THE AHAB INSIDE ME—Redux
Gabby Beauvais as "Heroin" and Shuhei Kinoshita as "Fedallah"
(Photo by Bill Axell Photography)
THE AHAB INSIDE ME—REDUX (2023)
WRITTEN BY / MICHAEL GORMAN
DIRECTED BY / JOE JOHN BATTISTA
ASSISTANT DIRECTOR / KRISTY ZORNES BEAUVAIS
COSTUME DESIGN / SARAH BOYDEN
PRODUCED BY / THE FORTY HOUR CLUB (DONNA DALY, MICHAEL GORMAN)
July 20 -23, 2023 , Colonial Theater, Augusta, ME
WRITTEN BY / MICHAEL GORMAN
DIRECTED BY / JOE JOHN BATTISTA
ASSISTANT DIRECTOR / KRISTY ZORNES BEAUVAIS
COSTUME DESIGN / SARAH BOYDEN
PRODUCED BY / THE FORTY HOUR CLUB (DONNA DALY, MICHAEL GORMAN)
July 20 -23, 2023 , Colonial Theater, Augusta, ME
THE DEVELOPMENT OF A NEW EXPANDED WORK:
In June and July 2023, The Forty Hour Club took over a defunct, crumbling, historic theater on the banks of the Kennebec River in Augusta, Maine during a 5-week residency. The residency allowed us the time and space to further develop and premiere this major work—a blues/rock opera about Moby Dick, commercial fishing, obsession, and addiction.
Following on the heels of 2022’s successful production "THE AHAB INSIDE ME", this new expanded production included the addition of 5 new songs, an expanded cast of performers and singers, a new band, a chorus, movement/choreography, and an expanded script.
Now a fully-realized production with 6 years of development behind it, The Forty Hour Club is currently seeking a producer(s) to help us get this exciting work to larger stages and audiences. See the TIMELINE.
ABOUT THE PRODUCTION:
Moby Dick meets the Perfect Storm in this blues/rock opera and inspirational tale of a fishing community’s daunting quest for survival and transformation in the face of the opiate crisis, and an epic confrontation with Captain Ahab and his destructive pursuit of Moby Dick. Told through performance, music, song, spoken word, recitative opera, movement, and spectacle, this epic tale of fishing, obsession, addiction and recovery calls for a reevaluation of Ahabs vengeful attitude toward the maligned White Whale and our own destructive relationship to nature, the environment and ourselves.
The production featured a live blues band, and a diverse cast of singers, musicians, actors and community performers (many in recovery) from Maine, New England, New York City, and Los Angeles. The production further explored the themes of addiction, obsession, loss, generational and environmental trauma, as well as recovery, hope, and redemption, and advocates for a new creative approach to addiction through the healing power of art, connection, and community.
Runtime: 1 hour 45 minutes.
In June and July 2023, The Forty Hour Club took over a defunct, crumbling, historic theater on the banks of the Kennebec River in Augusta, Maine during a 5-week residency. The residency allowed us the time and space to further develop and premiere this major work—a blues/rock opera about Moby Dick, commercial fishing, obsession, and addiction.
Following on the heels of 2022’s successful production "THE AHAB INSIDE ME", this new expanded production included the addition of 5 new songs, an expanded cast of performers and singers, a new band, a chorus, movement/choreography, and an expanded script.
Now a fully-realized production with 6 years of development behind it, The Forty Hour Club is currently seeking a producer(s) to help us get this exciting work to larger stages and audiences. See the TIMELINE.
ABOUT THE PRODUCTION:
Moby Dick meets the Perfect Storm in this blues/rock opera and inspirational tale of a fishing community’s daunting quest for survival and transformation in the face of the opiate crisis, and an epic confrontation with Captain Ahab and his destructive pursuit of Moby Dick. Told through performance, music, song, spoken word, recitative opera, movement, and spectacle, this epic tale of fishing, obsession, addiction and recovery calls for a reevaluation of Ahabs vengeful attitude toward the maligned White Whale and our own destructive relationship to nature, the environment and ourselves.
The production featured a live blues band, and a diverse cast of singers, musicians, actors and community performers (many in recovery) from Maine, New England, New York City, and Los Angeles. The production further explored the themes of addiction, obsession, loss, generational and environmental trauma, as well as recovery, hope, and redemption, and advocates for a new creative approach to addiction through the healing power of art, connection, and community.
Runtime: 1 hour 45 minutes.
The production was part of an on-going project Chasing The New White Whale—Harpooning Addiction—a performance-based
Art & Advocacy model created by the playwright and his production company The Forty Hour Club.
Art & Advocacy model created by the playwright and his production company The Forty Hour Club.
Cast and Crew "The Ahab Inside Me—Redux" (Colonial Theatre, 2023). Photo by Bill Axell Photography.
CAST:
Teddy Lytle (Robbie Jr.), Andrew Ryan Perry (Ahab/Ray), Jim O'Brien (Robbie Sr.), Sarah MacDonnell (Therese/Hungry Ghost),
Gabbi Beauvais (Heroin), Daniel Yaiullo (Ishmael), Kristy Zornes Beauvais (Billy The Crab), Shuhei Kinoshita (Fedallah)
Sam Rothermel (Billie), Paul Beauvais (Starbuck/Fisherman), Tristan Morton (young Robbie), Brodie Beauvais (young Billie)
Dipper Castaldo (Hungry Ghost Chorus), Sarah Boyden (Hungry Ghost Chorus), Marshall Mercer (Phantom Harpooner #1)
Charles Santana (Phantom Harpooner #2), Andre Van Poelvoorde (The Ungraspable Phantom of Life),
BAND:
Joe John Battista (Guitar), Doug Kennedy (Bass), Gary Fuller (Drums), Kavi Gaspar (Keyboard)
SOUND ENGINEER: Tucker DeCosta
Teddy Lytle (Robbie Jr.), Andrew Ryan Perry (Ahab/Ray), Jim O'Brien (Robbie Sr.), Sarah MacDonnell (Therese/Hungry Ghost),
Gabbi Beauvais (Heroin), Daniel Yaiullo (Ishmael), Kristy Zornes Beauvais (Billy The Crab), Shuhei Kinoshita (Fedallah)
Sam Rothermel (Billie), Paul Beauvais (Starbuck/Fisherman), Tristan Morton (young Robbie), Brodie Beauvais (young Billie)
Dipper Castaldo (Hungry Ghost Chorus), Sarah Boyden (Hungry Ghost Chorus), Marshall Mercer (Phantom Harpooner #1)
Charles Santana (Phantom Harpooner #2), Andre Van Poelvoorde (The Ungraspable Phantom of Life),
BAND:
Joe John Battista (Guitar), Doug Kennedy (Bass), Gary Fuller (Drums), Kavi Gaspar (Keyboard)
SOUND ENGINEER: Tucker DeCosta
All photos by: Bill Axell Photography
This production made possible by the generous support of:
Funded in part by a grant from The Onion Foundation.
Funded in part by a grant from The Maine Arts Commission, an independent state agency supported by The National Endowment for the Arts.
Funded in part by SPACE/ American Rescue Plan Act Maine Project Grants—a re-granting program through the National Endowment for the Arts.
This production also made possible by the generous support of these sponsors:
Joe Godfrey Construction
Rockport Post & Beam
The David & Lynn Butler Family Fund
The Maine Reentry Network
Luke Ryan
Antonia Daly
Cushnoc Brewing Company
Special Thanks To:
The Augusta, Maine Addiction/Recovery and Reentry Communities
Maine Reentry Network/Bruce Noddin
Augusta Recovery Reentry Center
Hope Brokers
Matthew Creisher
Peg Gorman
The Beauvais Family
And to Richard Parkhurst—for being an ally and giving us the opportunity to develop
this work and perform at The Colonial Theater.
Joe Godfrey Construction
Rockport Post & Beam
The David & Lynn Butler Family Fund
The Maine Reentry Network
Luke Ryan
Antonia Daly
Cushnoc Brewing Company
Special Thanks To:
The Augusta, Maine Addiction/Recovery and Reentry Communities
Maine Reentry Network/Bruce Noddin
Augusta Recovery Reentry Center
Hope Brokers
Matthew Creisher
Peg Gorman
The Beauvais Family
And to Richard Parkhurst—for being an ally and giving us the opportunity to develop
this work and perform at The Colonial Theater.
