The Atheist’s Creation
Playwright Noone and director Waldman on the Huntington show
Click above to watch scenes from the play and hear the views of the playwright and director on the performance.
Ronan Noone’s The Atheist, now being staged by the Huntington Theatre Company, is a comedic drama about a shady journalist’s efforts to obtain front-page glory at any cost. The test for Noone (GRS’01) was capturing American dialect, a new direction for the playwright, whose previous works — The Lepers of Baile Baiste, The Blowin of Baile Gall, and last year’s Brendan — were set in, or featured characters from, his native Ireland. For director Justin Waldman, the challenge was finding a balance between the energetic highs and the emotional lows required to propel the narrative in this one-man show.
In the video above, Noone and Waldman talk about writing and staging the play and working with the star, actor Campbell Scott, the son of George C. Scott and Colleen Dewhurst.
The Atheist is playing through Sunday, September 30, at the Wimberly Theatre at the Boston Center for the Arts Calderwood Pavilion, 527 Tremont St., Boston. Performances are at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, and at 8 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, with 2 p.m. matinees on Wednesday, Saturday, and Sunday. Tickets can be purchased online at www.huntingtontheatre.org, by phone at 617-266-0800, or in person at the Calderwood Pavilion box office.