I would like to let you know Slide By Written by Thomas Ward hits close to home as my step son was close to this shooting and now with a son in middle school I am afraid every time Charlie walks out the door to go to school I sit and watch for the door to open and Charlie to walk back in.
When the phone rings I jump out of my skin afraid something might have happened because we did have a lock down a couple weeks ago and I never want to live through that again.
Charlie and David are both obsessed with Wrestling and finding out he had been a wrestler and is now a teacher I know all three of us would enjoying seeing Slide By.
Jake Nice Productions and AT&T Performing Arts Center announce the world premiere of Slide By Written by Thomas Ward Directed by Jake Nice
Dee and Charles Wyly Theatre / 6th Floor Studio Theatre / 2400 Flora St. Full Run: January 16 – 26, 2020 Tickets:
DALLAS (October 17, 2019) – Jake Nice returns to nonprofit AT&T Performing Arts Center with the first installment of the Elevator Project’s 2020 season: the world premiere of Slide By, written by former Dallas actor/writer Thomas Ward.
Slide By is a dark comedy set one week after the Columbine High School shooting in 1999. It follows Chad Squier–once the state wrestling champ and big man on campus–who returns to his former high school as a substitute teacher amidst threats of a copycat attack.
Chad is now adrift in his twenties, living at home and carrying the guilt of a suicide that happened during his senior year. After learning that most of the teachers have stayed home and the rest of them may be armed as the result of a district meeting, Chad tries to make it through the day unscathed.
With the help of his best friend Dave, a drug-dealing janitor, and a new sub named Susan, Chad must face his anger at a mentor who betrayed him, as well as his troubling admiration for the Columbine shooters.
“Thomas sent me Slide By while we were working on a play about white male privilege in 2017. The shootings at Stoneman Douglas High School happened a few months later.
Thomas and I agreed then that Slide By demanded a production,” says director/producer Jake Nice. “We are thrilled by the support we’ve received from the AT&T Performing Arts Center to produce this play. It hurts me to say it, but it seems like Slide By becomes more and more relevant every day.”
Playwright Thomas Ward adds that “school changed for everyone after the events at Columbine as our nation scrambled to place blame. We continue to do so after every mass shooting or institutional scandal.
This play asks us to stop and consider how much faith we put in our institutions which, as we are learning over and over, have been hiding ugly truths. My hope is that the play is a meditation and not a sermon.”
The show features a diverse cast of seven local actors, many of whom also work in education: Jon Garrard as Chad, Brian Witkowicz as Coach Perkins, Cindee Mayfield as Miss Weems, Detra Payne as Mrs. Davis, Sydney Lo as Susan, Cory Kosel as Dave, and Jeremy LeBlanc as Matt.
Slide By is directed and produced by Jake Nice whose touring production of We’re Gonna Die was presented as part of the Elevator Project’s 2017/2018 season.
Also returning to the Elevator Project via Slide By are Danielle Georgiou (Movement & Intimacy Director), Justin Locklear (Scenery & Properties Design), Ryan Matthieu Smith (Costume Design), and Claire Carson (Sound Design). Lighting design will be provided by AT&T PAC’s Director of Production Amanda West.
Slide By will receive 10 public performances at the Wyly 6th Floor Studio Theatre, located at 2400 Flora Street, Dallas, TX, 75201 where it runs January 16 – January 26, 2020. Full performance schedule as follows:
Thursday January 16, 2020 7:30 p.m. Opening Night / Press Night Friday January 17, 2020 8:00 p.m. Press Night Saturday January 18, 2020 2:00 p.m. Saturday January 18, 2020 8:00 p.m. Sunday January 19, 2020 2:00 p.m. Thursday January 23, 2020 7:30 p.m Friday January 24, 2020 8:00 p.m. Saturday January 25, 2020 2:00 p.m. Saturday January 25, 2020 8:00 p.m. Sunday January 26, 2020 2:00 p.m. Closing Performance
Jake Nice (Director/Producer) is a theatre artist and musician based in Dallas, TX. His production of We’re Gonna Die toured to sold out venues across North Texas from 2017-2018, including the Wyly Studio Theatre via the Elevator Project.
Jake recently directed the regional premiere of Everybody at Stage West and had his New York City directorial debut with Warm Soda. Jake has performed on stage at Theatre Three, Undermain Theatre, and Amphibian Stage Productions and created sound designs for Theatre Three, PrismCo, Self Injurious Behavior’s productions in Dallas, New York City, and Los Angeles.
He holds a BFA in Theatre Studies (Acting & Directing emphases) from Southern Methodist University. For more information
Thomas Ward (Playwright) is a writer and actor who recently moved from Dallas to Atlanta, GA. His play International Falls has been produced across the United States, was adapted into a film, and has screened at numerous film festivals.
His latest play Slide By was a finalist for the Eugene O’Neil Playwriting Conference. As an actor, Thomas has appeared off-Broadway as well as on stages in Dallas, Fort Worth, Nashville, and Atlanta. MFA Acting, University of Alabama/Professional Actor Training Program.
ABOUT AT&T PERFORMING ARTS CENTER
The AT&T Performing Arts Center is a nonprofit foundation that operates and programs a 10-acre campus comprised of three premier performance venues and a park in downtown Dallas.
Opening in October 2009, the Center has helped complete the 30-year vision of the Dallas Arts District.
Audiences enjoy the best Broadway touring companies, provocative cultural icons in our hearhere speaker series, the world’s best traditional and contemporary dance companies co-presented in association with our partner, TITAS/Dance Unbound, and top concerts and performers through Center Presents.
Thousands of students explore and experience the arts through the Center’s education programs. Working with local service agencies, the Center provides free tickets to undeserved individuals and families through Community Partners. These programs are made possible by the ongoing support of donors and members.
The Center’s five resident companies are among the city’s leading arts institutions: Anita N. Martinez Ballet Folklorico, Dallas Black Dance Theatre, The Dallas Opera, Dallas Theater Center and Texas Ballet Theater.
Designed by internationally acclaimed architects, the Center’s performance spaces are some of the finest venues in the world:
● Margot and Bill Winspear Opera House, designed by Foster + Partners of London, is a stunning 2,200-seat venue wrapped in red glass with outstanding acoustic performance halls.
● Dee and Charles Wyly Theatre is a 575-seat theatre with one of the most versatile stages in the world and a distinctive aluminum exterior. It was designed by REX/OMA, Joshua Prince-Ramus (partner in charge) and Rem Koolhaas.
● Annette Strauss Square, designed by Foster + Partners, is an open-air entertainment venue with lawn and patio seating for 2,000 surrounded by the downtown skyline.
● Elaine D. and Charles A. Sammons Park is an urban park with native plants and grasses, landscaped lawns, performance spaces, a reflecting pool. Sammons Park was designed by Michel Desvigne and includes the Information Center designed by Foster + Partners.
The Center’s mission is to provide a public gathering place that strengthens community and fosters creativity through the presentation of performing arts and arts education programs. For more information about the AT&T Performing Arts Center and to purchase tickets, become a member, or make a donation, visit www.attpac.org.
ABOUT ELEVATOR PROJECT
The Elevator Project is a series of performances by Dallas-based arts groups, presented on the AT&T Performing Arts Center campus. The series provides performance space in the Dallas Arts District to local talent, while giving audiences exposure to the vibrant arts scene around them. Drawing from all genres of performing arts, the projects are chosen through an annual submission process and curated by an independent panel of arts professionals. The Elevator Project was created in 2014 by the AT&T Performing Arts Center and is presented with generous support from the City of Dallas Office of Arts and Culture.
Thank you,
Glenda, Charlie and David Cates
