The hilariously complicated relationship of a daughter and her mother takes center stage when Contra Costa Civic Theatre (CCCT) presents Tony award-winner Lisa Kron's thought-provoking comedy, Well, directed by Susan E. Evans, from February 17-March 12. For tickets and information visit the theatre's website at www.ccct.org or call 510.524.9012.
As the playwright describes it, ""This play is not about my mother and me," begins the character of Lisa. But, of course, it is about her mother, and her mother's extraordinary ability to heal a changing neighborhood, despite her inability to heal herself. In this "solo show with people in it," Kron asks the provocative question: "Do we create our own illness?" The answers she gets are much more complicated than she bargained for as the play spins dangerously out of control into riotously funny and unexpected territory."
Critics were lavish in their praise of Kron's achievement with this most personal of productions, calling it "glorious and funny" (
New York Times); "cunning, uproarious and exhilarating...truly a beautiful play" (
Village Voice); "one of the most thought provoking comedies in Broadway history" (
NY1 News); and "the most daring offering of the Broadway season! A smart, graceful, 100-minute revelation!" (
Newsday).
CCCT's production of Well features a stellar cast: Kate Tomatis Dunlop (
Three Sisters, DMT;
She Stoops to Conquer, Marin Shakes) as Lisa; Marlene Walker (
Dividing the Estate, DMT;
Hay Fever, Pittsburg Civic Theatre) as Ann; the ensemble includes Beth Chastain (
The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, Town Hall Theatre); Pamela Drummer-Williams (
You Can't Take It With You, CCCT;
Nunsense, Altarena Playhouse); Reg Clay (
Charlie's Aunt '66 and
The Skin of our Teeth, DMT); and Ben Knoll (
Strike Up the Band,
42nd Street Moon;
A Funny Thing...Forum, Novato Theatre Company).
The design team includes scenic designer Kuo-Hao Lo, costume designer Lisa Danz, lighting designer Courtney Johnson,
Sound Designer Michael Kelly, and props designer Devon LaBelle.
SUSAN E. EVANS (Director) was recently tapped to become the new Artistic Director of Town Hall Theatre in Lafayette, CA. She received her undergraduate degree from Emory University in Atlanta, and further postgraduate training at the Drama Studio London @ Berkeley. She brings a strongly text-based approach to both new and classic work. She served as the Artistic Director of Eastenders Repertory Company from December 1998 to June 2010. Her directing work with Eastenders included
We Won't Pay, We Won't Pay (
Dario Fo),
Frozen (
Bryony Lavery) and
Fear and Misery of the Third Reich (Brecht) co-directed with Founder Charles E. Polly. At Eastenders, which focused on re-envisioning classics and developing new works, she was very proud to have directed the World Premieres of Parts II and III of Mr. Polly's acclaimed
Twyla Trilogy. From April 2011 through June 2016, she served as the Artistic Director of the
Douglas Morrisson Theatre in Hayward, where she directed
Private Lives, Dividing the Estate, All My Sons, Eurydice, An Ideal Husband, The Skin of Our Teeth and
Mrs. Warren's Profession. While at DMT she developed a
Second Stage series of staged readings of contemporary playwrights, and also programmed storytelling evenings and an annual playwriting contest. Her work with solo artists includes two collaborations with solo artist Carolyn Doyle on productions at the Marsh and the SF Fringe Festival, as well as producing a festival of Solo Artists at DMT which featured
Josh Kornbluth,
Ann Randolph and
Marga Gomez. She enjoys ongoing directing projects with Actors Reading Writers in Berkeley. Susan is an Associate Member of the Stage Directors and Choreographers Society. She makes her home in Oakland, California, with her partner Karen Bennett.
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Lisa Kron (Playwright) has been writing and performing theater since coming to New York from Michigan in 1984. Her work has been widely produced in New York, regionally, and internationally. Her plays include the musical
Fun Home, a musical written with composer
Jeanine Tesori and based on the graphic novel by
Alison Bechdel;
The Ver**zon Play, which premiered at the 2012 Humana Festival;
In The Wake, which received Lortel and GLAAD Media Award nominations, was a finalist for the
Susan Smith Blackburn Prize, named a "Best Play of 2010" by
TimeOut and
Backstage, and was included in the Best Plays Theater Yearbook 2010-2011; Well, which premiered at
The Public Theater, was named a "Best Play of 2004" by the New York Times, the Associated Press, the Newark
Star Ledger, Backstage, and the
Advocate, included in the
Best Plays Theater Yearbook of 2003-2004;
2.5 Minute Ride, which had its New York premiere at
The Public Theater, received OBIE, L.A. Drama-Logue, New York Press, and GLAAD Media Awards, and continues to be performed by Lisa and others all over the world; and
101 Humiliating Stories, which received a Drama Desk nomination for its PS122 premiere and was a part of Lincoln Center's 1993 "Serious Fun!" performance series. Lisa has received playwriting fellowships from the Lortel and Guggenheim Foundations,
Sundance Theater Lab, the Lark Play Development Center, and the MacDowell Colony, the Cal Arts/Alpert Award, a Helen Merrill Award, and grants from the Creative Capital Foundation and New York Foundation for the Arts. She was a resident playwright at the American Voices New Play Initiative at
Arena Stage. Lisa is a member of Actors Equity and serves on the Council of the
Dramatists Guild of America.
Single tickets for
Well are $22 for adults in advance, or $28 at the door; youth tickets for ages 16 and under are $11 in advance, or $15 at the door. Discounts available for groups of 15 or more. Performances are Fridays and Saturdays at 8pm, and Sundays at 2pm. All performances take place at CCCT's intimate and fully accessible theatre in the Flynn building located at 951 Pomona Avenue (cross street Moeser) in El Cerrito. Free parking is available in the adjoining lot. Tickets may be purchased online at
www.ccct.org or by phone at
510.524.9012.
ABOUT CONTRA COSTA CIVIC THEATRE
Contra Costa Civic Theatre, established in 1959 by Louis and Bettianne Flynn and a group of dedicated volunteers and now under the artistic direction of Marilyn Langbehn, is a non-profit community theatre with its permanent home in El Cerrito, CA. Our mission is to provide affordable, high-quality entertainment to residents throughout the East Bay and provide training in performing arts for children and adults. We are proud to be an independent, self-sufficient organization presenting five Main Stage and thirteen youth productions annually in our intimate two hundred-seat theatre.
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