2009 - 2010 Season
Explosive Laughs
THE PILLOWMAN
By Martin McDonagh
Sept. 23-Oct. 18, 2009
“A crackling and sublimely twisted night out.”—The Washington Post
A writer whose children’s stories are darker than anything the Brothers Grimm ever dreamed up must decide whether his art is worth more than his life in this pitch-black comedy. Arrested after a series of murders mimicking those in his largely unpublished works, Katurian must defend himself and his mentally disabled brother — the only other person to have read most of his stories — against what passes for justice in an unnamed totalitarian state. In this multiple Tony Award-winning play, McDonagh once again offers up his signature blend of domesticity and the macabre in a horrifyingly funny look at the power of the storyteller.
Intoxicating Holiday Fable
By Conor McPherson
Nov. 18-Dec. 20, 2009
“Unlikely…pick-me-up play of the season.”—The New York Times
The men who make their way home for the holidays in The Seafarer aren’t exactly looking forward to sharing a cup of holiday cheer; they’re more interested in achieving blind drunkenness, a state they know well. But a stranger in their midst, in town to collect a major poker debt, forces them to take a look at their lives — and where they’ll end up if they’re not more careful about how they play the game. Dubbed “the best Irish play since the glory days of Samuel Beckett” by the Chicago Tribune, the multiple Tony Award nominee is a darkly funny examination of that country’s culture of drinking and the arguable states of grace achieved by those who embrace it.
Revolution Ignites
By Tom Stoppard
Feb. 10–March 7, 2010
“A celebration of the pagan spirit embodied by rock ’n’ roll.”—The Guardian
This extraordinary theatrical event, from four-time Tony Award winner Tom Stoppard (The Coast Of Utopia), makes its South Bay debut in a uniquely intimate production at The Stage. It’s August 1968, and Russian tanks are rolling in to Prague. Jan, a Czech student, lives for rock music; Max, the English professor, lives for Communism; and Esme, the flower child, is high. By 1990, the tanks are rolling out, the Stones are rolling in and idealism has hit the wall. Stoppard’s sweeping and passionate play spans two countries, three generations and 22 turbulent years, at the end of which, love remains — and so does rock ’n’ roll.
Bombshell Revealed
By Claudia Shear
April 7-May 2, 2010
“When I’m good, I’m very good, but when I’m bad, I’m better.”—Mae West
This is just one of many delicious quotes from the mouth of Mae West, famous for her uninhibited sexuality and amusing, provocative double entendres. This Tony Award-nominated play chronicles her colorful career, from her beginnings in vaudeville to her legendary stature as one of filmdom’s greatest stars. The audience gets to see how carefully and confidently West developed the extravagant, sexy, taboo-breaking public persona that was the hallmark of her fame. At the same time, this comedy explores the lives of two misfits who are her biggest fans. At once a love story, a musical and an amusing take on celebrity obsession, Dirty Blonde is a joyous celebration of Hollywood’s bawdy, ground-breaking female icon.
Crackling Comedy
RED, WHITE AND TUNA
By Jaston Williams, Joe Sears and Ed Howard
June 2-July 4, 2010
“Four stars. This is the greatest Tuna of all!”—WRC-TV
The much-anticipated third installment in the Tuna trilogy makes its professional South Bay debut at The Stage. It’s been several years since we left Bertha and Arles dancing at the end of A Tuna Christmas — did the romance blossom? Has Didi Snavley received any “cosmic” communications from R.R.’s UFO? Did Stanley make his fortune in the Albuquerque taxidermy business? These and other burning questions will be asked and answered in the side-splitting spoof of life in rural America. Along with Tuna’s perennial favorites, some new residents of the third-smallest town in Texas burst onto the scene at the Fourth of July Tuna High School class reunion.
(all titles and dates subject to change)
