Detroit Mercy Theatre Company (DMTC) will open its 56th season with Sarah Ruhl’s imaginative play, Eurydice, in the Black Box Theatre on UDM’s McNichols Campus.
Seven performances will run in back-to-back weekends, Friday through Sunday, Nov 6-15.
The production marks a special moment for both Detroit Mercy Theatre Company and University of Detroit Mercy, as the University celebrates its 150th anniversary. Eurydice will serve as the featured event for November in UDM’s yearlong celebration, inviting audiences to experience a contemporary reimagining of the classic myth of Orpheus and Eurydice as told by Eurydice.
After her untimely death, Eurydice journeys into the Underworld, where she encounters her father amidst a mysterious landscape. When Orpheus arrives to bring her back to the world of the living, Eurydice must make a profound choice between the pull of her former life and the possibility of remaining with her father.
“Eurydice is a beautiful play about memory,” said Sarah Hawkins Rusk, managing director of Detroit Mercy Theatre Company. “It feels particularly meaningful to begin our season with a story that invites us to look backward while also considering what we carry with us into the future as the University marks this important milestone in its history.”
Noted Detroit theatre director Kennikki Jones-Jones and alumni guest performer Peter Prouty ’00 join the company for this production.
“Returning to Detroit Mercy Theatre Company feels like coming home, but I’m coming home older, wiser and more confident, humbly excited to share what I’ve learned,” said Prouty, who has gone on to have a successful professional career in the theatre. “UDM is where my soul began its journey in earnest. Hopefully I can impart some of my experiences to the students.”
The production also continues DMTC’s commitment to presenting high-quality theatre in its new home. The Detroit Mercy Black Box Theatre, located in the Lower Level of the Student Union, provides Detroit Mercy Theatre Company with a dedicated performance and teaching space on the McNichols Campus and creates new opportunities for students, artists and audiences to experience theatre in an intimate setting.
The DMTC Ticket Office is open Tuesday-Thursday from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., with tickets being available for purchase anytime online. Individual tickets are $25 for adults, $18 for seniors and Detroit Mercy faculty, staff and alumni and $10 for veterans and students (ages 4-college). Discounts are available for groups of 10 or more.
To schedule your group, contact Sarah Rusk at 313-993-3273. Those looking to buy tickets should note that the play is rated PG-13 and contains discussions/depictions of death, grief, bereavement and loss of a loved one.
SPECIAL ENGAGEMENTS
- Nov. 6: Opening Night Celebration. Join the cast and crew following the performance for a reception in the Lower Level of the Student Union.
- Nov. 7: Community Night. All tickets $10.
- Nov. 8: CHASS in Conversation Post-Show Talkback. Join in the discussion following the first Sunday’s matinee performance as we welcome Brittany Hardy from University of Detroit Mercy’s College of Humanities, Arts & Social Sciences (CHASS) to expand upon themes and ideas from the performance in a talkback.
- Nov. 12: UDM Night. $5 tickets for UDM students, faculty and staff with valid ID.
- Nov. 13: High School Night. Free tickets and a talkback with cast and crew following the performance for high school students and their families. Call 313-993-3270 or email theatre@udmercy.edu for details and reservations.