Rep Stage, the professional Equity theatre in residence at Howard Community College (HCC), opens its 19th season with Liz Duffy Adams' farcical comedy "Or,". The free love of the '60s - the 1660s - is riotously explored in this recent Off-Broadway sleeper hit based on real-life playwright Aphra Behn's life as an undercover spy and her romantic romps through Restoration England in order to gain entry into the boys' playwriting cluB. Michael Stebbins, Rep Stage's producing artistic director, who directed last season's critically acclaimed "Two by J.M.Barrie: The New Word and The Old Lady Shows Her Medals," returns to direct this regional premiere. Jason Odell Williams ("Two by J.M. Barrie..."), Christine Demuth ("Two by J.M. Barrie..." and "The Glass Menagerie") and Broadway alum Charlotte Cohn star.
Christopher Isherwood, in his New York Times review of "Or," wrote, "Luminaries of 17th-century England are resurrected...in "Or," a playful, funny and inventive comedy by Liz Duffy Adams...her language has a natural period flavor and a formidable wit; her characters possess the spark of fully animated spirits; and she weaves into her story both biographical detail and cultural context with grace."
"‘Or,' is a perfect way to kick off Rep Stage's 2011-12 season, in that it is a celebration of all things theatrical," says Michael Stebbins, Rep Stage's producing artistic director and the director of "Or,". "‘Or,' is a bow to Restoration theatre and history. Liz Duffy Adams brings
Aphra Behn and Nell Gwyn, two female artistic trailblazers of their day, back to life and back to the theatre - front and center - where they belong. ‘Or,' also gives the audience the opportunity to meet the ‘merry monarch,' King Charles II, who was responsible for reopening theatres in London during the Restoration. At a time when the Great Plague and the Great Fire of London wreaked havoc on the city, Aphra, Nell and Charles II lifted the psyche and spirit of the people in a time of need. Theatre provided then what it continues to provide today: an escape from the difficulties of the day by way of the play."
"Or," opens August 31 and runs through September 18, 2011 in the
Studio Theatre of the Horowitz Visual and Performing Arts Center (HVPA) on the campus of HCC.
A post-show reception follows the Saturday, September 3rd evening performance and free post-show discussions follow the September 9 and 16 performances.
A pre-show lecture, moderated by Rep Stage's dramaturge Dr. Lisa A. Wilde will complement "Or," before the September 17 matinee beginning at 12:30 p.m. in Monteabaro Hall. The lecture is free and open to the public. For more information on post-show discussions and the pre-show lecture, visit
www.repstage.org.
Meet the Playwright:
Liz Duffy Adams' "Or," premiered Off-Broadway at the Women's Project's Julia Miles Theater in 2009 and had its west coast premiere at the Magic Theater in San Francisco in 2010. Adams is a New Dramatists alumna (2001-2008) and received a Lillian Hellman Award for Playwriting in 2010, the Lilly's inaugural year. Other honors include a New York Foundation for the Arts Fellowship, Will Glickman Award, Frederick Loewe Award in Music Theatre, Weston Playhouse Music Theater Award, and a commission from Children's Theater Company, Minneapolis. Plays include "Dog Act," "Wet," "Isabella the Pirate Queen Enters the Horse Latitude," "The Listener" and "One Big Lie." Her work has been produced or developed at the Humana Festival, Portland Center Stage, Portland Stage Company, Syracuse Stage, Bay Area Playwrights Festival, New Georges, Shotgun Players, MOXIE Theater, Clubbed Thumb, and Crowded Fire Theater, among others. Publications include "Poodle with Guitar and Dark Glasses" in Applause's "Best American Short Plays 2000-2001," "Or," in Smith & Kraus' "New Playwrights: The Best Plays Of 2010," numerous short plays and monologues in anthologies from Smith & Kraus and Heinemann, and several plays in acting editions by Playscripts, Inc. and Dramatists Play Service. She was profiled in the December 2004 issue of "American Theatre" magazine. Residencies include MacDowell Colony, Djerassi Resident Artists Program and Millay Colony. Adams holds a B.F.A. from New York University's Experimental Theater Wing and an M.F.A. from the Yale School of Drama.
Meet the Director:
Michael Stebbins has been Rep Stage's producing artistic director since November of 2005. At Rep Stage he has directed "Two by
J.M. Barrie: The New Word and The Old Lady Shows Her Medals," "A Moon for the Misbegotten," "The Santaland Diaries," "A Dickens of a Carol" and "The Glass Menagerie." As an actor he has appeared on Rep's stages in "Fully Committed," "Stones in His Pockets," "Mrs. Warren's Profession," "The Santaland Diaries," "Wittenberg" and "An Almost Holy Picture." He has acted, directed and taught acting at some of the country's top professional theatres and colleges. He is the recipient of a Helen Hayes Tribute award.
Meet the Cast:
Charlotte Cohn (
Aphra Behn) has appeared on Broadway in "Coram Boy" and Baz Lurhmann's critically acclaimed production of "La Boheme." She has performed leading roles in Center Stage's "The Murder of Isaac" and "The Boys from Syracuse" and ACT's "Happy End." Her cabaret, "Simply Complicated: the Elegant Escapades of a Danish, Israeli, Opera Singing Tank Commander" has been performed in NYC, at Baltimore's CenterStage and will have a European tour 2012. Charlotte comes to Rep Stage straight from Syracuse's Kitchen Theatre, where she appeared in Jason Odell William's "At a Loss." Other credits include the "2003 Tony Awards" and "Broadway Bares XIII." A member of New York's prestigious Actors Studio, Charlotte lives in New York City with her husband, Jason
Odell Williams, and their daughter, Imogen.
Christine Demuth (Jailor, Nell Gwyn, Maria) has appeared at Rep Stage in "Two by
J.M. Barrie: The New Word and The Old Lady Shows Her Medals," "The Glass Menagerie," "A Dickens of a Carol," and "Intelligence." She has also performed at The
Folger Theatre, Stanislavsky Theatre Studio, Single Carrot Theatre, Frances Merrick Performing Arts Center, Maryland Arts Festival, and in NYC's "Shakespeare IN THE RAW." Christine comes to Rep Stage after performing the role of ‘Ophelia' in ‘Hamlet' at the Virginia Shakespeare Festival.
Jason
Odell Williams (Charles II/
William Scott/Lady Davenant) returns to Rep Stage after appearing in last season's "Two by
J.M. Barrie: The New Word and the Old Lady Shows Her Medals." He has performed Off-Broadway at The Pearl Theatre, The
Aquila Theatre,
Transport Group, La Mama ETC, The DR2 and
The Actors Studio. Regionally, he's played leading roles at The
Studio Theatre ("Fat Pig"), The Maryland Stage Company's production of "Tartuffe" at CenterStage, New Jersey Rep ("Yankee Tavern") and three seasons at Heritage Rep in Charlottesville, VA. He is also a playwright and had three plays produced in New York last season. A Columbia, MD native, Jason is married to "Or," actress
Charlotte Cohn.
The "Or," Design Team includes Melanie Clark (costume designer), Terry Cobb (light designer),
James Fouchard (set designer), Tim Jones (properties designer), and Ann Warren (sound designer).
About Rep Stage
Rep Stage, a professional Equity theatre in residence at Howard Community College, is in its 19th season. The company is a member of both League of Washington Theatres and Baltimore Theatre Alliance. Performances are made possible by the Maryland State
Arts Council, an agency funded by the State of Maryland and National Endowment for the Arts, as well as through generous individual contributions. Howard Bank is the Rep Stage 2011-12 season partner.
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