Pure confidence BKG 1617x1055
Pure Confidence
by Carlyle Brown
Pure Confidence
by Carlyle BrownAn exploration of the true meaning of freedom set in the gritty, high-stakes world of late 1800s horse racing.
Both Simon Cato, a smart, cocky 'colored' jockey, and his horse, Pure Confidence, are owned by Colonel Wiley Johnson. Cato wants to buy his freedom, but the Civil War changes everything. An emotional and comedic look at the complexity of race, humanity, love and dignity.
Running Time
Cast
Dean Bowden
Barbara Bradshaw*
Melanna Gray*
Gavin Lawrence*
Richard McWilliams*
Ed Schiff*
DEAN BOWDEN Favorite roles elsewhere include John Merrick in The Elephant Man, Gary in Noises Off, Benedict in Much Ado About Nothing, Father Welsh in The Lonesome West, Frank in Boomtown, and Benny Southstreet in Guys and Dolls. Dean is the Fight and Character Director for the Sarasota Medieval Fair and will soon hit the road as a Knight with Noble Cause Productions, jousting his way across the country at renaissance festivals.
BARBARA BRADSHAW appeared in FST’s Anita Bryant Died for Your Sins. Florida Reparatory Theatre’s: Six Dance Lessons in Six Week s, Moon Over Buffalo, Maltz Jupiter Theatre: Deathtrap, Flat Rock Playhouse: Harps and Harmonicas, Grace and Glory, Foxfire: appeared with the Geva Theatre, The Alliance Theatre, The Caldwell Theatre, Coconut Grove Playhouse to name only a few. Barbara was honored with the Los Angeles Drama-Logue Award and two Carbonell Awards for Best Actress. It is a joy to be back!
MELANNA GRAY Off-Broadway: Ominum-Gatherum. Regional: Darker Face of the Earth (Missouri Rep), Zora Neale Hurston (Tampa Bay Performing Arts), From the Mississippi Delta (American Stage), Omnium-Gatherum (Humana, Variety Arts-NYC, Unicorn-KC) Other roles include: Clytemnestra (Electra), Serafina (Painter of Dishonor), KT (Merrily We Roll Along). You may also have seen Melanna in “Firing Squad,” and “Camp”. Melanna received an MFA from UMKC and completed her undergraduate theatre studies at the University of Southern California.
GAVIN LAWRENCE Regional: Denver Center Theatre Co., Cincinnati Playhouse In The Park, Alabama Shakespeare Festival, Kennedy Center, Arena Stage, Actors Theatre of Louisville, Guthrie Theatre, Children’s Theatre Company, and Center Stage among others. Film & TV: Yonondio, Joe Somebody, Justice, Listen; Macbeth, Wine in the Wilderness, Newton’s Apple, The Promise. Awards: Lorraine Hansberry Award (Cut Flowers), Distinguished Alumnus Award (Howard University), Minneapolis Star Tribune’s Best New Script (Salt Fish and Bakes).
RICHARD MCWILLIAMS Broadway: Orpheus Descending. Off- Broadway: The Night Hank Williams Died, Macbeth, and 27 Wagons Full of Cotton. Regionally in The Retreat from Moscow (Performance Network), The Tempest (Great Lakes Theatre Festival), Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (Iowa Summer Rep), A Moon for the Misbegotten (Missouri Repertory Theatre), A Streetcar Named Desire (Geva Theatre), Camille (Actors Theatre of Louisville) and Desire Under the Elms (The Guthrie Theatre).
ED SCHIFF Featured in current movies War of the Worlds, Everyman, Warrior Class. Broadway: Black Picture Show (Phillipe). Recent stage performances: Inherit the Wind (Brady); Hamlet (King Claudius); Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (Big Daddy); title roles in: King Lear, Man of La Mancha, Music Man, Vincent. Off Broadway: Fantasticks (El Gallo); Jubilee (King Henry). Ten years on New York soap operas: One Life to Live (Det. John Wolfe); Guiding Light (Dr. Shaw); Search for Tomorrow (Ed). Veteran of over 200 professional productions. Proud Actors Equity member for 37 years.
Creative
Director | Kate Alexander
Costume Designer | Marcella Beckwith
Lighting Designer | Marty Vreeland
Scenic Designer | Jack Magaw
Production Stage Manager | Stacy A. Blackburn*
* Denotes member Actors’ Equity Association. The Union of Professional Actors and Stage Managers in the United States.
