Brian Copeland’s
The Waiting Period
Returns! Free Tickets!
In-Person at The San Francisco MainStage & Berkeley
Written & Performed by Brian Copeland
Developed with & Directed by David Ford
Online ticket sales close 2 hours before each performance, and additional tickets may be available for purchase at the door.
SAN FRANCISCO
September 15
October 20
November 3
Select Sunday at 12pm
Click to Reserve Free Tickets
BERKELEY
September 22
December 1
Select Sunday at 12pm
Click to Reserve Free Tickets
Ticket Information
Tickets: FREE General Seating Donate $50/$100 for reserved seating. Your donation makes it possible for others to see the show for free.
Online ticket sales close 2 hours before each performance, and additional tickets may be available for purchase at the door.
75 minutes | No Intermission | Ages 14+ Please do not bring infants to the show
About the Show
Winner 2015 Theater Bay Area Award Outstanding Production of a Solo Play
This show is an unrelenting look at a ten-day period in Copeland’s life—the mandatory ten-day waiting period before he could lay his hands on the newly purchased gun with which he planned to take his own life. Even in the midst of this tragedy, however, his wonderful sense of the comedy of life does not desert him (how much should he spend on the gun?), indeed serves him insidiously well as a buffer against the grim reality of his intention. Copeland hopes this very personal, and ultimately redemptive, story will reach people who struggle with depression—often called the last stigmatized disease—as well as their families and loved ones. Interspersed with interviews with other sufferers, the play, like so many Marsh stories, also offers outsiders an insider’s view, thereby expanding our understanding and, hopefully, our humanity. As critic Sam Hurwitt put it in The Idiolect: “It’s a play I’d strongly recommend to anyone who is now or has ever been depressed or who knows someone in that situation. But honestly, it’s such a strong piece that I’d recommend it just as heartily to anyone who’s ever been human.”
Click to make a donation to support this life-saving show
About the Performer
Brian Copeland has been in show business since he first stepped on the comedy stage at the tender age of 18. Soon he was headlining clubs and concerts across the country and opening for such artists as Smokey Robinson, The Temptations, Ringo Starr, and the Queen of soul Aretha Franklin, in venues from The Universal Amphitheater to Constitution Hall in Washington DC. Soon, Copeland branched off into television, appearing on comedy programs on NBC, A&E and MTV. He spent five years as co-host of San Francisco FOX affiliate KTVU breakfast program Mornings on 2 and two years hosting San Francisco ABC affiliate KGO’s Emmy Award winning afternoon talker 7Live. In 1995, ABC affiliate KGO Radio premiered “The Brian Copeland Show”. It’s unique mix of talk and entertainment soon made it the most listened to program in its time slot. Copeland branched out into theater in 2004 with his first solo play, NOT A GENUINE BLACK MAN. This critically acclaimed exploration of race and identity created an audience pleasing blend of laughter, tears and sociology that led to the show becoming the longest running solo play in San Francisco theatrical history. Successful runs in Los Angeles and Off Broadway and a bestselling book adaptation followed. GENUINE has been performed in over 30 cities across America. Copeland’s other theatrical work includes THE WAITING PERIOD, a solo play about his lifelong struggle with depression and the Christmas play THE JEWELRY BOX, opening in November 2013. His first network special, NOW BRIAN COPELAND aired on NBC in January 2015.
Press & Media
Interview on The Jan Wahl Entertainment Spotlight – Sports Byline USA (Rick Tittle Show)