UT Dallas students and alumni will perform a classic work of 20th-century drama by one of America's greatest playwrights, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof.
Tennessee Williams’ play, which won the Pulitzer Prize for drama in 1955, explores character, family and greed. The show will run Oct. 4-6 and 11-13 in the University Theatre. Shows start at at 8 p.m.
Set in the Mississippi Delta, the plot follows the 65th birthday of the family patriarch affectionately referred to as Big Daddy. Family members conspire and feud to meet their own agendas. Brick, Big Daddy’s favorite son, and his wife Maggie struggle to save their marriage. Meanwhile, Brick’s brother Gooper and wife Mae plot to gain control of the family fortune.
“Williams depicts the paradoxical nature of human beings; on the one hand, they fight to be alone but, at the same time, crave intimacy with another. They long for someone to save them from their loneliness but fear the truth and responsibility of being close to others. This desperate hunger clouds their perception of the people and the world around them,” said Kathy Lingo, assistant director of theatre at UT Dallas and the production's director.
“The play forces the audience to think about the relationships they form with themselves and with others. Williams masterfully creates characters that appear to materialistically ‘have it all,’ but fail to recognize their emotional and spiritual bankruptcy.”
Tickets for the play are $15 for general admission, and $5 for faculty, staff and non-UT Dallas students. Tickets are free to UT Dallas students with valid identification. Ticket office hours are from 2 to 5 p.m. Mondays to Fridays and at the door one hour prior to show time. To purchase tickets in advance, go online, or call 972-883-2552. Tickets bought in advance may be picked up at the door prior to the show.