Aaron Sorkin’s Farnsworth Invention opens at Southridge High

Aaron Sorkin’s new work The Farnsworth Invention is the first play of the season from Southridge High’s Skyhawk Theatre, opening on November 10, and will be the first high school production of this play in Oregon. A crackling prime-time production, this fast-paced show is packed with high drama: corporate espionage, family tragedy, ambition and heartbreak, as it follows the unstoppable captain of the radio industry David Sarnoff and genius inventor Philo Farnsworth as they race to invent the television.

Aaron Sorkin, creator of television’s West Wing and the play and film A Few Good Men, tells the story set in the tumultuous 1920’s. Farnsworth, working on his own in San Francisco, was the first to transmit a moving image, while Sarnoff saw and quickly developed the technology’s potential as a cultural and commercial phenomenon. It becomes a race between the two ambitious visionaries to invent a device called “television.” Separated by two thousand miles, each knows that if he stops working, even for a moment, the other will gain the edge. Southridge Thespians are excited to have the opportunity to put on a show with such historical significance. “The characters are all so fascinating -- you won’t know who to root for, but you will be riveted by this show!” said senior Diana Carey, sound designer and multi-character performer for the show.

The play opens on November 10 and runs through November 12. Show time is 7pm. Tickets are $10 ($8 student/senior) and are available online at the Southridge Theatre website at www.skyhawktheatre.com or at the box office which opens at 5:45 each night of the production. For more information or to purchase season passes, check the Skyhawk Theatre website or call 503-356-2924. Southridge Theater is located at 9625 SW 125th Avenue, Beaverton, OR, 97008.