First Look Buffalo Theatre Company

presents

PRESERVATION

a new play by Deborah Yarchin

Directed by Lara D. Haberberger

Produced by Michael Audet and Bob Rusch

Starring Sarah Emmerling, Rick Lattimer and Lanie Shannon.

Preservation synopsis

In a quiet town’s archival library lies a heavily guarded vault—and inside it, a sealed box that may hold the truth about Lydia’s family. Her grandmother Stella, nearing the end of her life, insists that what’s inside could change everything. But the library was founded on one inflexible rule: the box must never be opened. Stan, the library’s archivist, is sworn to protect the founder’s wishes at all costs. As Lydia pushes harder and Stan digs in deeper, the vault becomes a battleground where legacy, loyalty, and truth collide.

Preservation is a highly entertaining dark, comedic drama that explores what happens when protecting the dead comes at the cost of the living. Join us and be part of the first audience to see this new play by a critically acclaimed playwright, right here in WNY.

About the Playwright

Playwright Deborah Yachun (she/her) is a proud member of First Look Buffalo Theatre Company’s playwright wing. She’s currently LA/NYC-based. Her plays have been produced and/or developed at Ensemble Studio Theatre, Centenary Stage, The Civilians’ R&D Group, Capital Rep, New Harmony Project, Martha’s Vineyard Playhouse,  Alleyway Theatre, Amphibian Stage Productions, TheatreSquared’s Arkansas New Play Festival, the William Inge Center for the Arts, Northern Stage, Playwrights Horizons’ Peter Jay Sharp Theater by Young Playwrights Inc., Williams Street Rep, Winnipeg Jewish Theatre, and at theaters and universities across the United States and in Canada.

Deborah’s honors include two Jerome Fellowships at The Playwrights’ Center, a Dramatists Guild Foundation Fellowship, an EST/Sloan Commission, Dartmouth’s Neukom Literary Arts Award for Playwriting, The Kennedy Center’s Jean Kennedy Smith Playwriting Award, the Kernodle New Play Award, and Women in the Arts & Media Coalition’s Collaboration Award. Her play GREAT WHITE was an Honorable Mention for the Relentless Award and her play ATLAS, THE LONELY GIBBON was a finalist for the National Playwrights Conference. Deborah is a 2021-2024 Core Writer at The Playwrights’ Center and a New Georges Affiliated Artist. She earned her M.F.A. from the University of Iowa where she was an Iowa Arts Fellow. DeborahYarchun.com.

Performances: Jan 16th 7:30PM, Jan 17th 5:00PM, Jan 22nd 7:30PM, Jan 23rd 7:30PM, Jan 24th 5:00PM, Jan 29th 7:30PM, Jan 30th 7:30PM, Feb 6th 7:30PM, Feb 7th 5:00PM

Canterbury Woods Performing Arts Center

705 Renaissance Dr., Williamsville NY 14221 (off of Young’s Rd between Maple and Klein)

Tickets $30 general, $20 seniors/students and are available at www.FirstLookBuffalo.com or at the door. For more info call Bob Rusch at 716-771-6358 or email him at FirstLookBuffalo@gmail.com.