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By Lucy Alibar
Directed by Ryan Rilette
MAY 3 – MAY 30, 2021
A small Florida farmhouse on a watermelon field may not seem like much, but for one little girl, it’s where magic happens. It’s where her father runs with her every morning, plays Sam Cooke on the radio, and defends death row inmates who have no one else to stand up for them. Oscar-nominated author Lucy Alibar (Beasts of the Southern Wild) presents an unforgettable story about her childhood as a fourth grader and part-time legal secretary. Told through a series of heartfelt and irreverent vignettes, Throw Me on the Burnpile and Light Me Up is a one-woman love letter to family, the South, and the belief that everyone deserves a defender.
ABOUT THE CREATIVE TEAM
Lucy Alibar (Playwright) has written for Zoetrope, the Oxford American, and the Wall Street Journal. Her plays have been seen at Sundance Theatre Lab, National Theatre Studio, Joe’s Pub, Ojai Playwrights Conference, Berkeley Repertory Theatre, and Williamstown Theatre Festival. Her first movie, Beasts of the Southern Wild (an adaptation with Benh Zeitlin of her play, Juicy and Delicious), received the Sundance Grand Jury Prize and the Cannes Film Festival Caméra d’Or. For her work on Beasts, she was nominated for the Scripter, BAFTA, and Academy Award. Alibar is the winner of the Ray Bradbury Nebula Award, the Humanitas Prize, and the Nantucket Film Festival New Voices in Screenwriting Award. She is a Sundance Screenwriting Fellow. She’s since been privileged to work for Pixar, Escape Artists/Amazon, Julia Roberts/New Line Cinema, and Guillermo del Toro/Universal Studios (The Secret Garden). Alibar is a Usual Suspect at New York Theatre Workshop and an associate editor at Oxford American.
Ryan Rilette (Director) is in his eighth season as Artistic Director of Round House Theatre. During his tenure, he has produced four of the best-selling and highest-attended seasons in the theatre’s history. His productions have received 57 Helen Hayes Awards nominations and 13 Helen Hayes Awards, including Outstanding Original New Play or Musical, Outstanding Ensemble, and Outstanding Resident Musical. Ryan created the theatre’s Equal Play Commissioning program, Resident Artist program, Fair Play pay scale for artists, and Free Play ticketing program. For Round House, he has directed Homebound, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, Oslo, Small Mouth Sounds, “Master Harold”…and the Boys, The Book of Will, Angels in America: Perestroika, The Night Alive, Fool for Love, This, and How to Write a New Book for the Bible. Prior to joining Round House, Ryan served as Producing Director of Marin Theatre Company, Producing Artistic Director of Southern Rep Theatre, and co-founder and Artistic Director of Rude Mechanicals Theatre Company. He is the former Board President of the National New Play Network and currently serves on the boards of theatreWashington and Maryland Citizens for the Arts. Ryan is a member of SDC, AEA, and SAG-AFTRA.
Beth Hylton (The Girl) is very happy to return to Round House after appearing in Small Mouth Sounds; Handbagged; and Rapture, Blister, Burn. Beth is a company member of Baltimore’s Everyman Theatre: some favorite recent performances include Blanche in A Streetcar Named Desire, Rosemary in Outside Mullingar, and Marie Antoinette in The Revolutionists. DC-area credits include Appropriate and Collective Rage at Woolly Mammoth and The Heidi Chronicles at Rep Stage, as well as productions at Ford’s and Olney. Favorite regional performances include Amanda in Private Lives at PICT; Nora in A Doll’s House at Gulfshore Playhouse; Elvira in Blithe Spirit at Delaware Theatre Company; and The Woman in The 39 Steps at The Maltz-Jupiter. Other credits include PlayMakers Rep, Kennedy Theatre NC, Weston Playhouse, and Public Theatre of Maine. In NYC, Beth was a founding ensemble member of The Ground Floor Theatre Lab. Training: MFA UNC-Chapel Hill PATP.
