From Columbus to New York: Lucy Banks Sheftall to appear in Off-Broadway show

Lucy Banks Sheftall graduated from Syracuse University with a degree in theater in May and has already got a job as actor and co-producer of an Off-Broadway show in New York.

Lucy, 22, graduated from Brookstone School and was the school’s Page One nominee in drama. She won the runner-up trophy.

She took her first drama class at the Springer Opera House when she was 6 years old and she appeared in shows at the Springer when she was a junior at Brookstone. She was also in shows at the now defunct The Human Experience Theatre and at Brookstone School.

Now, she’s part of “Pluck the Day” at the American Theatre for Actors in New York City. The show will run for 14 performances Sept. 8-18. She’ll turn 23 on opening night. Tickets are $20.

The play, written by Dallas native Steven Walters, is about “failure to launch,” Lucy said.

“It’s about four people who have college educations stuck at their parents’ homes,” she said. “This play explores why that happens to people. It’s a theme dear to our hearts.”

Lucy said the show is a “bawdy comedy.”

“It’s a lot of fun and it has a lot of depth,” she said. “As we rehearse it, we find more and more. There’s a lot more than meets the eye.”

Set in west Texas, her character has been dating one of the three guys in the play for four years. “She’s had it... He’s happy as he is. She’s very tough and bright and confident and she’s really ready to move on to some other community. She wants to escape.”

One of the men is gay and the other is stuck in a loveless marriage with two children. Lucy’s character and the gay character get together and decide to make the transition.

The play is 90 minutes with no intermission and takes place during one day, she said.

The play is part of the Araca Group.

The Araca Group was founded in 1997 by Syracuse graduates Michael Rego and Hank Unger and Rego’s brother, Matthew, who went to the University of Michigan. Later Michael went to New York University Law School and Matthew got an MBA from Fordham University.

The three men produced shows like “Urinetown: The Musical,” “Frankie and Johnny at the Clair de Lune,” “Wicked,” “A View from the Bridge,” “Lend Me a Tenor,” “Rock of Ages,” “The Vagina Monologues,” “The Laramie Porject,” “Debbie Does Dallas: The Musical,” “The Merchant of Venice” and “The 25th annual Putnam County Spelling Bee.”

This year, they decided to give new graduates a chance to produce their own shows and started the Araca Project.

“We hope that the Araca Project will provide emerging theater artists the opportunity to shape their artistic destinies and engage their entrepreneurial spirit,” said Michael Rego in a statement. “We are thrilled to partner with Syracuse University and look forward to the future of this exciting endeavor.”

“This has been a truly learning experience,” Lucy said. “This whole program is amazing.”

Lucy’s parents will be going to New York to see the show, and she’s hoping to see familiar Columbus faces in the audience as well.

“I’ll be on the subway and I’ll see someone from Syracuse. I’ll run into people from Columbus and we’ll go out and catch up with each other,” she said.

This story was originally published September 1, 2011 at 12:00 AM with the headline "From Columbus to New York: Lucy Banks Sheftall to appear in Off-Broadway show."