Fort Point Presents Free Production, IN THE SUMMER HOUSE, 10/16-26

Fort Point presents IN THE SUMMER HOUSE, October 16-26, Thurs. & Sun. at 7:30 pm, Fri. & Sat. at 8:00 pm, 290 Congress Street, Boston. Admission is free.

The lives of women's are the central issue as Gertrude (Christine Power) and Molly (Lydia Barnett-Mulligan), the powerful mother and daughter at the center of In the Summer House, make choices about independence and security. Their private existence is interrupted and challenged by the arrival of wealthy widow Mrs. Constable (Linda Goetz) and her exuberant teenage daughter Vivian (Amelia Lumpkin).

In the Summer House tells the story of the mysterious relationship between mothers and their daughters. With unusual humor, this remarkable play explores ideas and issues that are as immediate and enthralling today as they were when it premiered on Broadway in 1953 and when it was revived at Lincoln Center 40 years later.

In her own time, as today, Bowles was revered by writers yet little known by the public. About the original production, Truman Capote noted, "I cannot sit through most plays once, nevertheless I saw In the Summer House three times . . . because it had a thorny wit, the flavor of a newly tasted, refreshingly bitter beverage."

Tennessee Williams said In the Summer House "is a piece of dramatic literature that stands altogether alone, without antecedents and without descendents, unless they spring from the one and only Jane Bowles. It is not only the most original play I have ever read, I think it also is the oddest and funniest and one of the most touching. Its human perceptions are both profound and delicate; its dramatic poetry is both elusive and gripping. It is one of those very rare plays which are not tested by the theater but by which theater is tested."

In our own time, novelist Claire Messud is one of the many admirers of Jane Bowles. Says Messud, "There is a reason that . . . generation after generation returns to her novel, her play and her stories. . . . For many of us her voice has felt as special, as intimate and cherished, as that of a close and beloved relation."

The Cast: Lydia Barnett-Mulligan, Ainsleigh Caldicott, Mauro Canepa, Melissa Nussbaum Freeman, Linda Goetz, Josephine Ho, Becca A. Lewis, Amelia Lumpkin, Christine Power, Felix Teich

The Production Team: Caitlin Lowans, Director; Marc S. Miller, Producer; Rick Dorff, Set Design; Karen Pedersen, Costumes; Ian King, Lighting; Brendan Doyle, Sound; Veronica Haakonsen, Production/Stage Manager; Elena Livak, Assistant Stage Manager

Fort Point Theatre Channel is presenting this masterpiece at Atlantic Wharf, located on the Boston Harborwalk steps from the Rose Kennedy Greenway. This free production is made possible thanks to Atlantic Wharf and the Fort Point Channel Operations Board, as well as FPTC's many donors and sponsors.
Fort Point Theatre Channel, Midway Studios,
15 Channel Center Street #318, Boston, MA 02210.
Donations are tax-deductible.

www.fortpointtc.org

Fort Point Theatre Channel is dedicated to creating and sustaining new configurations of the performing arts. We bring together an ensemble of artists from the worlds of theater, music, visual arts, and everything in between as a forum for collaborative expression while enriching the Fort Point community, Boston, and beyond.

FPTC artistic directors are: Mario Avila, Olivia Brownlee, Jaime Carrillo, Rick Dorff, Mary Driscoll, Anne Loyer, Marc S. Miller, Sally Nutt, Hana Pegrimkova, Nick Thorkelson, Nathan Troup, Douglas Urbank, Daniel J. van Ackere, and Mark Warhol.

To post a comment, you must register and login.