Taming Of The Shrew - Written by William Shakespeare - Directed by
Dorothy Clifton
In Shakespeare's
The Taming of the Shrew,
Petruchio and Kate engage in a battle of wits as he tries to "tame" his
bold and stubborn wife and bring her into line with society's
expectations. This romantic farce, full of disguises and role playing,
deals with themes such as marriage and duty, reality and illusion, and
compromise.
The Taming of the Shrew is one of William
Shakespeare's most clever and sophisticated comedies.
September 2010
Bad Year For Tomatoes - Written by John Patrick - Directed by John Riehl
Fed
up with the pressures and demands of her acting career, the famous Myra
Marlowe leases a house in the tiny New England hamlet of Beaver Haven
and settles down to write her autobiography. She is successful in
turning aside the offers pressed on her by her long-time agent, but
dealing with her nosy, omnipresent neighbors is a different matter. In
an attempt to shoo them away, and gain some privacy, Myra invents a mad,
homicidal sister—who is kept locked in an upstairs room, but who
occasionally escapes long enough to scare off uninvited visitors. The
ruse works well, at first, but complications result when the local
handyman develops an affection for "Sister Sadie" (really Myra in a
fright wig) and some of the more officious ladies decide it is their
Christian duty to save the poor demented Sadie's soul. In desperation
Myra announces that her imaginary sibling has suddenly gone off to
Boston—which brings on the sheriff and the suspicion of murder! Needless
to say, all is straightened out in the end, but the uproarious doings
will keep audiences laughing right up to the final curtain, and then
some.
October 2010
The Beauty Queen of Leenane - Written by Martin McDonagh - Directed
by Barry Brodie
Co-winner of the 1998 Lucille Lortel Award for
outstanding play. "McDonagh is a natural storyteller who knows how to
express a theme through action, and he knows how to create a gallery of
fascinating rogues. The energy of his plays is prodigious…McDonagh has
managed to celebrate what remains enduring and alive in human nature
even in the most appalling circumstances." —New Republic. "Mr.
McDonagh…[is] like a young version of Synge in exile whose voice, worn
with sorrow and savage humor, owes a debt to Synge's
Playboy of the
Western World…THE BEAUTY QUEEN OF LEENANE is a gothic dark comedy."
—NY Observer. "…THE BEAUTY QUEEN OF LEENANE…is clearly the product of a
major writer. Indeed, on the basis of this play alone, I am willing to
make the rash claim that McDonagh is destined to be one of the
theatrical luminaries of the twenty-first century." —New Republic.
December
2010
The Christmas Belles - Written by Jessie Jones/Nicholas Hope/Jamie
Wooten -
Directed by Sue Cousins
A church Christmas program spins
hilariously out of control in this Southern farce about squabbling
sisters, family secrets, a surly Santa, a vengeful sheep and a reluctant
Elvis impersonator. It's Christmas-time in the small town of Fayro,
Texas, and the Futrelle Sisters—Frankie, Twink and Honey Raye—are not
exactly in a festive mood. A cranky Frankie is weeks overdue with her
second
set of twins. Twink, recently jilted and bitter about it, is in jail
for inadvertently burning down half the town. And hot-flash-suffering
Honey Raye is desperately trying to keep the Tabernacle of the Lamb's
Christmas Program from spiraling into chaos. But things are not looking
too promising: Miss Geneva, the ousted director of the previous
twenty-seven productions, is ruthless in her attempts to take over the
show. The celebrity guest Santa Claus—played by Frankie's long-suffering
husband, Dub—is passing a kidney stone. One of the shepherds refuses to
watch over his flock by night without pulling his little red wagon
behind him. And the entire cast is dropping like flies due to food
poisoning from the Band Boosters' Pancake Supper. And when Frankie lets
slip a family secret that has been carefully guarded for decades, all
hope for a successful Christmas program seems lost, even with an Elvis
impersonator at the manger. But in true Futrelle fashion, the feuding
sisters find a way to pull together in order to present a Christmas
program the citizens of Fayro will never forget. Their hilarious holiday
journey through a misadventure-filled Christmas Eve is guaranteed to
bring joy to your world!
January 2011
Who's Afraid Of Virginia Woolf - Written by Edward Albee - Directed
by Jeff Bastien
Winner of the 1963 Tony Award for Best Play. The
Broadway production of this play was a shattering and memorable
experience and proclaimed the author as a major American playwright.
"This is a Big One." —NY Journal-American. "…a scorching, scalding,
revealing and completely engrossing drama." —Women's Wear Daily. "…a
brilliant piece of writing." —NY Herald-Tribune.
George, a
professor at a small college, and his wife, Martha, have just returned
home, drunk from a Saturday night party. Martha announces, amidst
general profanity, that she has invited a young couple—an opportunistic
new professor at the college and his shatteringly naďve new bride—to
stop by for a nightcap. When they arrive the charade begins. The drinks
flow and suddenly inhibitions melt. It becomes clear that Martha is
determined to seduce the young professor, and George couldn't care less.
But underneath the edgy banter, which is crossfired between both
couples, lurks an undercurrent of tragedy and despair. George and
Martha's inhuman bitterness toward one another is provoked by the
enormous personal sadness that they have pledged to keep to themselves: a
secret that has seemingly been the foundation for their relationship.
In the end, the mystery in which the distressed George and Martha have
taken refuge is exposed, once and for all revealing the degrading mess
they have made of their lives.