SOMEWHERE and THE TEMPEST Will Come to Pear Theatre

Pear Theatre continues its 2021-22 season with an exciting co-production with The Perspective Theatre Company (formerly the Arabian Shakespeare Festival), rescheduled from last season. In its first "Pear Pairing," Pear Theatre will present Marisela Treviño Orta's Somewhere and William Shakespeare's The Tempest, in repertory. The shows will be presented live at the theater from October 1 (previews September 29 and 30) through October 24. Tickets ($20-$42) and information are available by visiting www.thepear.org/season-20 or by calling (650) 254-1148.

Somewhere by Marisela Treviño Orta is a beautiful new piece that explores the consequences of our neglect of the environment. With almost all the insects gone, the world is beginning to fall apart as crops fail and people struggle to hold on to their ways of life. Cassandra and her brother Alexander are tracking the last monarch butterflies in the world as they head to the west coast. Their path intersects with a truffle farm where a small group of people are hunkering down for the on-coming collapse of society. This production will be the West Coast premiere of this play, and was originally scheduled for December of 2020.

"I have always believed that theatres can be stronger if we share our ideas, talents, and audiences - this one just took a lot longer than we anticipated," said William J. Brown III of The Perspective Theatre Company. "Somewhere is a stunning piece of theatre. It is one of the only plays I have ever read the first time and said "this is it," and no longer was considering any others. The play is also, unfortunately, extremely timely. The characters in it - like us - are having to adjust to a world that has drastically changed in a very short period of time, and they have to learn how to change their behaviors, deal with their fears, and communicate with each other as the world they grew up in no longer exists."

Running in repertory will be a production of The Tempest, one of Pear Theatre's most successful previous productions from its 12th season. This piece also explores humanity's dependence on its own contrived way of life, and the way we either fall apart or come together when thrust into a new and unfamiliar environment. Pear Theatre will be using a new adaptation of Shakespeare's classic of magical happenings on a desert island and long-awaited justice delivered.

The cast for Somewhere includes Tim Garcia as Alexander, Livia Gomes Demarchi* as Cassandra, Jose Antonio* as Eph, Gabriella Goldstein as Sybil, Isabel Siragusa as Diana, and William J. Brown III* as Corin (*denotes member of Actor's Equity Association). John R. Lewis directs and Joanne Martin provides costumes.

The cast for The Tempest includes Arcadia Conrad as Prospero, Cat Bigelow as Miranda, Kyle Dayrit as Caliban, Muse Lee as Ferdinand, Asha Kelly as Ariel/Trinculo, Max Koknar as Stephano, Francheska Loy as Alonso, Peter Ray Juarez as Captain/Adrian/Francisco, Carl Erez as Sebastian, Tyler Paranoia as Gonzalo, and Lisa Burton Guevara as Antonio. The Tempest will be directed by Melinda Marks; Marisely Cortés Fonseca provides costumes.

For both productions, Kelly Weber Barraza stage manages, Ed Hunter designs lighting, Charlie Hoyt provides sound design, Kevin Davies serves as set designer, and Sinjin Jones handles projections.

Pear Theatre began as the Pear Avenue Theatre in June 2002, under the leadership of Artistic Director Diane Tasca, by a group of theatre artists who believe that audiences are eager for plays that challenge as well as delight and move them. Pear Theatre produces intimate theatre by passionate artists, whether classic works or musical revues or cutting-edge plays. Now in its nineteenth season, the Pear attracts theatre artists and audience from all over the Bay Area for its award-winning and high-quality productions; and its ongoing commitment to excellence was recognized by the San Francisco Bay Area Theatre Critics Circle with the Paine Knickerbocker Award, an annual special award for a Bay Area company contributing to the high quality of theatre in the region.

Pear Theatre moved in 2015 from its original 40-seat warehouse space to a new, state-of-the-art black box theatre close by, with capacity of 75-99 seats depending on the configuration of the production. After two years of growth under Artistic Director Betsy Kruse Craig, Pear Theatre came under the leadership of its third Artistic Director, Sinjin Jones, in early 2020. All productions are subject to change according to County guidelines regarding Covid; please check audience requirements (masks, proof of vaccination) before purchasing tickets for in person shows.

To post a comment, you must register and login.