Ryan Hastings'Talks About The Year of the Rabbit

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    He's not a Marine, but he plays one on stage.  
    
    
    
    

    Well, okay, not always, but when I first saw  Ryan Hastings perform, he was convincingly

    cross-examining Tim X Davis in A Few Good Men ... now he's involved with Balagula's current effort, The Year of the Rabbit and again, here we find his character is a marine.
    
    
    
    

    However, according to Hastings, "There are few similarities with my role in the BCTC production and Rabbit, both are Marines, but it really stops there. Lt. Ross of A Few Good Men is a marine corps lawyer, who may or may not have ever worked on the front line; he's tough, but an intellectual, cynical, pragmatic, and realistic, as you would expect of any lawyer. 
    
    
    Capt. Brice Skinner from Rabbit is a Marine pilot, in Afghanistan, the play plots the trajectory of his career in the military, notably the romance that develops between Brice and his partner Kara. 

    Brice is a dreamer, his view of the world is skewed to the idealistic/romantic side. He was not made to be a soldier. "
    
    
    
    

    Hastings especially enjoyed his last on stage role  as Mercutio in Romeo and Juliet at UK last winter. "

    I love Shakespeare, and the role is so empowering and enjoyable, it was a great way to end my career on the Guignol stage."
    
    "I will be taking the last classes of my degree over the summer, after graduation my plans are still kind of up in the air, but will most likely include a move to a larger city where I might have more opportunities on stage. (Though I have grown quite fond of Lexington)," he adds.
    
    

    

    Hastings in UK's The Baltimore Waltz

    "The play is incredibly relevant, and though it is about war, something only a fraction of Americans experience first hand, the heart of the play is the relationships and the central conflict; which are deeply relatable." 
    
    

    

    Balagula gurus
    Ryan Case and Natasha Williams

    This play is challenging for the actors, which is necessary to make compelling theatre. "It has been an eye-opening experience discovering the vulnerabilities inherent in this character, Brice is very human. He has a strong and confident exterior, but he is contemplative, and conflicted. He has a strong moral compass, which is kind of a new thing for me (on stage) as I have been playing antagonists for the past few years now."
    
    
    
    

    "Working with Natasha and Ryan is wonderful. I have wanted to work at Balagula for quite sometime, they always put out pieces that are provocative, relevant, and filled with meaning."

    
    

    
    

    "Natasha is a very insightful director, and during the process she had a great way of guiding me through some of the landmines in the piece. We had great discussions on the characters and relationships in the play that really informed my choices on stage."   
    
    
    
    

    Hastings has also been delighted to work with Ryan Case in informal discussions about character and scene work. 

    
    

    "I really believe in what they are doing at Balagula and I hope the whole community comes out to see The Year of The Rabbit."

    
    

    
    

    
    

    
    

    
    

    
    

    
    

    
    

    
    

    
    

    
    

    
    

    
    By: 

    Keliher Walsh

    
    

    
    

    Directed By: 

    Natasha Williams

    April 1, 2012 - April 4, 2012

    April 7, 2012 - April 10, 2012

    Cast: 

    Adanma Barton

    Priyanka Shrestha

    Buddy Clark

    Ryan Hastings

    Esther Harvey

    Ron Shull

    Lauralyn Hungerford

    Patrick Joel Martin

    Jenny Christian

    The winner of Kentucky Women Writers Conference Prize for Women Playwrights Competition, The Year of the Rabbit by Los Angeles based actress and playwright Keliher Walsh is a complex snapshot of two American families spanning two generations and two wars – the Vietnam War and the Afghan War.

    The script speaks of deep rooted conflicts of race and gender, marriage, motherhood and cultural displacement, and of our longing to be accepted and understood.

    Balagula Theatre is proud to have been chosen to produce the World Premier of the play.

    "The Year of the Rabbit makes evident, with a fresh theatricality and original imagination, the historical and emotional connectedness we often wish to deny between what one might call Big History and the most intimate experiences of our lives. The play brings together the disparate worlds of love and war, and the collision is both disturbing and at times, deeply moving.”—Naomi Wallace.

    "KWWC chose The Balagula Theatre for this partnership because of Balagula's reputation as a progressive activist theatre of proven high artistic quality, that has a track record of successful partnerships with other Kentucky non-profits."  Julie Kuzneski Wrinn, Director

    Ticket Price: 

    $15 General Admission

    $10 Student

    About The Playwright: 

    Keliher Walsh has had her plays performed at the Blank Theater, the Mills Playhouse, and Ensemble Studio Theater in Los Angeles. As an actress she has performed in the works of playwrights such as John Guare, Lanford Wilson, Carol Churchill, Tina Howe and many others both on and off Broadway and in regional theaters across the country. She lives in Los Angeles with her husband and two sons and is currently at work on her fourth play.

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