Ten More Minutes From Cleveland
September 25 - October 18, 2009

Written by Eric Coble Directed by Joel Hammer

What would you do if you discovered the mythical Eternal Browns Tailgating Party? Can students at Case Western fall in love using only their laptops? And just how tall can your grass grow in Shaker Heights before you're arrested? Explore both sides of the river in this world premiere comedy by award-winning local playwright Eric Coble (author of Dobama's smash hit TEN MINUTES FROM CLEVELAND). If you think you know Cleveland, think again...

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Gutenberg! The Musical!
December 4 - January 2, 2010

Written by Scott Brown and Anthony King
Directed by Marc Moritz
Musical direction by Brad Wyner

Two aspiring playwrights, a piano and one hilarious musical about the printing press inventor Johann Gutenberg. Join Bud and Doug as they play all the parts and sing all the songs in hope that you will be the Broadway producer who will make their dreams come true. Winner of the 2006 New York Theatre Festival Award for Excellence in Musical Theatre Writing. Tears will flow and your face will ache from too much laughter!

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Blue Door
January 29 - February 21, 2010

Written by Tanya Barfield
Directed by Scott Plate

Left alone by his wife, Lewis, an African American math professor is forced to face the ghosts of his ancestors as they shatter the silence of his insomnia. Two exceptional actors embody three generations as Lewis struggles with his crisis of identity and culture and what it means to be black, then and now. Tanya Barfield’s BLUE DOOR is an exuberantly theatrical work about the black male experience in America and will resonate with anyone who has ever struggled to live with – or escape – the past.

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Speech & Debate
March 12 - April 4, 2010

Written by Stephen Karam
Directed by Scott Plate

Three high school misfits find each other over the internet and begin to negotiate trials of identity, sexuality and belonging as they combat pervasive adult hypocrisy. Stephen Karam’s black comedy tellingly explores what it’s like to be without a voice and how there is strength in numbers. Extended twice at the Roundabout in NYC, SPEECH AND DEBATE offers a “direct pipeline into the zeitgeist of contemporary youth.”

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Humble Boy
May 7 - 30, 2010

By Charlotte Jones
Directed by Joel Hammer

Broken vows, failed hopes, quantum mechanics and the joys of beekeeping are brilliantly interwoven as Felix comes to terms with the sudden death of his father, his overbearing mother and his onetime sweetheart. Winner of the Susan Smith Blackburn Award, The Critics’ Circle Best New Play Award and the People’s Choice Best New Play Award, this English import is both touching and hilarious.

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This is the 32nd year of our Festival, the nation's first event of its kind. It will encourage and reward the creative expression of hundreds of area students in grades 1 through 12. The name of our Festival honors the work and memory of Marilyn Bianchi who co-founded Dobama Theatre in 1959.

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