St. Dunstan’s production of ‘Seminar’ opens Oct. 10

BIRMINGHAM — St. Dunstan’s Theatre Guild of Cranbrook is putting on its production of “Seminar,” by Theresa Rebeck, at St. Dunstan’s Theatre, opening Oct. 10.

“Seminar” tells the story of four aspiring young novelists who pay to study with Professor Leonard in a 10-week seminar. The novelists, Kate, Martin, Douglas and Izzy, each paid $5,000 for this opportunity. Set in Kate’s Upper West Side apartment, the play is full of drama and humor. “Seminar” is recommended for mature audiences because it includes strong language and adult themes.

The show originally opened on Broadway in 2011, starring Alan Rickman as Leonard. Later on, the role was played by Jeff Goldblum.

Chris Steinmayer, from Waterford, has been a member of St. Dunstan’s for over 30 years, and this is his first time on the stage since 2019. For the last few years, his role has been as sound engineer and building sets.

The role of Leonard is one of the factors that compelled him to return to the stage.

“He’s not a simplistic character. He’s complex,” Steinmayer said.

The show is directed by Kevin Fitzhenry. Anthony Dondero is the assistant director, and Kathleen Lusk is producing.

The cast of “Seminar” includes Chris Steinmayer as Professor Leonard, Joe Sfair as Martin, Ashley Gatesy as Kate, Joe Allen as Douglas and Erin Courtney as Izzy — with Emma Maurice understudying.

The characters of “Seminar” are what drew Fitzhenry to the play.

“​​I love plays with great characters, and this is certainly full of five really good, outstanding characters for actors to play,” Fitzhenry said.

Actors were encouraged to explore their character and read between the lines on what their character’s unwritten backstory may be.

“We gave the actors a lot of free rein to kind of come up with all of the afflictions of their characters themselves and what drives them personally,” Fitzhenry said.

He said the show revolves around mentorship — specifically, the student-teacher relationship — and poses the question, “what are we willing to do to get better?” Validation and the fear of rejection are some of the themes within the play.

“I think a lot of the themes in this play ring true for a lot of people,” Fitzhenry said.

Shows on Oct. 10-11, 16-17 and 18 will begin at 8 p.m., and there will be a Sunday matinee Oct. 12 at 2 p.m. There will be no intermission. Visit stdunstanstheatre.com/tickets for more information.