Past Comedy/Drama:
Kentwood Players presents
Six Degrees of Separation

Six Degrees of Separation. by John Guare. Director Don Schlossman. Producer Meredith M. Sweeney and Jordan Bland. January 8 – February 13, 2010

“Six Degrees of Separation” refers to the idea that, if a person is one step away from each person they know, and two steps away from each person who is known by one of the people they know, then everyone is at most six steps away from any other person on Earth. The term was popularized by playwright John Guare’s intriguing, insightful exploration of celebrity and the games we play to elevate our significance.

The plot of Six Degrees of Separation was inspired by the real-life story of David Hampton, a con man who managed to convince a number of people in the 1980s that he was the son of actor Sidney Poitier. It won the 1991 New York Drama Critics’ Circle Award and the 1993 Laurence Olivier Award for Best Play, and was nominated for the 1991 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding New Play, the 1991 Pulitzer Prize for Drama, and the 1991 Tony Award for Best Play.

In Guare’s play, Paul, the African-American protagonist, arrives at the doorstep of moneyed Manhattanites Flan and Ouisa Kittredge under the false pretenses that he is Sidney Poitier’s son, having been violently mugged and claiming to have found them because he is a classmate of the couple’s kids. But Paul is not what he seems, and his presence in their lives becomes a catalyst by which everyone else entertains questions of race, class, money and morals.

Character

CAST

Played by
Flan ············ Ken MacFarlane
Ouisa ············ Joanna Churgin
Paul ············ Willie Mack Daniels
Larkin ············ Jack Coppock
Kitty ············ Ginny Kunz
Geoffrey ············ Mark Mayes
Dr. Fine ············ Michael-Anthony Nozzi
Tess ············ Tara Jean O’Brien
Trent ············ Lorenzo Bastien
Hustler ············ Marco Garcia
Woody ············ Nick Alspaugh
Rick ············ Ryan Knight
Elizabeth ············ Meredith M. Sweeney
Detective ············ Drew Fitzsimmons
Policeman/Doorman ············ Dylan H. Bailey
Ben ············ Kevin T. King
Doug ············ Andy Grosso

CAST PICTURES

Paul (Willie Mack Daniels) impresses Flanders (Ken MacFarlane) and Ouisa (Joanna Churgin) with tall tales about his life as Sidney Poitier's son.
Paul's arrival (Willie Mack Daniels, center) causes friction in the family. (from left: Joanna Churgin, Ken MacFarlane, Nick Alspaugh, Andy Grosso and Michael-Anthony Nozzi.)
Paul's arrival (Willie Mack Daniels, right) causes friction in the Kittredge family. (Joanna Churgin, Ken MacFarlane, Nick Alspaugh-seated)
Paul thinks he can use his knowledge of the kids' lives to his advantage.(from left: Nick Alspaugh, Andy Grosso, Meredith M. Sweeney, Ryan Knight, Willie Mack Daniels.)
A detective gathers information about Paul from Flanders and Ouisa.(from left: Ken MacFarlane, Joanna Churgin, Drew Fitzsimmons)

KENTWOOD PLAYERS

Westchester Playhouse
8301 Hindry Ave.
Los Angeles, CA 90045
(Click here for map)

310-645-5156
boxoffice@kentwoodplayers.org