Stage Door News
Stage Door News
Richard Rose, Artistic Director of Tarragon Theatre, is excited to open the 2018/2019 season by welcoming the return of Harlem Duet to the stage this September. This award-winning, evergreen work by nationally celebrated Canadian playwright Djanet Sears returns to the Tarragon stage for the first time in 20 years. Harlem Duet runs in Tarragon’s Mainspace September 18 - October 28, 2018 (opening Wednesday, September 26).
From Governor General's Literary Award-winner Djanet Sears, this rhapsodic blues riff is a prequel to Shakespeare's Othello and whisks the tale off to Harlem, where a college professor leaves his grad student wife for a white colleague. An iconic work that packs as powerful a punch now as it did when it debuted over twenty years ago.
Relatable and insightful even 20 years after its Tarragon debut, Sears’ contemporary riff on Shakespeare’s Othello returns to the Mainstage this fall. Somehow, time has not altered the relevance of this work and its ability to engage in the discourse surrounding status and race in contemporary society.Through a series of flashbacks the audience is given snapshots of the North American black experience across time, telling a story of loyalty, revenge, love and, of course, madness.
“We are excited to launch a multi-dimensional 2018/2019 season at Tarragon Theatre with Harlem Duet,” notes Richard Rose, Tarragon’s Artistic Director. “Djanet Sears’ work is as captivating today as it was when it debuted at Tarragon 20 years ago. We can’t wait to have some Tarragon patrons revisit it and others discover it as a new work.”
Upon its world premiere at Tarragon Theatre in 1997, Sears and Harlem Duet received several accolades, including the Governor General’s Literary Award, Floyd S. Chalmers Canadian Play Award and four Dora Mavor Moore Awards.
Harlem Duet features Virgilia Griffith (Tarragon debut, Soulpepper’s Ma Rainey's Black Bottom, Crow’s Theatre’s Wedding Party), Walter Borden (Tarragon’s Name In Vain (Decalogue Two), NAC’s The Adventures of a Black Girl in Search of God), Tiffany Martin (Tarragon debut), Beau Dixon (Tarragon’s Hamlet) and Ordena Stephens-Thompson (Tarragon debut, Soulpepper’s for colored girls…). The play is written and directed by Djanet Sears.
Harlem Duet runs from September 18 - October 26, 2018, opening officially Wednesday, September 26.
Harlem Duet
Mainspace
written & directed by Djanet Sears
starring Virgilia Griffith, Walter Borden, Tiffany Martin, Beau Dixon & Ordena Stephens-Thompson
September 18 - October 28 (opening September 26)
The return of a Canadian theatre milestone! Djanet Sears’ rhapsodic blues riff on Othello whisks the tale off to Harlem, where a college professor leaves his grad student wife for a white colleague. The stinging abandonment leads to profound questions about love, loss, loyalty and race, played out over two centuries in a wide range of settings. An iconic work that packs as powerful a punch now as it did when it debuted over twenty years ago.
Harlem Duet is the winner of the Governor General's Literary Award, the Floyd S. Chalmers Canadian Play Award, and four Dora Mavor Moore Awards (Outstanding New Play, Outstanding Direction, Outstanding Production, and Outstanding Performance by a Female).
CAST + CREW
written & directed by Djanet Sears
starring Virgilia Griffith (Billie), Walter Borden (Canada), Tiffany Martin (Amah/Moana), Beau Dixon (Othello) & Ordena Stephens-Thompson (Magi)
set and costume designer Astrid Janson
musical director and sound designer Allan Booth
lighting designer André du Toit
stage manager Darragh Parsons
apprentice stage manager Troy Taylor
Showtimes are Tuesday - Saturday at 8pm, Sunday at 2:30pm, and select Saturdays at 2:30pm.
Tickets range from $22 - $60 and can be purchased online at www.tarragontheatre.com, or by phone at 416-531-1827. Discounts are available for seniors, students and groups and arts workers. Patrons under 35 & arts workers visit www.tarragontheatre.com/tarragon22.
Tarragon offers the most flexible subscription packages in the city with savings of up to 40%, allowing patrons to choose their productions, change their dates free of charge, and offering many different price points to suit all schedules and budgets. Visit the website or call Patron Services today for more information.
Rush tickets are sold for $20 cash only, in person at the theatre two hours before showtime. This year Tarragon will also be offering online rush tickets at varying discounts, 24h prior to the show. Both Rush ticket options are subject to availability.
For more information on Tarragon’s events and activities, visit www.tarragontheatre.com/calendar.
Photo: Virgilia Griffith.
2018-08-29
Toronto: Tarragon Theatre opens its 2018/19 season with "Harlem Duet" September 18-October 28