Bloodletting in These Hills is showing here at Parkway Playhouse August 1-10, 2025. We reached out to Mary Weisgerber, who is portraying Anna, about her experience working on this production.
What part of this show is your favorite and why?
There is a scene in the show during which I grab a rifle and point it at another character — it’s an exciting moment for me, and I hope it will be for the audience too! Working with stage weapons is new to me, but Anna is a coal miner’s daughter in 1913 Appalachia, so she knows how to handle herself in a pretty rough world. She’s brave! It’s part of the fun of theatre to get to do things and say things that you would never do or say in your own life.
What about this show do you think will stick with audiences?
On the one hand, I think audiences will appreciate learning about the history of these strikes that took place in the coalfields of West Virginia — a history that is so integral to our beautiful region. On the other hand, it’s also a story of a family arguing over right and wrong, divided between generations, and juggling their own personal dreams with what the world is demanding of them. I think audiences will most remember the love this family shares and how they both pull apart and come together during an extremely contentious moment in their community.
You’re the first cast to perform in a fully staged production of this show. What has the process been like originating this role?
It has been so, so exciting! I feel honored to help bring this story to the stage, written so beautifully by Walter Thinnes. Getting to know my character, Anna, has felt thrilling, like totally uncharted territory. I’ve fallen in love with all her very human contradictions — her hope, her youth, her sweetness, but also her deep sense of responsibility, her fear, and her grit. She has a sharp tongue and a big heart.
What have you loved so far about working with Parkway Playhouse?
This is my first show with Parkway Playhouse, and it is a gorgeous theatre in a gorgeous mountain town, powered by talented, kind, and dedicated artists. What’s not to love, really??
How did you get into theatre?
After college, I had left behind familiar people and surroundings and was living in a new city (St. Louis) with my now-husband, Will. To try to make some friends, I started taking improv classes, and I fell in love. I performed improv for years before heading to New York for a year-long acting program with the Atlantic Acting School. I loved my brief stint living in New York (except for the time a cockroach laid eggs in my coffee maker), but I was more than ready to come back to WNC, settle down among the mountains, and become a part of this area’s wonderful theatre community.
What’s your favorite thing to do in the area?
Hike, drink beer at breweries, chase waterfalls, and go see theatre!
Tell us about yourself!
I live in Hendersonville, NC, with my husband, Will, and our two cats, Sassafras and Rodeo! I’m a writer — I write a Substack newsletter about my life and am currently working on a novel. In my free time, I read a lot and have recently started to love running. My husband is helping me to get ready for a 5k in Asheville, though he hasn’t yet convinced me to call him “coach.” And I do as much theatre as I can! After Bloodletting, I’ll be in another production focused on the American Labor Movement (but set in New York City). The play is called Washington Place by acclaimed local playwright David Brendan Hopes, and it will be showing at HART Theatre in Waynesville.
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