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Details below.
For tickets to our events, call 545-2511 or 1-800-999-UMAS.
Inclement Weather : |
The Rand Lecture: 
A Conversation with Playwright Tony Kushner
Oct. 9, 7 p.m.
The Rand Theater |
One of the most highly-regarded, and highly-awarded, American playwrights
of the last 25 years visits the UMass Amherst Department of Theater this
fall: Tony Kushner, author of Angels in America, Homebody/Kabul and Caroline,
or Change, will deliver the 2007-2008 Rand Lecture this October. In
addition to a Pulitzer for the two-part Angels in America, Kushner
has received an Emmy Award, two Tony Awards, three Obie Awards, and an
Oscar nomination. Kushner comes to the department thanks to Margarita Hopkins
Rand, who, in her will, left the department funds to provide “entertaining
and articulate lectures of interest to students in the Humanities.” Co-presented with the Stonewall Center and the Office of Jewish
Affairs. |
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Additional
funding provided by the Jewish Arts & Culture Initiative of the
Harold Grinspoon Foundation and the Student Affairs Cultural Enrichment
Fund. Free and open to all community members. More information and related event information on the Jewish
Affairs website. |
The Pillowman
by Martin McDonagh
Nov. 8, 9, 10, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17 at 8 p.m.
Nov. 10 and 17 at 2 p.m.
The Curtain Theater
$12 general, $6 students/seniors
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Martin McDonagh writes some of the most intense, challenging and thrilling
plays making their way to theaters these days, and we're pleased to present
this recent work by him. When writer Katurian Katurian is implicated in
a grisly series of murders that parallel the plots in his books, he is
subjected to brutal questioning by officials in the police state where
he lives. His interrogations are interspersed with his narration of the
stories he writes and his interactions with his developmentally disabled
brother, who, we find, may know more than he has let on about the murders.
Dealing with hot button topics like torture, imprisonment, freedom of speech
and responsibility to one's family, this stirring play is sure to spark
lively debates.
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First Friday: Nov. 9
We invite audience members to share their reaction and ask questions of
the artists immediately following the performance on the first Friday of
a show's run. Free with ticket. |
The Importance of Being Earnest
by Oscar Wilde
Dec. 6, 7, 8 and 13, 14 at 8 p.m.
Dec. 15 at 2 p.m.
The Rand Theater
$12 general, $6 students/seniors
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The Importance of Being Earnest is Wilde's masterpiece and
a delight from start to finish. Londoner Jack has invented a care-free
alter ego named Earnest for his life in the city as he pursues Gwendolyn,
daughter of the redoubtable Lady Bracknell, while he maintains "Jack" for
his proper life as guardian to Cecily in the country. His friend Algernon
catches on to the game and soon confusion reigns as everyone sorts
out just who said what to whom, who's engaged to which girl, and just
who Jack is, anyway. It's a sophisticated comedy chockful of the best
lines Oscar Wilde could come up with, and a sparkling delight to enjoy
during the holiday season.
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First Friday: Dec.
7
We invite audience members to share their reaction and ask questions of
the artists immediately following the performance on the first Friday of
a show's run. Free with ticket.
Special Student matinee Dec. 12 at 10 a.m.
DOWNLOAD THE STUDY GUIDE (PDF)
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Ondine
by Jean Giraudoux
Feb. 28, 29 and March 1, 6, 7 at 8 p.m.
March 8 at 2 p.m.
The Rand Theater
$12 general, $6 students/seniors
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This lovely, bitter-sweet fairy tale of star-crossed lovers is unlike
anything else we have on tap for the season. Traveling through a forest,
knight errant Hans meets and falls in love with the water sprite Ondine
despite an engagement to a woman at court. Ondine's relatives are skeptical
of the match, and Ondine wagers with Hans's life — should he betray
her, he will die. Once married and living in Hans's world, trouble quickly
threatens the young lovers' happiness. Giraudoux is among the most influential
European playwrights of the 20th century; learn why when this gem of
a play makes its UMass Amherst debut.
This production includes brief nudity.
This event was sponsored in part by the
UMass Amherst Arts Council
and the UMass Amherst Alumni Association.
UMassAlumni.com — You were. You are. UMASS.
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Understanding Ondine
Join us for a series of events with our special guest, playwright
Dan O’Brien, in conjunction with the UMass Department of Theater
production of O’Brien’s adaptation/translation of Jean Giraudoux’s
Ondine.
FULL SCHEDULE (PDF)
At a glance:
The Art of Stage Adaptation & Translation:
Playwrights and the American Stage
Thursday, February 28, 2008 at 4:30 p.m., Fine Arts Center Room 204
First Friday Question and Answer Session: Meet the Artists
Immediately
following the performance on Friday, Feb. 29 in the Rand Theater.
Staged Reading: The Cherry Sisters
Revisited
March 1 at 2 p.m., Fine Arts Center, Curtain Theater
Special Student Matinee March 5 at 10 a.m. DOWNLOAD
THE STUDY GUIDE (PDF) |
Hungry Woman
by Cherrie Moraga
May 1, 2, 3, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 at 8 p.m.
May 3 and 10 at 2 p.m.
The Curtain Theater
$12 general, $6 students/seniors
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Cherrie Moraga takes on the myth of Medea in this Chicana spin on the
Greek tragedy. In the near future, Medea, a lesbian woman in exile from
Aztlán, lives with lover Luna and son Chac-Mool in a North America
that has collapsed into a collection of racially and homophobically Balkanized
states. When her ex-husband, Jason, angles to get custody of his son for
political reasons, Medea is consumed with the fear that he will turn her
son against her. This time-honored tragic tale is told in a way that brings
its continuing relevance to the fore and employs a stirring blend of Greek
and Chicano mythology to make its point.
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SPECIAL EVENT:
Hear from Cherríe Moraga and experience the working process
of rehearsal! Renowned scholar and playwright Cherríe Moraga will
be participating in an open rehearsal with director Dora Arreola and
the cast of her play The Hungry Woman, followed by a discussion
with the artists.
Saturday April 5
3:45-5:45pm
The Rand Theater
Part of New WORLD Theater's Intersection
V: Creative Uprisings conference. Admission to this conference
event only is free and open to the public. You can register
online to attend the entire conference.
Moraga's visit is sponsored in part by the UMass Department
of Theater, New WORLD Theater, the Five College Multicultural Theater Committee,
the UMass Arts Council, and the UMass Alumni Association.
ALSO:
First Friday: May 2
We invite audience members to share their reaction and ask questions of
the artists immediately following the performance on the first Friday of
a show's run. Free with ticket.
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A benefit for
the UMass Amherst Department of Theater and the Massachusetts Review
works by professor Julian Olf
May 16 and 17 at 8 p.m.
The Curtain Theater
Admission price is a suggested donation of $20, $10 for students/seniors.
Proceeds of the May 16 event will benefit the Massachusetts Review;
proceeds of the May 17 event will benefit the Department of Theater
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Come fall, UMass Amherst Professor of Theater Julian Olf will find himself
in such august company as Seamus Heaney, T.S. Eliot, and Wendy Wasserstein.
One of his plays, (PEOPLE ALMOST ALWAYS SMELL GOOD IN THE ART MUSEUM),
has been selected for publication in the Massachusetts Review, which will
celebrate its 50th anniversary next year. Olf’s piece will appear
in the fall 2008 issue. Although his work regularly receives productions
away from home, the benefit performances this spring represent the first
time Olf has made his work available to the University community. For the
occasion, he has chosen two short plays, UNAIRED PUBLIC RADIO SEGMENT and
(PEOPLE ALMOST ALWAYS SMELL GOOD IN THE ART MUSEUM). The former is an edgy
satire on the voyeurism and packaging of violence by the media, while the
latter piece, for solo performer, is set in a crowded tavern where, over
the course of a few beers, a man attempts to communicate his perceptions
of life, art, dogs and snails to a pal who sees things differently. While
proofing the publication galleys aloud, Olf felt an irresistible urge to
inhabit the character of his creation. Hence, in addition to comprising
the first production of the finished play, the department’s spring
production marks Olf’s first public appearance as an actor since
his work in New York City’s LaMama nearly forty years ago.
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Audience members are invited to a post-show reception following each performance.
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Inclement Weather
Policy
In the case of inclement weather, the Department
of Theater follows the University's closing policy. If UMass Amherst
closes, Department of Theater theater events including performances and
special events will be cancelled. The Department of Theater may also
cancel events during the evening or on the weekend. If inclement weather
is expected, check this page or call 545-3490 or 545-6808 for updates
regarding our status.
If a ticketed event is cancelled, please contact the box office at 545-2511
when the university reopens to exchange your ticket for one to a later performance,
as available. |
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