Bug
by Tracy Letts

Oct. 13 - Nov. 4, 2006

Directed by Rodney Brazil

Theatre routinely elicits tears, gasps, and laughter, but have you ever been to a play that made you itch?

BUG may do just that for audiences when Carpenter Square Theatre presents the Oklahoma premiere October 13-November 4. The thriller plays in the intimate arena theatre at Stage Center, located at 400 W. Sheridan in downtown Oklahoma City.

BUG is the 2004 winner of Off-Broadway's Lucille Lortel Award for Outstanding Drama, and it is a riveting thriller that is laced with a dash of sci-fi and comedy. Having been born in Tulsa and growing up in southeastern Oklahoma, playwright Letts sets his story right here in Oklahoma City.

At the play’s start, Agnes, a down-on-her-luck waitress is hiding out at a run-down motel, hoping to elude her violent ex-husband who is scheduled for parole. Whenever the phone rings (and it does incessantly), she’s sure her ex has hunted her down. In her anxious, paranoid state, she has sworn off men, but finds it hard to resist a Gulf War veteran that her best friend brings over to visit. Afraid for her safety and lonely for companionship, she lets Peter move in. She reveals to him that she had a son who disappeared almost ten years ago.

Soon, Peter reveals his fears: Radioactive elements in smoke detectors, "hidden stuff" in the tacky motel room artwork, bed bugs, and, worst of all, injections the military doctors gave him during and after his stint in the Army. As their romance ignites, they are visited by their pasts and haunted by hallucinations, and their motel room becomes an armed camp against perceived microbes and menacing conspirators. "Bug" is rated PG-13 due to strong language and scenes of drug use.

Also an actor, playwright Tracy Letts is a company member of Chicago’s famed Steppenwolf Theatre. He is the son of actor Dennis Letts and bestselling author Billie Letts who penned "Where the Heart Is" and "The Honk and Holler Opening Soon". In addition to his plays "Bug", "Killer Joe" and "Man from Nebraska", Tracy Letts has also written the screenplay for "Bug", and the film is due out later this year. Directed by William Friedkin, it stars Ashley Judd, Harry Connick, Jr. and Michael Shannon.

Carpenter Square Theatre is supported in part by the Oklahoma Arts Council and the National Endowment for the Arts. Additional support is provided by the Kirkpatrick Family Fund and Allied Arts. The play is an Allied Arts City Card event.