Only a fool – or perhaps a genius – would adapt one of the greatest American novels for the stage. Orson Welles was a bit of both. Theater enthusiasts will love what Orson Welles has created out of that most famous tale, Moby Dick.

Those who enjoy having their literature served up in delightful dramatic adaptations will find much to enjoy in this hybrid of Herman Melville's story adapted to draw a parallel between King Lear and Captain Ahab. A troupe of actors abandon their rehearsal of a play about one unforgiving, vengeance obsessed man, King Lear, to recreate another of the same emotional stripe, Captain Ahab. Set in an empty theater, a tyrannical actor-manager leads his crew and transports audiences to Captain Ahab’s fateful voyage across the open seas aboard the Pequod in search of the great white whale, Moby Dick.

Orson Welles understood the importance of treating the audience as a partner in creating illusion, which comes through vividly in this simple but riveting production. Noted theater critic Kenneth Tynan wrote, “With this Moby Dick, the theater becomes once more a house of magic.”

Director Casey Biggs and a team of talented actors and designers create a theatrical tour-de-force. With the presentation of Orson Welles' Moby Dick Rehearsed, The Acting Company continues its 35-year tradition of bringing touring classical productions, talented young actors and teaching artists into communities across America.

The performance takes place at 8:00 p.m. on Friday, February 1, at Beckman Auditorium, Caltech, 332 S. Michigan Ave., Pasadena. Tickets are $10-$25; call 626-395-4652 for tickets.

Kevin Kline, Patti LuPone, Jesse L. Martin, Frances Conroy, David Ogden Stiers, Jeffrey Wright and Rainn Wilson are but a handful of actors whose careers have been developed by The Acting Company. Honored by the Tony Awards for Excellence in Theater, the Company has won the Obie, Audelco, Citibank’s Excellence in Education and Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Awards.

Since its founding by the legendary John Houseman and Margot Harley in 1972, The Acting Company has performed 127 productions touring to 48 states and 10 foreign countries.