Studio Theatre’s first show of the 2024-2025 season will bring a group of performers together for “Exception to the Rule” by Dave Harris, with rehearsals starting in mid-August and performances beginning in September.
The six-person cast will feature a crop of fresh faces, many new to the District stage, along with its original off-Broadway director, Studio-commissioned director Miranda Haymon. Studio’s director commissions give diverse groups of artists an opportunity to conceptualize and develop “passion project” ideas for future productions, with an emphasis on shows that explore the possibilities afforded by Studio’s intimate performance spaces.
Harris’ play made its 2022 debut at the Roundabout Theatre Company as part of the Roundabout Underground, a program fostering new works by emerging artists. Taking place in a purgatorial detention from which there is no apparent escape, the play presents a Breakfast Club for a new generation.
Harris described the central idea of the teen-centric dramatic comedy as “six teenagers figuring out how to deal with the normalized trauma of surviving high school while also confronting the fact that they might be trapped here forever.”
“As a former teacher with the D.C. Public Schools, this play is particularly resonant with me,” said Studio artistic director David Muse. “Dave Harris is clever, and he has a great ear — the teens in this play sound like real kids. The play is fun and funny, and it’s after something every interesting: exploring the predicament faced by high-achieving students in urban school systems. It’s a perfect back-to-school play for Studio: character-focused, with rich language and cutting insights.”
Performances start Sept. 18 at the Studio Theatre (1501 14th Street NW). For tickets, go to https://www.studiotheatre.org/buy/tickets/exceptions-to-the-rule.