New Castle man’s play to get NY premiere

Staff report

“A Little More Than You Wanted to Spend,” a play about a parent’s loss of a child written and performed by New Castle, Pa., native Chris Clavelli, will receive its New York premiere in a four-week engagement at The Drilling Company, 236 W. 78th St., beginning June 6.

One of the earliest productions of the play, directed by John Hickok, was at the Youngstown Playhouse in 2010.

In “A Little More,” Clavelli, a New York-based actor and director, tries to make sense of the sudden death of his 6-year-old son, an event that occurred some 10 years ago.

With blunt honesty and openness, he describes the harrowing, funny and ultimately life-changing process he undergoes to cope with the experience.

Clavelli developed the play in workshops at the Off Square Theatre Company in Wyoming and at The Bricolage Theatre in Pittsburgh.

The New York production will foster connections with other artists and groups in the creative recovery movement. Talkback sessions June 12 and 19 will welcome guests from Compassionate Friends, an international organization helping parents recover from the loss of a child.

Clavelli made his Off-Broadway debut in the original production of “All in the Timing.”

An associate artistic director of The Florida Repertory Theatre and a faculty member of the New York Conservatory for Dramatic Arts and The Cooper Union Connect Program, he acts and directs in New York and at regional theaters across the country.

For ticket and schedule information, go to smarttix.com, or call 212-868-4444.