The Rainmaker, by N. Richard Nash, is a romantic comedy, set in the drought stricken Midwest of the late 1930's. Times of drought--emotional, spiritual and otherwise--come to individuals and to communities. Should we throw away judgment and put our faith in charlatans? The right path isn't always clear. "Dreams really do come true in N. Richard Nash's gloriously optimistic comedy about miracles, drought, family and love. This charming fable about a con artist living completely in his dreams, a spinster living entirely outside her dreams, and her delightful farm family in the midst of a drought is a joy for every audience" --The New York Times. The play revolves around Lizzie Curry, a plain young woman who lives with her father and two brothers on their ranch. The men have been trying unsuccessfully to marry Lizzie off, when one day a charismatic stranger arrives with an offer to bring rain--for a price. Starbuck, the "rainmaker" exercises his fascination on the whole family. Lizzie falls under his spell and ultimately learns to believe in the beauty she possesses. In the end, each character must look inward to find a balance between reality and imagination, a space where faith and fact can both live.
The Rainmaker played at the West End Theatre August 3-27th, 2006.
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About The Show
The newly formed Home Planet Productions took on Paula Vogel's Desdemona...A Play About A Handkerchief. This comic deconstruction of Shakespeare's Othello combines biting humor with serious challenges to our beliefs about the nature of love and the role of women in society.
Donna Mcfall, director and founder of Home Planet Productions, was proud to bring Vogel's work to life once again. "I have wanted to produce this play ever since my first staged reading of it at PSU in 2002. It is an absolutely wonderful piece. It's a backstage version of Othello, seen from the women's point of view. And the women are nothing like we have assumed! Vogel really makes us think about the effect of class and gender on human life."
The all female cast included Stephanie Danna as Desdemona, Amanda Soden as Emilia, and Christy Hernquist as Bianca.
The production played at the CoHo Theater, 2257 NW Raleigh, as a limited engagement, August 11th-21st, 2005.