<html><body style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: after-white-space; "><div style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: after-white-space; "><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; "><font class="Apple-style-span" face="Times"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 16px; "><div style="margin-top: 8px; margin-right: 8px; margin-bottom: 8px; margin-left: 8px; font: normal normal normal small/normal arial; "><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center; "><span><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3"><b>Oberlin College Presents</b></font><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center; "><span><a href="http://new.oberlin.edu/arts-and-sciences/departments/theater_dance/news_detail.dot?id=661454"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14px; ">ERIC BOGOSIAN:</span></span></a> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14px; "> February 4</span></span><sup><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14px; ">th</span></span></sup><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14px; "> at 8PM in Finney Chapel</span></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center; "><span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 10px; font-weight: normal; "><a href="http://new.oberlin.edu/arts-and-sciences/departments/theater_dance/story_detail.dot?id=657315"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14px; ">SUBURBIA:</span></span></a></span> A Play by Eric Bogosian, Directed by Paul Moser, </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14px; ">January 30</span></span><sup><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14px; ">th</span></span></sup><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14px; "> – February 7</span></span><sup><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14px; ">th</span></span></sup><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14px; "> in Hall Auditorium</span></span></span></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; "><span><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">Following the Oberlin College Theater and Dance Program’s exciting new interpretation of Arthur Miller’s </font><i><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">Death of a Salesman, </font></i><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">which opened the 2008-2009 season and starred alumnus Avery Brooks ’70, the program will continue its rich history of alumni involvement and presentation of dynamic new productions this spring with two exciting events. On February 4</font><sup><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">th</font></sup><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">, acclaimed playwright, actor and 1976 alumnus, Eric Bogosian, returns to his alma mater as part of Oberlin’s 2008-2009 Convocation Series. The visit is presented in conjunction with a production of Bogosian’s play </font><i><a href="http://new.oberlin.edu/arts-and-sciences/departments/theater_dance/story_detail.dot?id=657315"><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">SubUrbia</font></a><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3"> </font></i><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">in Hall Auditorium, January 30 through February 7, directed by Associate Professor of Theater, Paul Moser. </font><i><a href="x-msg://23/"><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">[See entire list of events with Eric Bogosian]</font></a><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3"><o:p></o:p></font></i></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 12pt; text-align: justify; "><span><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">Eric Bogosian, best known for writing and starring in the play and the film </font><i><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">Talk Radio</font></i><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">, has had a wide-ranging career as an author, actor, and playwright. For his work on </font><i><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">Talk Radio</font></i><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">, he was a Pulitzer Prize finalist and recipient of the Berlin Film Festival Silver Bear Award; in 2007, the Broadway revival starring Liev Schreiber was nominated for two Tony Awards. For his six solo off-Broadway shows, Bogosian received three Obie Awards and a Drama Desk Award. Bogosian has also written a number of other full-length plays including </font><i><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">SubUrbia</font></i><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">, which will be </font><u><span style="color: windowtext; "><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">performed on campus</font></span></u><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3"> during his visit. His third novel will be published in early 2009 by Simon & Schuster. Bogosian has also appeared in many films and television programs and currently stars in </font><i><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">Law & Order: Criminal Intent</font></i><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3"> as Capt. Danny Ross. An alumnus of Oberlin’s theater program, Bogosian brings his infectious energy and broad artistic experience back to campus in a talk titled </font><i><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">Bitter Honey: A Reading</font></i><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">, presented in Finney Chapel on February 4</font><sup><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">th</font></sup><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3"> at 8pm.</font><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3"><o:p></o:p></font></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; "><span><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">In </font><i><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">SubUrbia</font></i><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">, a gritty, uncompromising portrait of suburban life in the 1990s, one night spent loitering in a convenience store parking lot turns into a desperate quest for meaning in a bleak, banal world from which there seems to be no escape. The play’s piercingly intelligent and boisterously violent dialogue lends voice to the anger and disillusionment of a group of young people and stands as a universal coming-of-age story that is brutal in its dissection of art, war, relationships and pop culture.</font><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3"><o:p></o:p></font></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; "><i><span><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">SubUrbia </font></span></i><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">will be performed at Oberlin College’s Hall Auditorium Friday and Saturday, January 30 & 31, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday, February 3, 5, 6 & 7. </font><span><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">In addition to his convocation speech, Bogosian will also participate in a Q&A with audience members following the February 3</font><sup><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">rd</font></sup><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3"> performance of </font><i><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">SubUrbia</font></i><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3"> and a public interview on February 4</font><sup><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">th</font></sup><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3"> at 4:30pm in Oberlin College’s West Lecture Hall.</font></span><i><span><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3"><o:p></o:p></font></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; "><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">Seating in Hall Auditorium is onstage and limited. There is no late seating. This production is sponsored by the Oberlin College Theater and Dance Program. </font><span><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">Tickets to </font><i><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">SubUrbia</font></i><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3"> are $8 for the general public, $6 for staff, alumni and senior citizens over 55 and $4 for students. Tickets are $3 more at the door. Tickets are available at Central Ticket Service, Hall Auditorium, open Monday through Friday, noon to 5 pm, 440-775-8169 or </font></span><span><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">800-371-0178</font></span><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">.</font></p><p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="text-align: justify; "><b><span><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">Production Notes</font><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3"><o:p></o:p></font></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; "><i><span><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">SubUrbia</font></span></i><span><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3"> centers around a group of early twenty-somethings who have grown up together in a generic Massachusetts suburb. </font><i><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">Jeff </font></i><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">is a would-be intellectual on the cusp of dropping out of community college; his close friends are </font><i><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">Buff</font></i><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">, a laid-back stoner and </font><i><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">Tim,</font></i><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3"> a Gulf War vet with a chip on his shoulder. </font><i><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">Jeff’s</font></i><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3"> girlfriend </font><i><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">Sooze</font></i><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3"> is an aspiring performance artist and her friend </font><i><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">BeeBee</font></i><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3"> is just out of rehab. They spend most nights hanging out behind a 7-11 run by Pakistani siblings </font><i><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">Norman</font></i><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3"> and </font><i><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">Pakeesha</font></i><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">, but tonight is different as they await the return visit of a high school classmate who has become a successful rock musician.</font><b><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3"><o:p></o:p></font></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; "><i><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">“SubUrbia</font></i><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3"> centers on the angst of being stuck in extended adolescence” says director Paul Moser, Associate Professor of Theater, “It’s that holding pattern or moratorium from personal growth, usually characterized by not making any significant life choices toward self-actualization.” Moser suggests that this experience is a “uniquely American phenomenon,” he continues, “even if we didn’t get stuck there ourselves, we can all relate.” A recent interview by the Oberlin Alumni Magazine with alumnus and playwright, Eric Bogosian, depicts </font><i><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">SubUrbia</font></i><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3"> as “the story of [Bogosian’s] life at age 20,” when he decided to “leave school and return to his hometown…a suburb with a mix of industrial decay and commercial sprawl.” The success of </font><i><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">SubUrbia</font></i><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">, offers Moser, comes from Bogosian’s ability to “dramatize the emotional pressures of this life passage – especially that sense of being caught between idealism and cynicism, and security and the ‘unknown’.”</font></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; "><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">“It’s also wonderful to do a show where everyone in the cast is playing characters their own age,” </font><span><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">ventures Moser. “</font></span><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">Usually in college theater, young actors are expected to create roles of people much older than themselves – assuming physicality and more importantly life experience that’s foreign to them. But with </font><i><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">SubUrbia</font></i><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">, even a professional cast would all be college-aged. And that’s a lot of fun for everyone involved.”</font><span><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3"><o:p></o:p></font></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; "><b><span><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">Cast</font><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3"><o:p></o:p></font></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; "><span><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">The cast of Oberlin College students features</font><b><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3"> </font></b><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">Derrick Bean ’09 (Jeff),</font><b><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3"> </font></b><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">William “Tip” Scarry ’11 (Buff), Enrico Nassi ’09 (Tim),</font><b><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3"> </font></b><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">Nick Parlato ’12 (Pony),</font><b><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3"> </font></b><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">Shahab Raza ’12 (Norman),</font><b><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3"> </font></b><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">Shauna Siggelkow ’11 (Sooze),</font><b><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3"> </font></b><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">Atty Siegel ’12 (BeeBee), EJ Dickson ’11 (Erica),</font><b><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3"> </font></b><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">and Sam Boyd ’11 (Pakeesha).</font></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; "><b><span><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">Production Team</font><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3"><o:p></o:p></font></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; "><span><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">Paul Moser (Director), Sarah Gasser ’10 (Stage Manager), Jeremy Benjamin (Lighting Design), Michael Louis Grube (Set Design), Chris Flaharty (Costume Design), JoEllen Cuthbertson (Costumer)</font><b><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">, </font></b><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">Joseph P. Natt (Technical Director), David Bugher (Assistant Technical Director),</font><b><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3"> </font></b><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">Andrew Kaletta (Master Electrician), Emma Louise Rodriguez ’11 (Poster Design), Rebecca Balmer ’09 and Alex Birnie ’10 (Publicity).</font></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; "><b><span><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">Paul Moser (Director)</font></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; "><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">Paul Moser is an Associate Professor of Theater and Chair of the Theater and Dance Program at Oberlin College. He joined the faculty in 1990 and has directed productions including, </font><i><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">The Cherry Orchard, Tartuffe, Picnic, All’s Well That Ends Well, The Cradle Will Rock, The Wager, The Merchant of Venice, Romeo & Juliet, Major Barbara</font></i><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">, and </font><i><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">Measure for Measure</font></i><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">. Professionally he has directed at such regional theaters as the Indiana Repertory Theater (where he also served as Associate Artistic Director), The Phoenix, Portland Stage Company, Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park, The New Harmony Theater Company, and Theater Virginia. Last summer Mr. Moser collaborated with the recently-formed Oberlin-alumni theater company "4th Meal Productions", directing the NYC premiere of </font><i><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">Dorm Stories</font></i><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3"> - a project that originated in his Acting 1 class. He has written two works for the stage, </font><i><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">The Problem with Dinosaurs</font></i><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3"> (1992) and </font><i><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">Sanctuary </font></i><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">(1995) which he developed with his ensemble, The Black River Theater Company (BRTC). Other BRTC productions include </font><i><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">The Tempest, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, As You Like It, </font></i><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">and </font><i><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">Twelfth Night</font></i><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">. Mr. Moser majored in Theater Arts and Dramatic Literature at Brown University and received his MFA in Directing from the Yale School of Drama. He is a member of The Society of Stage Directors and Choreographers.</font></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; "><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 12px;"><br></span></font></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; "><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3">Media Contact:</font></p></div></span></font></p></div><div> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: auto; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0; "><div style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: after-white-space; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; "><div style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: after-white-space; "><div>Alexander Birnie</div><div>Publicity Office Manager</div><div>Oberlin College Theater & Dance Program</div><div>440.506.4790 (cell)</div><div>440.775.8171 (office)</div><div><br></div><div><br></div></div></span><br class="Apple-interchange-newline"></div></span><br class="Apple-interchange-newline"> </div><br></body></html>