You can plan all you want.
Sometimes fate has an alternate adventure in the works.
Just ask David Conrad.
Conrad, a Pittsburgh native and star of the CBS series "Ghost Whisperer," had planned to use his summer break to do a show with Patrick Jordan, the artistic director for barebones productions.
But that plan fell through, and Conrad started thinking about other productions the two could do together.
"I couldn't handle the fact that I hadn't done a show in Pittsburgh since 'Henry IV' with Pittsburgh Irish & Classical Theatre (in 2005)," he says.
While discussing possible projects, Jordan and Conrad discovered a mutual interest in Lanford Wilson's "Burn This."
Set in a loft on the Lower East Side of Manhattan, "Burn This" focuses on four violently different characters who are scrambling to regain control over their lives. At the core of the play is the stormy relationship that develops between Anna and Pale, the explosive brother of Anna's best friend and former roommate Robbie, who has just died.
Conrad had done a production of "Burn This" during his third year at The Juilliard School in New York. He was cast against type as Larry, Anna's mild-mannered, gay roommate.
"I had always wanted to play Pale," Conrad says. "I knew as I got older I would not get to play the role. Everyone sees me as a WASP, upper-middle-class guy."
Playing Pale in "Burn This" would allow Conrad to stretch his acting range and have an experience different from his work on "Ghost Whisperer."
"This is a total thrill. It's like wrestling with a giant bear instead of a stuffed animal," he says.
A chance encounter in a Los Angeles restaurant provided Conrad with a potentially perfect Anna.
Struck by her resemblance to his image of Anna, Conrad asked her whether she had ever read "Burn This."
"She said 'It's one of my favorite plays,'" he recalls.
She turned out to be Kate Campbell, a Toronto native who was working in Los Angeles. Luckily, she was available and interested in filling the role of Anna.
"Wow. Did we luck out," Conrad says.
"Burn This" also will mark the acting debut of Attack Theatre's artistic director, Peter Kope, who will play Burton, Anna's boyfriend.
Just as Conrad was looking for a performance venue, a friend mentioned that he was postponing a performance piece he had scheduled at the New Hazlett Theater in the North Side.
"I love the space," Conrad says. "The first play I did here was 'Arcadia' in 1995 with the Pittsburgh Public Theater. It feels like home to be at the Hazlett."
Additional Information:'Burn This'
When : Through June 28 with performances at 8 p.m. Thursdays-Saturdays and 7 p.m. Sundays. No performance June 27.
Admission : $25 in advance, $30 at the door
Where : New Hazlett Theater , Allegheny Square East, North Side
Details : 888-71TICKET
