Current Season
This is How it Goes
by Neil LaBute
October 29 - November 21, 2009
Formerly high-school sweethearts, Belinda and Cody Phipps appear to be the typical middle-class, interracial success story. When another classmate returns to town, their seemingly amicable reunion devolves into a triangle of bigotry and betrayal. Staged on continually shifting moral ground that challenges our notions about gender, ethnicity, and even love itself, This Is How It Goes unblinkingly explores the myriad ways in which the wild card of race is played by both black and white in America.
Playwright Neil LaBute successfully made the transition to feature films with his debut In the Company of Men, a dark comedy that explores sexual and corporate politics and which went on to win the Filmmaker’s Trophy as Best Dramatic Feature at 1997’s Sundance Film Festival. He continues to combine intriguing moral and ethical metaphors with dark portraits of American life with the films Your Friends & Neighbors, Nurse Betty and The Shape of Things.
“Neil LaBute is the first dramatist since David Mamet and Sam Shepard - since Edward Albee, actually - to mix sympathy and savagery, pathos and power.” - Donald Lyons, New York Post
Directed by Bill Patton and starring Fred Iacovo, Thym Kennedy and Laine Satterfield.
Watch the Firehouse Web site for special events and talk-back programs to accompany this extraordinary show. Opening night, Thursday, Oct. 29, will be followed with a reception catered by Carena’s Jamaican Grille. Also join the Firehouse’s Facebook page or follow @firehouserva on Twitter for up-to-the-minute news.
Meet the This is How it Goes cast and crew
Production stills by Jay Paul now on Flickr!
Reviews
Nov. 11, 2009 - Style Weekly’s Dave Timberline says the play is “a minefield of seduction, deceit and uncomfortable racial dynamics.” Read the full review here.
Nov. 7, 2009 - WCVE’s John Porter calls This is How it Goes ”Great artistry” that is “thought provoking, stimulating, and ultimately a frightening look beneath the surface.” Read the full review here.
Oct. 31, 2009 - The Richmond Times-Dispatch calls Bill Patton’s directing ““both fearless and sensitive”, and says the three main actors “give brave, honest performances.” Read the full review here.
Purchase Tickets
Tickets for Individual Shows:
- Adult: $25
- Senior (65 and older): $22
- Student (with ID): $10
- RAPT (with ID): $10