Crave

Written by Sarah Kane

Directed by Randy Sharp

November 1 - December 23, 2000

Wednesdays - Saturdays at 8pm
General Admission $25

Sarah Kane burst onto the London theater scene in 1995 with the controversial premiere of Blasted at The Royal Court. The play's graphic gore and violent content instantly divided critics, theater, scholars and patrons, making Kane one of the most talked about playwrights of the decade. The London Daily Mail famously described the play as " disgusting feast of filth." Her next three pays, Cleansed, Crave, and Phaedra's Love proved to be equally controversial. Kane further rocked the theater community when she committed suicide in February 1999. Her final play, 4:48 Psychosis premiered posthumously in London in June 2000. Regional and commercial theaters through the U.S. have been vying to premiere Kane's work; Crave at Axis marks Kane's U.S. debut.

Crave is Kane's most critically praised work. This non-linear narrative play featuring four characters charts the disintegration of the human mind under the pressures of love, loss, and desire. It is a lyrical, fragmented exploration of the darkly humorous and desperate side of human relationships. A beguiling and unconventional work.


Featuring: Brian Barnhart, David Guion, Kristin DiSpaltro, Deborah Harry

Director: Randy Sharp
Stage Manager: Kate Aronsson
Sound Design: Steve Fontaine
Lighting Design: David Zeffren
Set Design: David Ramirez
Costume Designer: Mark Spada
Understudies: Laurie Kilmartin, Christopher Swift
Film: Mott Hupfel
Editor: Mike Huetz
Photography: Dixie Sheridan
Graphics: Ethan Crenson
Press: Ron Lasko, Spin Cycle
Production Associate: Dan Killeen
Producing Director: Ami Armstrong
Executive Producer: Jeffrey Resnick

Crave was originally commissioned by Plaines Plough and first presented by Paines Plough with Bright Ltd at the Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh on 13 August, 1998 and subsequently at the Royal Court Theatre Upstairs, London on 8 September, 1998.

Axis Company would like to thank:
Eduardo Muchado, Simon Kane, Mercedes Danforth, Joe Gallagher, David Schaefer, Nicholas Sterlington, Furniture Company, Fressen Restaurant


  • David Guion, Deborah Harry, Brian Barnhart, Kristin DiSpaltro - photo by Dixie Sheridan
  • David Guion, Deborah Harry, Brian Barnhart, Kristin DiSpaltro - photo by Susan Shacter
  • Kristin DiSpaltro, Brian Barnhart, David Guion, Deborah Harry - photo by Susan Shacter
  • Deborah Harry - photo by Dixie Sheridan
  • Deborah Harry - photo by Dixie Sheridan




“The lilt of a lullaby runs through "Crave," (which features) Deborah Harry in a subtle, pitch-perfect performance...the four performers — Ms. Harry, Brian Barnhart, David Guion and Kristin DiSpaltro — give themselves with touching sincerity to the work's drift into darkness. Ms. Kane has clearly touched nerves in each of them, and there is an attendant sense of truly personal pain.”
—Ben Brantley
The New York Times
“Deborah Harry, costumed stylishly in black, is visually striking, and maintains wonderfully restrained tristesse throughout.”
—David Cote
Time Out New York
“Randy Sharp, who has placed "Crave" in a distinctly New York aesthetic... finds in the prevailing minimalism a surprising but familiar naturalism through which to channel Ms. Kane's often-rhythmic shards of language...(with) four stunning performances...Deborah Harry, as M...is perfectly cast as the older woman: hard-edged but vulnerable, worn but still sensual. Her cross-over from rock star to actor is no gimmick: she inhabits her fragile character to the core. As her younger man, Guion is fine (as is Kristin DiSpaltro as the young woman, C). But it is Brian Barnhart, as A, the only character given a long monologue, who sticks in our memory for his forceful yet shattered performance. ”
—CurtainUp
“Blondie Ambition | Deborah Harry puts herself on the line Off-Broadway in Sarah Kane's 'Crave'.”
Theatermania