Nighthawk Rules. Photo credit dbphotographics.
Nighthawk Rules by Collin Doyle & James Hamilton
August 12 – 21 at Venue #17: The Roxy on Gateway
An interview with Taylor Chadwick.
Describe your show in five words.
A love story. With beer.
Okay, now that we’re intrigued… what’s the longer description?
Long-time pals Dick and Barry embark on the drinking game to end all drinking games known as Nighthawk Rules. The winner determines the ruination of their friendship and Barry’s future with his girlfriend, Pam. The loser will have one massive hangover. This Sterling-Award-Winning Fringe hit returns 10 years later!
It’s been 10 years since Nighthawk Rules was at the Edmonton Fringe. Why bring it back to the Fringe?
I think Edmonton has some of the best playwrights in the country and we do a great job in our community by fostering the development of new work but we often forget about those great plays once they get their first production. I think that rather than focusing on NEW local work all the time local producers (especially in the indie world) should be bringing back some of the best plays of Edmonton’s past to share them with new audiences. Nighthawk Rules is a hilarious, sweet and well-written play by two of Edmonton’s best writers. If we want to showcase our kick-ass local creators we not only need to produce their new stuff but their old stuff too.an you tell us a bit about the characters in Nighthawk Rules and their relationships to each other?
Can you tell us a bit about the characters in Nighthawk Rules and their relationships to each other?
The show centres on Barry (played by Christopher Schulz) who is currently in a long-term romantic relationship with Pam (played by Ellie Heath) and they’ve been content to share a quiet and uniform life together. However, Barry’s long-time best friend Dick (played by Chris W. Cook) barges back into Barry’s life after a few months of no contact to finally spend some time with his buddy. The problem is that Dick is well… his name is apt, and Pam does not want Dick to be part of her future with Barry.
The action of Nighthawk Rules is based around “a drinking game to end all drinking games”. Can you talk a bit about the rules of this particular drinking game and what’s at stake?
The rules of the game are simple. The first one to pass out gets pee’d on but the stakes are higher than urine stained clothing. If Barry wins, Dick has to leave Barry and Pam’s lives forever but if Dick wins then he remains a part of Barry’s life and has play tambourine in Dick’s band. Barry is convinced that Dick cannot and will not win. However, Nighthawk Rules is all about games within games and while some of those mini-games involve who can chug the most tequila – some of them involve games of the mind and emotional manipulation more than anything else.
Anything else you want audiences to know about the show?
Just because Nighthawk Rules involves copious amounts of Luck Lager doesn’t mean it won’t tug at your heartstrings. It’s a very funny and very sweet show. The cast is stacked featuring Christopher Schulz (Sterling nominee this year for Northern Light Theatre’s Wish), Chris W. Cook (Fringe hits 3…2…1 and Assassins) and Ellie Heath (Alice in The Citadel’s Alice Through the Looking Glass): all three of them are having a blast with the show and it comes through in their performances. If people are looking to support locally grown 100% organic theatre at the Fringe, then Nighthawk Rules has everything they are looking for. The venue is also licensed so you can enjoy a fresh beverage during the performance. We do not recommend matching Dick and Barry beer for beer.
The 35th Edmonton International Fringe Theatre Festival is August 11 – 21. Get your tickets at tickets.fringetheatre.ca.