Oddfellows Playhouse to Present Shakespeare's A COMEDY OF ERRORS

Oddfellows Playhouse Youth Theater presents "A Comedy of Errors," Shakespeare's classic farce re-imagined with circus acts, clowns, masks and careening confusions!

The show opens March 10, with additional performances March 11, 12, 17, 18 and 19. All performances begin at 7:30 pm. Tickets are $15 for adults and $10 for students and seniors. Pay What You Can performances, which allow audience members to set their own ticket price, are scheduled for Thursdays, March 11 and 17. Tickets are available through the website - oddfellows.org, by email at info@oddfellows.org or phone at 860-347-6143. The show is appropriate for all ages.

Shakespeare's earliest comedy is a fast-paced farce featuring two sets of twins, a town closing its borders, and plenty of mix-ups. The play is full of slapstick, mistaken identity, witty wordplay, amazing coincidences, demonic possession, impending death and disaster, and, of course, a happy ending. The Playhouse is thrilled to have Dic Wheeler directing the winter production.

"This production will also feature a strong element of circus, as the play is woven around a group of wandering circus performers trying to perform in the Ephesus town square," said Wheeler. "This classic comedy will challenge young performers in all kinds of fun ways, and promises to delight audiences of all ages."

Kristen Palmer, artistic director of Oddfellows Playhouse, said, "The Junior and Teen Company actors are juggling complex language, a multi-layered plot and comic timing (as well as literally juggling). At the Playhouse we seek to create a space where our young actors can surprise themselves and their community with what they can achieve - a mission that this play accomplishes."

This production of Comedy of Errors features 22 actors, ages 12 to 19, from Middletown and the region. The cast includes actors who have trained in circus skills both with the Children's Circus of Middletown and with Circophony, a touring youth circus company. The show features live music created and performed by University of Hartford Music Professor Phil Faraci.

Wheeler was the founder of the Children's Circus of Middletown and was artistic director of Oddfellows Playhouse Youth Theater for 25 years and is currently executive director of ARTFARM in Middletown. He also teaches theater at Middlesex Community College. He has directed more than 90 plays, including many of Shakespeare's comedies and tragedies. He established and directs Circophony, an Oddfellows/ARTFARM co-production.

Founded in 1975, the Playhouse's mission is to promote the growth of young people, in skills, knowledge and self-confidence, through the performing arts. It is committed to the art of theater at its most adventurous; to education in the broadest sense of nurturing every student's full potential; and to social justice, building a multicultural community and providing opportunities for children who are in danger of being stunted by poverty and prejudice.

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