/Theatre
The Coast Starlight
About
The Coast Starlight departs Los Angeles bound for Seattle, carrying six strangers who have no idea their lives are about to intersect in extraordinary ways. As the train speeds north along the Pacific coastline, separate journeys become something far more connected.
Among the passengers: a young man carrying a dangerous secret that could destroy everything he's worked for, fellow travelers wrestling with their own crossroads, and the shared understanding that sometimes you have to leave everything behind to figure out who you really are. With roughly 1,000 miles of track ahead, they each have the length of California, Oregon, and Washington to reinvent themselves.
Keith Bunin's poignant new play explores starting over when life derails completely and the courage it takes to change course.
SF/Arts Curator Insight
If you love stories set on trains, check out Keith Bunin’s 95-minute one-act in which six strangers traverse the Pacific coast on Amtrak. The Coast Starlight trundles along, and we eavesdrop on phone conversations and inner thoughts, watching as the various passengers connect with one another in that liminal space. The emotionally loaded journey explores the life choices that we make, and more. Rebecca Clark directs for San Jose Stage Company.
Jean Schiffman
Contributing Writer, Theater
San Jose Stage Company