Ithaca Fall Theatre Preview

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Theatre in Ithaca, Fall 2007
Ithaca Times
September 5, 2007
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"Fall Theatre Preview"

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Fall Theatre Preview
By: Mark Tedeschi
09/05/2007

This fall, local theatre venues offer a fascinating and delectable array of productions that promise to rouse conversation, stimulate intellect, and tickle funny bones.

Cornell University kicks off its fall season with Good (Sept. 13-15, 20-22) by C.P. Taylor, a challenging drama about a "good" man seduced into the Nazi regime; his torment is enhanced by evocative music. After that, Cornell will lighten things up with two classic comedies: The first is Alan Ayckbourn's Bedroom Farce (Oct. 17-21, 24-28) (a treat for anyone who enjoyed Ayckbourn's How the Other Half Loves at Cortland Rep. this summer); it follows a self-absorbed couple's havoc-wreaking attempts to salvage their failing marriage. The second, The Bourgeois Gentleman (Nov. 15-17, 29-Dec. 2), is a Molière comedy-ballet about an ill-mannered man who tries to buy his peers' esteem and respect by altering his appearance and demeanor.

Closing the theatre season is Slow Dusk (Nov. 9-11), former Syracuse University student Carlisle Floyd's Depression-era one-act opera about guilt and religious fanaticism. Other performances this fall include the free RPTA Showcase (Sept. 2) featuring the Schwartz Center's six Equity actors (including J.G. Hertzler of "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine") from the Resident Professional Teaching Associates program, and Cornell Dance Series' Garth Fagan Dance (Sept. 27), a performance of Afro-Caribbean energy choreographed by a Tony Award winner. For Cornell Theatre information and tickets, call 254-ARTS.

The first two productions at Ithaca College take polar approaches to exploring gender roles: Henrik Ibsen's Hedda Gabler (Oct. 2, 4-7) is a stark, personal drama about the iconic title character's struggle with the weighty choices she faces as a woman with traditional 19th century responsibilities; The Full Monty (Oct. 30, Nov. 1, 3-4, 7, 9-10) - music and lyrics by David Yazbek, based on Peter Cattaneo's film/Terrence McNally's book - situates women as family breadwinners and men as aspiring strippers. This racy comedy-musical is for mature audiences only.

Alfred Uhry's Tony Award-winning The Last Night of Ballyhoo (Dec. 4, 6-9) follows the trend of societal investigation with a story about a Jewish family living in 1939 Atlanta who obsess about an important upcoming social event, the premiere of Gone with the Wind, and an observantly Jewish dinner guest from Brooklyn. The play pushes its audience to contemplate intolerance at the same time as it encourages laughter. For Ithaca College Theatre information and tickets, call 274-3224.

Now in its 17th season, the Kitchen Theatre Company, located in the Clinton House at 116 N. Cayuga St., offers a plethora of regional and world premieres. The Main Stage Series begins with Sarah Ruhl's The Clean House (Aug. 30-Sept. 23), a Pulitzer Prize finalist about "the tidy, unemotional life of a doctor, her adulterous husband, her sister, and her Brazilian housekeeper, who aspires to tell the funniest joke in the world." Following that is a play by Brian Dykstra, author of Clean Alternatives (a regional premiere at the Kitchen last year) called STRANGERHORSE (Oct. 18-Nov. 11), a drama about ethics and racism that features Dykstra's snappy, humorous dialogue. In December, Iraqi-American Heather Raffo's critically acclaimed solo-performance show 9 Parts of Desire (Dec. 6-23) examines the strenuous lives of nine women living in Iraq.

The Kitchen's Counter-Culture series continues last year's focus on artists of color with five groundbreaking, rulebreaking solo performances. This fall features Vijai Nathan's Good Girls Don't, But Indian Girls Do (Sept. 28-30) and Darian Dauchan's Media Madness (Nov. 16-18).

Parents can take their kids to the always-enjoyable "Family Fare" series at the Kitchen, too. Acrobat/juggler Nicholas Flair performs his one-man show, The Other Side, on Sept. 29 and 30. The Adventure in Apartment G Sharp by Rachel Lampert and Nathan Hilgartner, featuring "music from the grandest of Operas," runs Oct. 27-Nov. 11. And the Kitchen Sink's Teen Extreme Playwriting Contest and Marathon! will feature young playwrights' talent from the local area. For Kitchen Theatre information and tickets, call 273-4497.

Finally, the Syracuse Stage at 820 E. Genesee St. in Syracuse opens its season with two literary adaptations of different sorts. First up is Christopher Hampton's Les Liasons Dangereuses (Sept. 26-Oct. 14), a sexually charged story about manipulation and the aristocracy based on a 1782 French novel by Pierre Choderlos. Following that, just in time for Halloween, is Simon Moore's adaptation of Misery (Oct. 24-Nov. 11), a nail-biting Stephen King suspense novel about a fictional famous author's torturous kidnapping by his biggest fan.