S2 Ep2191: ARTS ALIVE! St. Pete Catalyst's Bill DeYoung with Owen Robertson

Playwright Wendy Graf’s The Cross and the Saber is a sobering drama set in the not-too-distant future. The play, now through July 19 at LAB Theater Project in Ybor City, gives us an America ruled by a totalitarian government that does not tolerate dissent of any kind.  That’s a problem for Rev. Isaiah Proffit, who sees the separation of church and state becoming ever-narrower. As The Cross and the Saber begins, Proffit has been jailed for his “extremist” ideas, which go against the strict edicts of the country’s Great Leader and his creepily mechanized minions.  Host Bill DeYoung talks with LAB founder and executive producer Owen Robertson about the production, and why it’s onstage during America’s 250th birthday celebrations (hint: it was on purpose). He discusses the cast, the use of stage technology, and the LAB manifesto: putting up plays that have never before been produced anywhere (this is the world premiere of Graf’s show). There are lighthearted moments in The Cross and the Saber, but at its core it’s a red flag about what could conceivably result from a massive, governmental mind-and-body takeover.#billdeyoung #owenrobertston #LABtheaterproject #YborCity #theater #artsalive #stpetecatalyst #stpete #stpetefl  #tampabay #radio #radiostpete #cityofstpete  #dtsp #downtownstpete