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Adobe PDFRIC Mainstage Season Brochure (2009-2010)

Angels in America
by Tony Kushner

Nehassaiu deGannes, Director

When: September 30 - October 3 at 8:00pm and October 3 & 4 at 2:00pm
Where: Helen Forman Theatre in the John Nazarian Center for the Performing Arts

Playwright Tony Kushner's Angels in America has achieved phenomenal success since it opened in Los Angeles in 1992. Winner of many awards, including the 1993 Pulitzer Prize for drama and Tony Award for best play, Angels will be staged from Sept. 30 to Oct. 4. Directed by Nehassaiu deGannes, an assistant professor at RIC, it is an epic story of two troubled couples – one gay, one straight – in America in the 1980s, when a terrifying new disease – AIDS – has just been discovered. Both a love story and political drama, it has been described by scholar John M. Clum as "a turning point in the history of gay drama, the history of American drama, and of American literary culture." Angels in America has been staged in countries around the globe, and has been translated into several languages.

General Admission: $15

Rabbit Hole
by David Lindsay-Abaire

Jamie Taylor, Director

When: November 18 - 21 at 8:00pm and November 21 & 22 at 2:00pm
Where: Helen Forman Theatre in the John Nazarian Center for the Performing Arts

David Lindsay-Abaire's Rabbit Hole, which received the 2007 Pulitzer Prize for drama, will be performed by RIC Theatre from Nov. 18-22. The production will be directed by Jamie Taylor, RIC's chair of the Department of Music, Theatre, and Dance. A shattering experience leaves Becca and Howie Corbett's life turned upside down, and the couple attempting to cope with a new and unexpected reality. Rabbit Hole examines grief – and its toll – with insight, honesty and compassion. "Rabbit Hole presents a tragedy and its consequences with utter candor, and without sentimentality," according to USA Today. "The dialogue is most impressive for capturing the awkwardness and pain of thinking people faced with an unthinkable situation—and eventually, their capacity for survival, and even hope." Lindsay-Abaire has written the screenplay for the fi lm version of Rabbit Hole, scheduled for release in 2010. He also wrote the plays Shrek the Musical (book and lyrics), Kimberly Akimbo, Wonder of the World, and A Devil Inside, among others, and is working on the screenplay for Spider-Man 4.

General Admission: $15

Edward II
by Christopher Marlowe

Frank Toti, Director

When: February 17 - 20 at 8:00pm and February 20 & 21 at 2:00pm
Where: Helen Forman Theatre in the John Nazarian Center for the Performing Arts

Shakespeare's brilliant contemporary and rival playwright, Christopher Marlowe, penned Edward II at the end of his brief life. Deemed by many to be Marlowe’s crowning achievement, Edward II features the playwright’s most nuanced characters and some of his finest language. In the weak, stubborn character of Edward II, Marlowe created a compelling portrait of a flawed monarch. ough the son of a great general, Edward is an ineffectual king, and, in the grips of a romantic obsession, he fails to recognize the threats to his crown. As the play unfolds, Marlowe turns the doomed Edward into a more tragic figure, contrasting his plight with the ruthless nobles who depose him. Edward II has been described as: "deliciously dangerous", "heart-felt and heart rendering", "seductive", "thrillingly ritualistic", and "achingly poetic".

Chicago
Book by Fred Ebb & Bob Fosse
Music by John Kander
Lyrics by Fred Ebb

Bill Wilson, Director
Angelica Vessella, Choreography

When: April 22 - 24 at 8:00pm and April 23 & 24 at 2:00pm
Where: The Auditorium in Roberts Hall

There's never been a better time to experience Chicago, Ebb and Fosse’s razzle-dazzle smash. This triumphant hit musical is the recipient of six Tony Awards, two Olivier Awards, a Grammy and thousands of standing ovations. A sensational tale of sin and corruption, it’s no surprise that Chicago has wowed audiences from Mexico City to Moscow, from Sao Paulo to South Africa.

If you’re looking for an outstanding musical, Chicago has everything you could want: knockout dancing, an edge-of-yourseat story and one showstopper after another—it’s got it all. Everything that made Chicago (the city) exciting in the roaring twenties makes Chicago (the musical) such a fun show to see now. If you loved the Academy Award-winning film, nothing beats the live show, and if you are already intimately acquainted with the musical, experience that sizzle again. Chicago always delivers.

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   Page last updated: Thursday, November 5, 2009