Stage Door News
Stage Door News
Neoteny Theatre is pleased to announce its debut production, a double bill of Overruled by George Bernard Shaw, and Romance by Neil LaBute. This rare pairing of two very different plays about love, lust, and infidelity runs March 28 April 6, Wednesdays through Saturdays at Red Sandcastle Theatre (previews Wednesday, March 27). Tickets are available for $10$15 and reservations can be made by calling (416) 8459411. In celebration of World Theatre Day, the first twenty audience members to arrive for the Wednesday March 27th preview will gain free admittance.
THE PLAYS
Overruled Mr. Lunn has fallen in love with Mrs. Juno. Mr. Juno has fallen for Mrs. Lunn. But all the lovers still love their spouses too. This comical farce by Shaw takes a witty yet pointed look at love, morality, and monogamy.
Romance In LaBute’s signature dark and provocative style, Romance follows an uncomfortable reunion of former lovers. Written with the intention of any role being played by any gender, each evening will feature a different pairing of actors (Wednesdays: Swaby/Penner; Thursdays: Swaby/Stewart; Fridays: Crawley/Penner; Saturdays: Crawley/Stewart). Audience members can return for another viewing for $5.
THE PLAYWRIGHTS
George Bernard Shaw was a prominent Irish playwright and polemicist who lived from 18561950. He was the first person to win both the Nobel Prize in literature and an academy award (the former for his contributions to literature and the latter for his work on the film based on his play Pygmalion). He also cofounded the London School of Economics. He was a socialist and one of the most prominent members of the Fabian society: a middleclass society dedicated to the gradual spread of socialist ideals. Shaw’s marriage to Charlotte Frances PayneTownshend was never consummated, he did have a number of affairs with other married women.
Neil LaBute is a playwright, screenwriter, director, and fiction writer. Originally from Detroit, LaBute studied theatre at Brigham Young University, where he was named of the most promising undergraduate playwrights and joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latterday Saints. His relationship with the church soured after he wrote a play cycle entitled bash: latterday plays, and he is no longer a member of the church. He rose to prominence as a filmmaker after adapting his first major play, In the Company of Men into a critically acclaimed film. While he faced accusations of misogyny after that film was released, he prefers to think of himself more as a misanthrope, and his subsequent work bears that out.
THE CREATIVE TEAM
The talented company bringing together these unexpectedly complementary stories includes Artistic Producer and Director Carly Chamberlain (Driftwood Theatre Group, Shakespeare By The Sea, Hart
House Theatre). Carly is a 27yearold Toronto native who attended Wexford Collegiate School for the Arts and has a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the acclaimed University of Windsor Acting Program. Following a year apprenticing in Artistic Direction with Driftwood Theatre Group, she has established Neoteny Theatre to bring reimagined classics and overlooked contemporary works to new audiences.
The multifaceted cast includes: Kelly Penner (Shaw Festival, The Railway Children, St. Lawrence Shakespeare Company), Meghan Swaby (Woody Harrelson’s Bullet for Adolf, Birdtown & Swanville, Obsidian Theatre’s Playwrights Unit), as well as creators of the 2011 Fringe Hit Raton Laveur, Amos Crawley (Fracas Theatre, SBTS) and Caitlin Stewart (LAMDA, Theatre New Brunswick, SBTS).
Neoteny Theatre Presents Overruled by George Bernard Shaw &
Romance by Neil LaBute
Directed by Carly Chamberlain
Featuring Amos Crawley, Kelly Penner, Caitlin Stewart & Meghan Swaby Stage Manager: Laura Paduch
Dialect Coach: John Fleming
Assistant Director: Susan Bond
Opens March 28 and runs to April 6 (Previews Wednesday, March 27) Wednesdays through Saturdays at 8 p.m.
RED SANDCASTLE THEATRE (922 Queen Street East) Tickets: $10$15, $5 for returning audience
FOR RESERVATIONS CALL 4168459411
In celebration of World Theatre Day, the first twenty audience members to arrive for the Wednesday March 27th preview will gain free admittance!
Photo: Kelly Penner and Meghan Swaby. ©2013 Neoteny Theatre.
2013-03-19
Toronto: Neoteny Theatre pairs G.B. Shaw’s “Overruled” with Neil Labute’s “Romance” March 27-April 6