The charging knight behind Federal Way’s Centerstage Theater is an all-around theater guy to his core. As an actor turned director turned playwright and theater operator, the very English Alan Bryce has likely done every job remotely connected to stage performances. He has a resume that includes work in New York and London as well as the just as noteworthy resurrection of the once stagnant theater company in South King County.



He brought the English pantomime to the South Sound and deepened the richness found in local theater during his time at Centerstage. Before this gets too much like his obituary, I am happy to report that Bryce is very much alive and doing well with his latest production.



The theater is staging his play, Nightmare of a Married Man, which Bryce wrote while he was a fixture of London’s fringe theater scene.



“A long time ago,” Bryce says, “I was artistic director of the Overground Theatre, which for a brief and brilliant few years was one of London’s leading fringe theaters. We transferred some shows to the West End, to BBC TV, to BBC Radio and to commercial success elsewhere. It was a very exciting time for a young guy in his twenties.”



It was during this time he wrote Nightmare of a Married Man, a play he thought would make him a star because it was set to be a hit only to have its funding fall through. The script sat on a shelf as years passed. Bryce recently reread the script and thought it was worth taking to the stage. He retooled the script, and folks seemed interested in seeing it performed.



“I added what I hope are a few improvements and cut what I thought needed to be cut, and here we are. I hope it offers audiences a few laughs and a few sleepless nights, too. I think Centerstage audiences have to prepare themselves for a roller-coaster ride of twists and turns, where you can never be certain what will happen next. And plenty of laughs,” he says. “I like to describe it thus: It’s not a whodunit. It’s a whowilldowhat?”



The four-person show takes place in the dining room of a mildly upper-class suburban house somewhere in modern America as the thriller takes turns few scripts can boast. On its face, the play is about two sets of neighbors who are otherwise civil as they secretly plan each other’s downfall.



The show has played to relatively full houses since it opened last month and is set to close this weekend. That means it is now or never for you to see the show that folks are talking about around the South Sound. 

Also playing

Another show to take a look at can be found on the other end of the South Sound theater scene. Olympia Little Theatre is staging The Sisters of Rosenweig, a tale about an aging woman in search of love while her sisters look on as a relationship unfolds.

The play centers on Pfeni and Gorgeous, who have come to London to celebrate the birthday of their sister, Sara, whether she likes it or not.  Jewish sibling rivalry takes a backseat to sisterly love. 



[Knutzen Family Theatre, Nightmare of a Married Man, through March 16, 8 p.m. Friday-Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday, $8-$25, 3200 S.W. Dash point Road, Federal Way, 253.661.1444, www.centerstagetheatre.com]

[Olympia Little Theatre, The Sisters of Rosenweig, through March 30, 7:55 p.m. Friday-Saturday, 1:55 p.m. Sunday, $10-$12, 1925 Miller Ave. N.E., Olympia, 360.786.9484]



Steve Dunkelberger has covered the South Sound theater scene for 14 years.  He can be reached at viewfromthecheapseats@bigfoot.com or at his virtual voice mail at 320.216. 5007.