THE DISSENTER'S HANDBOOK Comes to Shaking The Tree Theatre Tonight

After a sold-out weekend in July 2015, at the CoHo Theatre Summerfest, performer Matthew Kerrigan returns to Shaking The Tree Theatre for a bawdy evening of storytelling, physical theatre and clowning, directed by Samantha Van Der Merwe. We are also excited to add a compelling tale, written by master storyteller Dario Fo, called TALE OF A TIGER, (Storia della Tigre) translated by Ed Emery.

About TALE OF A TIGER:

During Mao's Long March across China, a revolutionary soldier is wounded. His comrades leave him behind. Gangrene sets in, and he believes that he is about to die. He drags himself into a cave and falls into a deep sleep. When he awakens, he is confronted by the sight of a female tiger and her cub. What follows is a comic narrative about their domestic life together, as the tiger nurses him back to health.

Directed by Samantha Van Der Merwe
Starring Matthew Kerrigan

December 4th - 26th 2015
Thursday December 3rd at 7:30pm
Friday December 4th at 7:30pm (Press Invited. R.S.V.P required)
Thursday through Saturday evenings at 7:30pm, & Sundays at 5pm
Added shows Wed Dec 21st, and 22nd at 7:30
No show on December 24th.
Saturday December 26th at 7:30pm

IF YOU GO:

THE DISSENTER'S HANDBOOK
A Collection of Riotous Tales
Including TALE OF A TIGER (Storia della Tigre) by Dario Fo, translated by Ed Emery

At Shaking The Tree Theatre, 823 SE Grant St, Portland OR 97214

Box Office 503.235.0635
Info and Tickets online: www.shaking-the-tree.com
Ticket Prices: $25 General Admission/ $20 Seniors & Students /$5 ages 19 and under Press: Complimentary with reservation

Matthew Kerrigan, Performer - Since joining Shaking the Tree's Performance group in 2013, Matthew Kerrigan has performed in four Shaking the Tree productions: Wilde Tales (Oscar Wilde/Karin Magaldi), One Flea Spare (Naomi Wallace), Masque of the Red Death (Edgar Allan Poe), Suddenly Last Summer (Tennessee Williams), and Passion Play (Sarah Ruhl). Matthew's magnetic presence and intuitive physicality on stage, make him a perfect collaborator and conduit for Samantha Van Der Merwe and Shaking the Tree's unique approach to theatrical storytelling.

Dario Fo, Playwright - Dario Fo's storytelling is rooted in the physical. He is bawdy, subversive, yet deeply spiritual. He embraces all elements of the natural world, including our human/animal essence, and asks us to challenge the status quo. Because of this, he has been banned and blacklisted by the authorities of many countries, and that is why we love him! He creates his stories in the physical first, and then records them on paper, so for an actor like Matthew Kerrigan, who understands and translates the text in a physical way, this is a match made in heaven. We will present three of Fo's stories: a naughty take on the creation myth of Genesis, a commedia style (Italian) Nativity story, and the tale of an injured soldier who is nursed back to life by an enormous tiger. We hope you enjoy watching them as much as we have enjoyed working on them.

Samantha Van Der Merwe, Director - Samantha Van Der Merwe is the founder, Artistic Director of Shaking the Tree Theatre, where she directs theatrical productions and teaches drama classes for children aged 5 and up. She is a Licentiate of Trinity College, London and holds an (LTCL) Teaching diploma in Speech and Drama.

She founded Shaking the Tree in 2003, and after a few years as a thriving art and drama studio, she began directing. Here are some of her favorite projects: Statements After an Arrest Under the Immorality Act (Athol Fugard), East of the Sun and West of the Moon (Nancy Willard), The Little Prince (Antoine de Saint-Exupery), The Tripping Point: a theatrical exhibition of eight fairytale installations (Playwrights West), Far Away (Carol Churchill), Wilde Tales (Oscar Wilde/Adapted by Karin Magaldi), One Flea Spare (Naomi Wallace), pool (no water) by Mark Ravenhill - for Theatre Vertigo, Masque of the Red Death (Edgar Allan Poe, featuring Playwrights West), Suddenly Last Summer (Tennessee Williams), and Passion Play (Sarah Ruhl) - in collaboration with Profile Theatre.

In 2009, she was awarded a Drammy for Direction for her production of Statements After an Arrest..., and in 2012 she was awarded a Drammy for Producing The Tripping Point.

Shaking The Tree Theatre seeks to meld the boundaries of theatre and visual art by presenting audiences with thrilling and immersive theatrical experiences. Founded in 2003, Shaking the Tree uses innovative ways to inhabit the space, creating a heightened surrounding that allows audiences to experience a deeper, more active connection to the work.

Shaking The Tree Studio is a laboratory for tomorrow's theatre-makers. By using the same principles we hold dear for play-making, we seek to provide students with rich and varied literature, allow them to explore it through immersion, and witness them experience a deeper connection of thought, feeling, and action, as a result.

Shaking the Tree is supported by the Robert Rauschenberg Foundation's SEED grant program. SEED is based on the idea that small, emerging and start-up arts organizations are the seedbeds for new ideas in the arts and important resources for young and emerging talent. They are also places where the public can see and learn about new work and experimental approaches to art making. The RRF is interested in supporting small organizations to nurture the new and the risky, support experimentation and propel artists at the early stages of their careers. These grants are three-year operating support, which is the most difficult funding to obtain, and may help provide stability and growth to the organization.

Pictured: Matthew Kerrigan photographed by Gary Norman.

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