Nicole A. Watson

McCarter Theatre Center opens the 2023-2024 theatre series with Eisa Davis’ Bulrusher, a coming-of-age story, in the Berlind Theatre September 13 through October 7. It is a co-production with Berkeley Repertory Theatre, where the production will move after its run in Princeton.

“I’m so thrilled for Bulrusher to be opening our season and to have Nicole A. Watson back in the director’s chair after leading the much-loved Blues for an Alabama Sky to great success,” said Artistic Director Sarah Rasmussen. “We couldn’t be more excited to produce this heartfelt and poetic play. The world of this play and its characters will stay with you long after you’ve seen it.”

Bulrusher transports audiences to the predominantly white town of Boonville, nestled in the redwoods of 1955 Calif. Orphaned as an infant and possessing the mystical gift of clairvoyance, Bulrusher feels her small-town world closing in around her, until a mysterious Black girl from Alabama arrives harboring a secret, awakening new discoveries and uncovering old truths.

“Any story that enlivens and expands our understanding of the variety of history and our shared past is a story worth telling,” said Watson. “Bulrusher is a gift of a play in that is a story about finding love, home, and a sense of belonging in a variety of ways. It’s complex, poetic, and rooted in this history of Northern California.”

Tickets start at $25 and are on sale at McCarter.org, or can be purchased by calling (609) 258-2787. Groups of 10 or more can save 20 percent (zone restrictions apply.) Princeton University students can access free tickets with Passport to the Arts using code PUTIGER. More information on PU student tickets for events is at McCarter: McCarter.org/TigerTix.