From STC's Sin: back, l-r, Marc Balester,
Malcolm Callan, Don Sneed and David Jones. Front, 
Katherine Catmull. Photo copyright Danna Byrom, 1996.

Produced by the Subterranean Theatre Company in June 1996 at the Hyde Park Theatre, Austin, Texas. Directed by Ken Webster.

About the play
On the day of the 1989 San Francisco earthquake, radio traffic reporter Avery Bly On High meets modern incarnations of the Seven Deadly Sins in Wendy MacLeod's wickedly funny and ultimately tender play.

What the critics said . . .
" . . . a sharply funny and touching production . . . . this well-acted show takes us on an Everywoman-type journey through suffering, elation, mayhem and the Richter scale. . . .While the wages of real sin may be death, indulgence in this "Sin" brings only touching and humorous entertainment."
Austin American Statesman

"What makes Sin so satisfying is that the personified sins--Avery's drunken husband, for instance, as sloth--are not one-dimensional. These are people we all know, not rough sketches. . . . The players of the Subterranean Theatre Company ably evoke the spirit of San Franciscan culture . . . Malcolm Callan is perfectly smarmy as greed . . ., and Barry Miller is hilarious and heart-breaking as Avery's AIDS-stricken brother Gerard (pride). . . . Sin offers a passage from the loneliness of the moral high ground."
The Daily Texan

"Ken Webster's direction repeatedly reinforces the playwright's points about morality and sin in contemporary society. The cast, most notably Katherine Catmull's hyper-responsible Bly and Michael Stuart's oddly sincere Lust, is remarkable in its depth and charisma. . . . this production deconstructs the concepts of sin while forcing us to re-examine our own criteria for moral judgments, and realize that sin may be the one thing that we all have in common. "
Austin Chronicle (click here to read the entire Chronicle review)

Named one of the top theater experiences of 1996 by Austin Chronicle writer Robert Faires: " A treatise on morality that recast the Deadly sins of old in terms of our modern American desire for material gratification. Wendy McLeod's script is clever and funny, and it brought out the best in director Ken Webster and his ensemble of regulars. The show was exquisitely paced and built beautifully, each scene sharper and more funny than the last."
Austin Chronicle, January 10, 1997--with honorable mention to "The sleazy charm of Michael Stuart as Lust."

Awards and Nominations
Austin Circle of Theatres Nominations
Nominated as Outstanding Comedy 1995-1996
Ken Webster for Outstanding Director of a Comedy
Katherine Catmull for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy
Barry Miller for Outstanding Featured Actor in a Comedy

Critics' Table Award
Emily Erington for Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy

Critics' Table Nominations
Nominated as Best Comedy 1996-1997
Ken Webster for Best Director of a Comedy
Katherine Catmull for Best Lead Actress in a Comedy
Michael Stuart for Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy

Cast
Avery . . . . . Katherine Catmull
Man (Lust) . . . . . Michael Stuart
Michael (Sloth) . . . . . David Jones
Date (Greed) . . . . . Malcolm Callan
Helen (Gluttony) . . . . . Emily Erington
Fred (Envy) . . . . . Don Sneed
Jason (Wrath) . . . . . Marc Balester
Gerard (Pride) . . . . . Barry Miller*
Gerard's Understudy . . . . Harry Kloss
Jason's Understudy . . . . Ken Webster

*Appeared under special arrangement through the courtesy of Actor's Equity Association.

Designers and Staff
Set . . . . . Joe York
Costume . . . . . Diane Morrison
Lights . . . . . Don Day
Sound . . . . . Leroy Sakowitz
Assistant Director/Stage Manager . . . . Tammy Black

Return to Subterranean Theatre Company home page