PERFORMANCE DATES/TIMES/LOCATION
Where: Byham Theater, downtown Pittsburgh
When:
- Friday, November 14, 2025 * 7:00 PM
- Saturday, November 15, 2025 * 7:00 PM
- Sunday, November 16, 2025 * 2:00 PM
CAST AND ARTISTIC TEAM
Hawkins Fuller: Erik Nordstrom*
Timothy Laughlin: Logan Wagner*
Mary Johnson: Shannon Crowley*
Miss Lightfoot: Lauryn Davis*
Tommy McIntyre: Yazid Gray**
Lucy: Audrey Welsh*
Potter's Assistant/Bookseller/Party Guest/Technician/French Priest: Matthew Soibelman*
Senator Charles E. Potter/General Airlie/Bartender: TBA
Estonian Frank/Interrogator/Senator Joseph McCarthy: TBA
Conductor: Antony Walker
Stage Director : Brian Staufenbiel+
Scene Designer: TBA
Costume Designer: TBA
Lighting Designer: TBA
Wig & Make-up Designer: James Geier
Assistant Conductor: Glenn Lewis
Chorus Master: Mark Trawka
Associate Coach/Pianist: James Lesniak
Assistant Stage Director: Dana Kinney*
Stage Manager: TBA
+ Pittsburgh Opera debut
* Pittsburgh Opera Resident Artist
** Pittsburgh Opera Resident Artist Alumnus
SYNOPSIS
September 1953 to May 1957, in Washington, D.C. Eisenhower is president. Senator Joseph McCarthy is stoking fears that the U.S. federal government is full of Communists, Soviet spies, and homosexuals.
Scene 1
Park in Dupont Circle. A fledgling reporter, Timothy Laughlin, sits on a bench reviewing his notes from McCarthy’s wedding when he is approached by State Department employee Hawkins Fuller.
Scene 2
Senator Charles Potter’s Office. Timothy is hired as a speechwriter for Senator Charles Potter. Timothy meets Tommy McIntyre, who gives him unsolicited advice about Washington politics.
Scene 3
Hawkins’s Office. Timothy stops by Hawkins’s office to drop off a thank-you gift. He meets Hawkins’s assistant and best friend Mary, and his secretary Miss Lightfoot, who mocks Timothy after he leaves.
Scene 4
Timothy’s Apartment. Timothy is at home cooking soup and writing his sister a letter when Hawkins unexpectedly stops by to tell him about the delights of Bermuda, among other things.
Scene 5
St. Peter’s Church. In the afterglow of last night’s encounter with Hawkins, Timothy is torn between his deep Catholicism and his blossoming passion.
Scene 6
The Hotel Washington. At a Christmas party, Timothy is approached by an Army general about enlisting; Mary warns Hawkins about his reckless behavior with Timothy; McIntyre tells Potter about McCarthy’s latest political troubles; Miss Lightfoot overhears an intimate exchange between Hawkins and Timothy.
Scene 7
Interrogation Room M304. An interrogator puts Hawkins through a series of humiliating tests in an attempt to determine whether or not he is a homosexual.
Scene 8
Timothy’s Apartment. Timothy and Hawkins discuss the interrogation, McCarthy, and Hawkins’s illicit amusements in New York City.
Scene 9
McCarthy’s Office. Senator Potter warns McCarthy that the “Adams Chronology,” which details how Roy Cohn and McCarthy pressured the Army to give Cohn’s friend David Schine special treatment, will be McCarthy’s downfall unless he gives up Cohn.
Scene 10
Mary’s Kitchen/Timothy’s Apartment. Mary invites Timothy over to warn him of Hawkins’s fickle nature. She tells Timothy she is pregnant from a one-night stand. In Timothy’s apartment, Hawkins rejoices that he’s been cleared of allegations of homosexuality. Timothy is shocked by how Hawkins wants to celebrate.
Scene 11
Roof of the Old Post Office. Timothy, in agony over his fraught relationship, tells Hawkins he’s decided to enlist in the Army.
Scene 12
Hawkins’s Office. Mary tells Hawkins she is quitting, as she can no longer work in an atmosphere of panic and persecution.
Scene 13
Timothy in France/Hawkins in Chevy Chase. Three years pass. Timothy writes letters to Hawkins and Mary from France, where he is stationed. Hawkins is now married to a woman named Lucy, with a house in the suburbs, but would clearly like to rekindle his relationship with Timothy upon his return.
Scene 14
Brick House. In a house in D.C. that Hawkins has rented for his afternoon flings with Timothy, Hawkins expresses that he cannot be everything Timothy wants. Hawkins resolves to end the affair himself.
Scene 15
Mary’s Kitchen/Brick House/Room M304. Mary is packing when Hawkins stops by, distraught. Hawkins confesses that in order to push Timothy away, he has given Timothy’s name to those investigating alleged homosexuals. He asks Mary to tell Timothy about this betrayal in hopes it will make Timothy hate him.
Scene 16
Park in Dupont Circle. His dreams dashed, Timothy decides to leave Washington, D.C., and Hawkins Fuller for good. Both heartbroken, they say goodbye.
–Courtesy of Greg Pierce, Cincinnati Opera
DETAILS & RESOURCES
We want you to have the best experience possible at our performances!
Here are some details and resources to help. Also visit our Opera FAQs or our Accessibility page.
- Run time: approx. 2 hours
- Understand Every Word: Fellow Travelers is English, with supertitles projected above the stage
- Parking Downtown: get real-time parking availability
- Pre-Opera Talks before each performance
- Braille Programs available at The Benedum Center
- Large-Print Programs available at The Benedum Center
CHILD POLICY:
- Children must be ages 6 and up. Suggestions and tips for bringing children to the opera may be found at pittsburghopera.org/FAQ.
- All children must have a ticket. There is a 50% discount for kids and teens ages 6-18.
BENEDUM SAFETY AND SECURITY STATEMENT
The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust has implemented new security and bag policies, effective starting October 1, 2016, at the Benedum Center and their other venues.
You can read their Safety & Security statement, which includes an updated list of prohibited items, and read their Bag Policy, on their website.
