Six actors. Twenty-four shows in a row. No breaks. No kidding.
Having earned near cult status with productions in 1997, 2007, and 2010, Brat Productions’ A 24-Hour THE BALD SOPRANO is returning with a vengeance. Eugene Ionesco’s hour long absurd comedy is repeated every hour on the hour. Grab some coffee. Grab an energy drink. Grab a pillow. Because once the action starts at 8pm onFebruary 24, 2012 at Plays and Players Theatre, it won’t finish until 8pm the next night. Brat’s unique take on Ionesco’s classic tests the mental and physical fortitude of every performer in this spectacle of metaphysical nonsense, suburban banality, and sleep deprivation.
Eugene Ionesco’s THE BALD SOPRANO, a biting satire of British social conventions, finds the Smiths and Martins, the Maid and Fire Chief trapped in routines of mindless manners and non-stop non-communication. Written as a continuous loop, the ending begins the action all over again, having substituted the Martins for the Smiths and the Smiths for the Martins.
The lady behind the concept, Co-Artistic Director Madi Distefano directs Bald Soprano veteran Bradley Wrenn in his new role as the Fire Chief. Brat favorite Gwendolyn Rooker plays the Maid, and up-and-coming Philadelphia theatre artists John Jarboe, Sarah Schol, Megan Slater, and Griffin Stanton-Ameisen, alternate as the Smiths and Martins – joining the growing ranks of Bald Soprano alums who have survived this twenty-four hourAbsurdithon.
Audiences are welcome to come and go, entering and re-entering this screwy world. With an all-new set and lighting design by Thom Weaver and costume design by Kevin Jordan, expect plenty of tricks and surprises. Sound designer Michael Kiley returns in 2012 with plenty of Bald Soprano mayhem already under his belt.
A 24-Hour THE BALD SOPRANO performs every hour from 8pm on February 24, 2012 to 8pm on February 25 at Plays and Players Theatre (1714 Delancey Place, Philadelphia). Tickets ($20) are sold in two-hour blocks that guarantee admission to those two performances. A ticket also grants access to all other performances as space permits. Tickets are available at www.bratproductions.org and through TicketLeap.
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