of the Confederate general, a young
African-American docent suddenly has a revelation. An uproar ensues as she abruptly stops the
tour and asks an affluent white couple if she can come home with them - as their slave! But the
most astonishing moments are still to come, as the true setting of the play - and the identity of the
playwright - are revealed. Audiences will be left dumbfounded by Stonewall Jackson's House, a
sophisticated, yet unrestrained rampage through the well-intentioned, but agenda-laden forces of
the politically correct.
Peter Marks of the New York Times said, "Affirmative action, political correctness, welfare, black
studies, ethnocentricism, multiculturalism... Mr. Reynolds pushes so many buttons he could have
staged the play in an elevator."
Another Regional Premiere for MST
Stonewall Jackson's House received its first production off-Broadway at the American Place
Theater in February 1997. While productions are being planned in Boston and San Francisco for
next year, Houston's Main Street Theater will give the play its Southwest Premiere.
Long known for its vast repertory of well-known theatrical standards, Main Street Theater has
chosen to open its 1998-99 season with two brand new works, both regional premieres, and both
unorthodox, highly-political works that will take Houston by surprise. While the well-received yet
controversial An American Daughter by Wendy Wasserstein explored the all-too-realistic
personalities of Washington politicos, Stonewall Jackson's House takes aim at the ranks of the
politically correct, with a host of outrageously exaggerated characters ranging from a ridiculously
costumed Confederate housewife / tour guide and a "redneck" tourist named Junior, to an
overachieving NYU grad student and an aging yet still bravura actress.
Jack Kroll of Newsweek called Stonewall Jackson's House....."The funniest and most outrageous
play of the season, a fusillade of satire aimed at our comfortably congealed political orthodoxies.
He's brought brainy cantankerousness back with a vengeance. Mr. Reynolds climbs on his
soapbox for an ambling, ftmny, cranky and highly entertaining diatribe against the forces that he
believes have wrung common sense out of American political and cultural life."
About The Playwright
Jonathan Reynolds' career in the entertainment industry began in 1975 with a series of one act plays
entitled Yanks 3 Detroit 0 Top of the 7th and Rubbers, both directed by Alan Arkin at the
American Place Theater. He also produced and wrote for the Dick Cavett and David Frost
television shows, and served as a political strategist for Eugene McCarthy. He went on to write
several plays, the books for two musicals (including the Broadway revival of Whoopee! and
screenplays for Micki and Maude (with Dudley Moore), and Switching Channels (with Kathleen
Turner and Christopher Reeve). Stonewall Jackson's House is the first work by Reynolds to be
produced by MST.
About This Production of Stonewall Jackson's House
Charlene Hudgins, who recently brought down the house as Judith in this past summer's production
of Hay Fever, directed Main Street Theater's production of Stonewall Jackson's House. She has
also appeared at MST in An Enemy of the People, Much Ado About Nothing, and The Legend
ofSleepy Hollow. Her directoral credits include numerous productions for Gypsy Theatre
Company and Houston Community College.
Cast members include Ensemble Theatre veteran Cheray Martin, Brooke Baumer (Hay Fever at
MST; Durang Durang and Talk Radio at Actors Theatre), Ellen Suits (Hay Fever, A Festival of
One Act Plays at MST), Joe Hudson (MST's Enemy of the People), and Paul Menzel.
Where: 2540 Times Boulevard in Rice Village; 713-524-6706
Half-Price Previews: Saturday, June 26 ($9.00); Sunday, June 27 ($7.00); and Wednesday, June
30 ($6.50)
Regular Performances: Thursday, October 1 - Sunday, November 1, 1998
Showtimes / Prices: Thursdays at 7:30 p.m. ($13.00); Fridays/Saturdays at 8:00 p.m. ($18.00);
Sundays at 4:00 p.m. ($14.00). Half-price Student Rush tickets available one hour before curtain,
pending availability. Discounts available for seniors and groups of ten or more.
Please Note: There will be no performance on Friday, October 2, 1998.