University of Regina playwright-in-residence Colleen Murphy will introduce a full concert reading of her latest award-winning play, The December Man (L’homme de décembre), on Wed., Oct. 11 at 7:30 p.m. in the Shu-Box Theatre, Riddell Centre. The reading is open to the public and is free of charge.

Set to premiere in February at Alberta Theatre Projects’ Enbridge playRites Festival of New Canadian Plays, The December Man explores how the Montreal Massacre affects a working class family. Benoît and Kathleen try to help their son Jean, one of the students who left the École Polytechnique when the gunman ordered the men to leave, cope with guilt and rage…but will it be enough?

The reading will feature Sharon Bakker as Kathleen, Kent Allen as Benoît, Kelly Handerek as the narrator and Greg Ochitwa, a student in the Theatre Department’s acting program, as Jean. The cast and playwright will be available after the reading to respond to audience questions.

The reading is the first in the 2006-07 Playwrights Reading Series, hosted by the University of Regina Theatre Department in partnership with the Saskatchewan Writers Guild, with the assistance of the Playwrights Guild of Canada and the Canada Council for the Arts.

An award-winning playwright, screenwriter and filmmaker, Murphy is the University’s first full-time playwright-in-residence. Her first published play, Beating Heart Cadaver (‘98), was nominated for a 1999 Governor General's Literary Award and a Chalmers Award. Her distinctive films include Putty Worm (‘93), The Feeler (‘95), Shoemaker (‘96), Desire (‘00) and War Holes (‘02). Murphy will be available through mid-June 2007 to meet with writers from across the community in her University office. She may be contacted for appointments at 337-2623 or by e-mail at Colleen.A.Murphy@uregina.ca.