Skirball Center Presents Rick Miller, 3/30-31 and 4/4-7
By: Kelsey Denette Mar. 20, 2012
New York University's Skirball Center for the Performing Arts will present the award-winning writer and performer Rick Miller in two New York premieres including the hit MacHomer (March 30-31) and Bigger Than Jesus (April 4-7).
Miller is one of Canada's most respected multi-disciplinary performers, a veritable tour-de-force in the international theater scene and a frequent collaborator with international, renowned director Robert Lepage.
MacHomer (New York Premiere)
Written and Performed by Rick Miller
Directed by Sean Lynch
NYU's Skirball Center (566 LaGuardia Place)
March 30 at 8pm; March 31 at 2pm and 8pm
Tickets: $20-$32
90 minutes without intermission
Recommended for ages 8 and up
"Is this a dagger which I see before me? Or a pizza? Mmm, pizza…" ponders Homer Simpson aloud in the international mega-hit that is MacHomer. The side-splitting one-man show transplants Shakespeare to Springfield, home of America's favorite dysfunctional family.
Bridging the gap between cartoon fun and theatrical greatness, writer and performer Rick Miller turns Shakespeare's Macbeth into an uproarious romp with more than 50 hilarious impersonations of characters from the popular animated show. True Shakespeareans will marvel at the way humor is highlighted throughout the original script, which remains about 85% Shakespeare. And those who come more for the laughs are sure to see Shakespeare in a whole new light as well as appreciate the irony in Homer's portrayal of the Thane of Cawdor.
Performances will take place on March 30 at 8pm and March 31 at 2pm and 8pm. Critics are welcome as of the first performance. The running time is 90 minutes without intermission. Tickets are $20-$32 and can be purchased online at www.nyuskirball.org or by phone at 212.352.3101 (toll free at 866.811.4111). NYU's Skirball Center for the Performing Arts is located at 566 LaGuardia Place at Washington Square.
A WYRD Production in association with Jeff Lord / Kidoons Network, Erich Jungwirth / Voicechair Productions and Richard Jordan Productions, LTD.
Bigger Than Jesus (New York Premiere)
Written and Performed by Rick Miller
Directed by Daniel Brooks
NYU's Skirball Center (566 LaGuardia Place)
April 4-7 at 8pm; April 7 at 2pm
Tickets: $25-$45
"A fast, funny tour de force of fine performance skills and multimedia innovation...Miller's fresh, energetic performance is as magnetic as it is impressive." - The San Francisco Chronicle
This acclaimed production from Toronto explores Christianity in a way that only theater can: creatively, playfully and critically all at once. Co-creators Rick Miller (writer, performer) and Daniel Brooks (director) respectfully challenge religious tradition using sketches, parodies and theatrical wonder to create this outrageously clever parable for the Internet age.
Bigger Than Jesus is a unique theatrical experience - a one-man, multimedia performance following the structure of a Catholic mass. The production dances on the fine line between reverence and irreverence reveling the story of Jesus in all its poignancy and universality. Bigger Than Jesus won 3 DORA Awards (Canada's "Tony") in 2005, including Best Actor.
Performances will take place on April 4-7 at 8pm and April 7 at 2pm. Critics are welcome as of the first performance. Tickets are $20-$32 and can be purchased online at www.nyuskirball.org or by phone at 212.352.3101 (toll free at 866.811.4111). NYU's Skirball Center for the Performing Arts is located at 566 LaGuardia Place at Washington Square.
A WYRD Production with Necessary Angel Theatre Company
About Rick Miller
Rick Miller is a Dora and Gemini award-winning writer and performer based in Toronto, Canada. He trained in Montreal as an architect, actor, musician, and playwright, and has performed in five languages on five continents. For 3 years, Rick hosted ABC's hit primetime series "Just for Laughs", and Entertainment Weekly has called him "one of the 100 most creative people alive today." As artistic director of WYRD Productions, an internationally-acclaimed company devoted to multi-disciplinary theatre, he has created and performed shows such as Art?, Slightly Bent, Into the Ring (co-created with Dawson Nichols), and the worldwide hit MacHomer. Two recent WYRD Productions have been co-creations with award-winning director Daniel Brooks and Necessary Angel Theatre Company:Bigger Than Jesus and HARDSELL, which Rick recently reworked as HARDSELL 2.0. He is also a frequent collaborator with renowned director Robert Lepage, having worked on such plays as La Géométrie des Miracles, Zulu Time (co-created with Peter Gabriel), on the film Possible Worlds, and on the 9-hour play Lipsynch, still touring internationally.
About NYU's Skirball Center for the Performing Arts
The Jack H. Skirball Center for the Performing Arts is the premier venue for the presentation of cultural and performing arts events for New York University and lower Manhattan. Led by executive producer Jay Oliva (President Emeritus, NYU) and senior director Michael Harrington, the programs of the Skirball Center reflect NYU's mission as an international center of scholarship, defined by excellence and innovation and shaped by an intellectually rich and diverse environment. A vital aspect of the Center's mission is to build young adult audiences for the future of live performance. For more information, please visit www.skirballcenter.org
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