The Play: A Cold Day in Hell portrays one man's effort at resolving his
despair at his dilemma of having a hospitalized, comatose wife,
apparently with no hope of recovery, and grown children who seem to him
to be self-absorbed and detached from his plight. A tour-de-force
single-character play by author Jan Quackenbush, its actor, Michael
Liscio was awarded a 1988 Los Angeles Dramalogue Award in a long-running
production by the California Cottage Theatre, 1988-1991. Jan Quackenbush
has had plays produced in the USA and in Europe. His published plays
includeCALCIUM AND OTHER PLAYS, STILL FIRES, OPFER (VICTIMS, published
in Austria), IM KREIS DRAUSSSEN (Inside Out, published in Austria), and
INSIDE OUT AND OTHER PLAYS, London. He has had several productions at
the La MAMA ETC theatre in New York and has had three plays included in
the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. Additionally, he has published poetry and
prose, including "Flash," "Stone Eggs," and "Simeon in Memoriam." In
addition to writing new plays, Jan is at work on a documentary film
chronicling the military touring shows (soldier-actor shows) that toured
Vietnam. Jan coordinated and prepared those shows as part of his active
duty in Vietnam. He teaches playwriting at Broome Community College in
Binghamton, NY, and in the MA Degree in Creative Writing, Wilkes
University, Wilkes-Barre, PA.
