MINDGAME
Written by Anthony Horowitz
Directed by Billy Buff
January 27 - February 4, 2023
When Mark Styler, a writer of glossy ‘true crime' paperbacks, tries to get an interview with Easterman, a notorious serial killer, he has no idea what he’s walking into. Mindgame is a puzzle box of a play. A dazzling thriller and a jet-black comedy that twists its way toward a shocking conclusion.
NO VIDEO OR PHOTOGRAPHY ALLOWED DURING THE PERFORMANCE.
Mindgame is presented by arrangement with Concord Theatricals on behalf of Samuel French, Inc. www.concordtheatricals.com
Crew
DIRECTOR - BILLY BUFF
ASSISTANT DIRECTOR - NIC FENGER
STAGE MANAGER - ERIC MICHAEL
SCENIC DESIGNER - BILLY BUFF
LIGHTING DESIGNER - CHOH MAN TENG
SOUND DESIGNER - BILLY BUFF
COSTUME DESIGNER - SUE-SUE SHERRILL, JEANETTE GIBSON
SET CONSTRUCTION & PAINTING - BARRY BOYD, CAROL MANKINS,
BILL MANKINS
LIGHTING CREW - JASON LEWING
BACKSTAGE CREW - STEPHANIE HEWLETT, ROBBIE GONZALEZ
PRODUCTION COORDINATOR - CRIS FENGER
STUDIO 400 CHAIRPERSON - BARBARA JACOBS
PLT MARKETING DIRECTOR - ASHLEY MCGLOTHREN
PLT STUDIO400 TECHNICAL DIRECTOR - BRYAN CHAPMAN
PLT ARTISTIC DIRECTOR - KATHY HOLSWORTH
Cast
eric van dervort as Dr. alex farquarh
Eric is excited to be back on stage after a long absence. He was last seen as Lawrence in Dirty Rotten Scoundrels. Eric has always has a love for Shakespeare, having played Henry V, Hamlet, and King Lear. Some other credits include Bobby Strong in Urinetown, Mortimer in Arsenic and Old Lace as well as Judd Oklahoma.
Clayton habecker as mark styler
Clayton was last seen in Pensacola Little Theatre’s production of The 39 Steps. As an active theatre community member, Clayton manages and runs Improbable Cause Mystery Theatre Pensacola and is in the sketch comedy group Kitty Get a Job. He also just started his two-man podcast Locked in the Basement.
ELEANORE ARMANI AS nurse Paisley
Eleanore was most recently seen in Pensacola Little Theatre’s production of Unrequited as Lady Capulet. Before that, she performed in Short Attention Span Theatre. Eleanore also portrayed Gwen O’Gara in the original staging of Taking Stock. She enjoys frequently performing with Improbable Cause Mystery Theatre productions in and around Pensacola. When not acting, she can be found caring for Pensacola’s dogs and cats as a small animal veterinarian.
SPECIAL THANKS
Shana Solomon and Kayla Stephenson
PROGRAM NOTES
Mind Game (/ˈmīn(d)ˌɡām/) - noun
A series of deliberate actions or responses planned for psychological effect on another, typically for amusement or competitive advantage.
A Mind Game is a deliberate attempt to psychologically manipulate someone. A Mind Game is covert, coercive, manipulative intentions masked by innocent sounding communication. Mind Game language is designed to confuse and keep the victim from guessing the perpetrators true aim. Sometimes deliberate Mind Games are conducted in psychology under controlled conditions using psychodrama or drama therapy.
Psychodrama is an action method, often used as a psychotherapy, in which clients use spontaneous dramatization, role playing, and dramatic self-presentation to investigate and gain insight into their lives. Developed by Jacob L. Moreno and his wife Zerka Toeman Moreno, psychodrama includes elements of theater, often conducted on a stage, or a space that serves as a stage area, where props can be used. A psychodrama therapy group, under the direction of a licensed psychodramatist, reenacts real-life, past situations (or inner mental processes), acting them out in present time. Participants then have the opportunity to evaluate their behavior, reflect on how the past incident is getting played out in the present and more deeply understand particular situations in their lives.
Although negative physical side effects are unlikely when engaged in psychodrama therapy, emotional side effects are possible. In particular, some people may find themselves experiencing further emotional pain or trauma as a result of living traumatic events or being reminded of triggers.
The playwright of Mindgame, Anthony Horowitz, has based his play on these psychological principals. Anthony Horowitz is best known for such television programs as Poirot, Murder Most Horrid, and, most recently, The Magpie Murders. He is also a well-known author of dozens of books including two collections of horror stories to his name. Although Mindgame is his first play, theatre has always been his first love.
Welcome to a journey of twists and turns You are invited experience the theatrical Mind Game that Horowitz has written. Delve into the darkest psyche of the human condition of sociopaths and their dissociative behavior. Who will you trust? Whose reality will you believe?
ABOUT THE DIRECTOR
Billy Buff has been involved with Pensacola Little Theatre since he was a teenager in the 1980s. He graduated from the University of West Florida with both a Bachelor’s Degree in Theatre and a Master’s Degree in Secondary Education. He studied directing at The University of Mississippi under Scott McCoy. He has performed in numerous shows including Boeing, Boeing and The Odd Couple and directed both musicals and non-musicals including The Wedding Singer, The End of Jack Cruz, and The 39 Steps (codirected with Barbara Jacobs). He is currently a theater educator at Jim C. Bailey Middle School.
