Alley Theatre Presents the Historical Drama “Camp David”

“I'm especially excited to welcome back Elijah Alexander who stunned Alley audiences with his powerful performance of Leontes in The Winter's Tale, who will now radically shift gears to play Anwar Sadat." – Rob Melrose

The Alley’s production of Camp David by Texas playwright Lawrence Wright is directed by Public Theater’s Artistic Director, Oskar Eustis 

The Alley Theatre and Artistic Director Rob Melrose will present a new production of Camp David by Texas playwright Lawrence Wright and directed by the Public Theater’s Artistic Director, Oskar Eustis. The Alley’s Associate Producer & Casting Director, Brandon Weinbrenner, will serve as the Assistant Director. Camp David runs February 14 - March 15 in the Neuhaus Theatre. 

In the tumultuous 1970s, Middle East peace seemed nearly as impossible as it does today. Yet during 13 days in 1978, Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin and Egyptian President Anwar Sadat, with the powerful help of U.S. President Jimmy Carter and First Lady Rosalynn Carter, hammered out an agreement that inspired the entire world. Wright’s play delivers a tremendously human look at both the hope and the cost of that historic moment. 

“Lawrence Wright is not only a wonderful playwright, he’s one of America’s greatest journalists. This play about the only successful peace treaty in the Mideast since the creation of Israel is revelatory, powerful, and immensely important,” said Oskar Eustis. “I am so proud to be working with Rob Melrose and the Alley in bringing this show to Houston.” 

"Camp David was already an exciting project with Pulitzer Prize-winning writer Lawrence Wright, Tony Award®-winning set designer David Rockwell, and director and American theatre legend Oskar Eustis. Now, by partnering with the casting department at the Public Theater in New York City, we have a stellar cast of actors to realize this important play,” said Rob Melrose. “I'm especially excited to welcome back Elijah Alexander who stunned Alley audiences with his powerful performance of Leontes in The Winter's Tale, who will now radically shift gears to play Anwar Sadat."

Elijah Alexander as Anwar Sadat

The cast includes Elijah Alexander (The Winter’s Tale) as Anwar Sadat, Rebecca Brooksher (The Monster at the Door, Public Theater: Love’s Labour’s Lost) as Rosalynn Carter, and four actors making their Alley debuts: Sam Khazai (Atlantic Theater Company: Tosca Tehran, Flea Theater: Echo & Narciss) as Mohammed Ibrahim Kamel, Jordan Lage (Broadway: Inherit the Wind, Glengarry Glen Ross) as Menachem Begin, Stephen Thorne (Resident Acting Company Member at Trinity Repertory Company: Othello, Little Shop of Horrors) as Jimmy Carter, and Mark Zimmerman (Broadway: Rocky, West Side Story) as Moshe Dayan. 

Camp David’s creative team includes Scenic Design by David Rockwell (Broadway: Kinky Boots, Tony Award®-winner for She Loves Me), Costume Design by Paul Tazewell (Tony Award®-winner for Hamilton), Lighting Design by Xavier Pierce (Oregon Shakespeare Festival: Shakespeare in Love), Sound. 

“…it’s not just reciting history or framing the debate; it’s also showing us how to understand why intractable adversaries might have lowered their guards, gazed at their bitterest enemy and begun to conceive of a way forward.” – Washington Post HOUSTON