World premiere adaptation
Adapted & directed by Blake Robison
From the novel by Alice McDermott
February 2 – 20, 2011

Round House Theatre Bethesda

For info about audience events during this production - including the special Parents’ Matinee (with childcare for ages 3-12, must be potty trained), pre- and post-show discussions, audio-described and sign-interpreted performances – click here.

In a small Bronx bar, a funeral party has gathered to honor Billy Lynch. Through the night, his friends and family weave together the tale of a husband, lover, dreamer, and storyteller, but also that of a hopeless drunk whose immense charm was but a veil over a lifetime of secrets and all-consuming sorrow.

Charming Billy is a masterful look at how a community can pin its dreams to one man, and how good intentions can be as destructive as the truth they were meant to hide. Blake Robison directs his stage adaptation of the acclaimed novel by Bethesda’s Alice McDermott, a National Book Award winner.

Alice McDermott’s novel is “luminous and affecting” ‑ New York Times

Charming Billy is recommended for ages 13 and up

Charming Billy is sponsored in part through generous support from
Bonnie & Alan Hammerschlag & Pasternak and Fidis

Cast includes: Conrad Feininger*, John Feltch*, Molly Cahill Govern, Mitchell Hébert*, Kathryn Kelley*, Brianna Letourneau, Michael Tolaydo*, David Whalen*

Director : Blake Robison
Scenic/Lighting Designer: Kevin Rigdon
Costume Designer: Trish Rigdon
Sound Designer: Matthew M. Nielson
Production Stage Manager: Jennifer Schwartz*

*Member of Actors’ Equity Association, The Union of Professional Actors and Stage Managers in the United States.

Learn more:

Author Alice McDermott on Wikipedia

A 1998 NPR interview with Alice McDermott after Charming Billy won the National Book Award

Playwright and director Blake Robison