Whose eyewitness account will you believe?

Kyle Carthens and Katie Nabors rehearse a scene from Ensembles's production of "The Gospel According to James." [Photo by Aaron Elersich]

Continuing its critically acclaimed 33rd season, Ensemble Theatre presents “The Gospel According to James” by Charles Smith. The play, which runs from Jan. 25 through Feb. 17, is directed by Celeste Cosentino, with assistance from Aaron Elersich.

Eyewitness accounts, as we know, are often less than accurate, and that is the premise of this play. James Cameron and Mary Ball survived history, but whose history? The play, commissioned by The Indiana Repertory Theatre, examines the past and present lives of these two people.

Set in Indiana in 1930, five young people are eager to break out of their small town. They need a car; they have a gun. Based on an actual double lynching, playwright Charles Smith has created a fictional meeting between a man who survived the event and the only woman who was with them that night. As “The Gospel According to James” dramatizes the events leading up to the crime, it also explores how unreliable personal memory underlies what we believe to be immutable public history.

Smith is head of the Professional Playwriting Program at Ohio University and is playwright in residence at the Victory Gardens Theater in Chicago. His plays have been produced off-Broadway and in theaters throughout the country, such as The Acting Company, People's Light & Theatre Company, The Goodman Theatre, St. Louis Black Rep, New Federal Theatre, Seattle Repertory Theatre, and Berkeley Repertory Theater. His work has also been produced for HBO’s New Writers Project, the International Children's Theater Festival in Seattle, and the North Carolina Black Arts Festival.

Ensemble’s production of “The Gospel According to James” is a Cleveland premiere and features an all-star cast, including Equity members Peter Lawson Jones and Keith E. Stevens. Performances are Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m. Special “meet the playwright” dates are Jan. 25, Jan. 26 and Feb. 16. Tickets are $20, $18 for seniors, and $10 for students (with valid IDs).

On Feb. 16 there will also be a “Speakeasy” event to benefit Ensemble Theatre. Enjoy wine, food, song, and the show. Special pricing for this performance and event. For more information and to purchase tickets, call the box office at 216-321-2930 or visit www.ensemble-theatre.org.