Michael Disher's 'Twelve Angry Men' hits the stage on January 21

When the lights come up on “Twelve Angry Men” on opening night, January 21, at the Southampton Cultural Center, a kaleidoscope of emotions and prejudices will be illuminated.

The play, a tense courtroom drama featuring an ensemble of 12 jurors and one guard, is the second in director Michael Disher’s theatrical triple play this season. And it is a drastic departure from “Private Lives,” the lighthearted, if somewhat jaded, romantic comedy that preceded it.

“This tight and terse 90-minute drama has proven to this ensemble that the obvious path is not always the best to take,” explained Mr. Disher. “More thought, pure thought, has been heaved into this production than any I can recall in quite a while.”

Set entirely in a single room, the intense, fast-paced show zeroes in on a jury’s deliberations on a murder case involving a 19-year-old male accused of stabbing his father. With a death sentence at stake, all the jurors vote “guilty,” except for the audacious Juror #8, whose bold rejection of a “guilty” vote sparks a firestorm among his fellow jurors.

The dissenting juror, played by Joe Pallister in the Southampton production, notices enough gaps in the defense to warrant further investigation. He then tries to persuade the other 11 men, whose individual reactions are, by degrees, both rowdy and fascinating.

Mr. Disher noted that the teenage defendant is never assigned a race or a creed. Some might assume he is a non-white, while others may not. “It is a brilliant aspect of this particular script,” Mr. Disher said. “Justice should know no color.”

The seemingly simple script and austere setting of the show do nothing to conceal, and serve only to underscore, the depth and complexity of the commentary on the American judicial process and the ingrained prejudices, biases, fears, doubts and ignorance that swirl rampantly among the jurors, 12 men whom Mr. Disher described as having “equal parts temper and testosterone.”

“The story addresses not only what constitutes reasonable doubt, but also what constitutes democracy,” Mr. Disher observed. “When things appear to be black and white, that’s not always the case. The possibilities far outweigh the probabilities.”

Mr. Disher selected this play in part because it is studied in a number of local high schools, including Bridgehampton and Shelter Island, and he wanted to offer a live theatrical complement to the students’ classes.

“Twelve Angry Men” originated as a 1954 teleplay written by Reginald Rose before being adapted to a play by Sherman L. Sergel in 1955 and a film starring Henry Fonda as Juror #8 in 1957.

The dozen jurors remain on stage throughout the entire production, with all their reactions on view at all times, requiring tremendous focus on the part of the actors.

“Every juror is basically a stereotype,” noted Mr. Pallister, 46, of Hampton Bays. “It’s an exposé on stereotypes done by stereotypes.”

The show presents theatergoers with a unique opportunity to observe 12 different reactions at any one moment, Mr. Pallister said, adding that although no time elapses on stage between acts, the break provides the audience with a chance to digest it all and ask each other questions.

“Viewers will identify with aspects of every character, recognize traits of these people, explore the relationships that they have,” noted Mr. Pallister. “We’re a society that is very fast to judge. A lot of snap judgments are made without all the information ... It’s a great thing for the audience to take stock of themselves: which juror am I?”

The gripping tale relies heavily on the timing and the ensemble work of its dozen jurors, played in this production by Richard Gardini, Matthew O’Connor, Billy Paterson, Robert Beodeker, Matthew Ruggiero, Christopher Tyrkko, Randall Krongard, Ted Lapides, Stephan Scheck, Daniel Becker and Paul Consiglio, in addition to Mr. Pallister. Ken Rowland plays the guard.

“It’s like a 12-cylinder car,” offered Mr. Paterson, 68, of East Quogue, who plays Juror #3. “If any one of those cylinders doesn’t fire properly, it won’t work.”

Following weeks of rehearsals, the Center Stage production of “Twelve Angry Men” is now running like a well-oiled machine.

“Twelve Angry Men” will run from January 21 to 24 and also on February 6 and 7. All performances will be staged at the Levitas Center for the Arts at the Southampton Cultural Center at 25 Pond Lane in Southampton, across from Agawam Park. Shows are at 8 p.m. on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays, and at 2:30 p.m. on Sundays. Tickets are $22 for general admission or $10 for students under 21 with ID. On Thursdays only, there will be a senior rate (age 60 and over) of $15. Group rates are available and reservations are encouraged. For reservations or more information, call 631-287-4377 or visit www.southamptonculturalcenter.org.