MASTER HAROLD AND THE BOYS
by Athol Fugard
June 8-24
Set in 1950 on a rainy day in a run-down South African tearoom, apartheid is the law of the land. Two black men, Willie and Sam, dance as they clean the floor, practicing for an upcoming ballroom dance competition. In walks Hally, a 17-year-old white boy, who Sam has helped with his homework since Hally was little. They get into a deep discussion about who is the most important social reformer in history. "Fugard creates a blistering fusion of the personal and the political." - The New York Times
Show Times
June
8,9,14,15,16,21,22,23 - 7:30 pm
10,17,24 - 2:00pm
REVIEWS
"One of those depth charge plays that has lasting relevance and can triumphantly survive any test of time. The story is simple, but the resonance that Fugard brings to it lets it reach beyond the narrative, to touch so many nerves connected to betrayal and guilt. An exhilarating play. It is a triumph of playmaking, and unforgettable." - New York Post
"Fugard creates a blistering fusion of the personal and the political." - The New York Times
Directed by Baron Kelly
Featuring:
Clyde Tyrone Harper, Tyler Madden, Cameron Murphy
Producing Artistic Director: Juergen K. Tossmann
Production Stage Manager: Sarah Mackell
Set and Lighting Designer: Kevin Gawley
Props and Costume Designer: Hannah Greene
OUR SPONSORS:
Dages Hikes Point Paint and Wallpaper
PC Home Center
Louisville Metro Government
TICKET PRICES
General Admission $22.00
Seniors (over 62) $19.00
Students (under 25) $10.00
Bunburytheatre.org for tickets or 502 585-5306
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BOATWRIGHT
by Patrick Tovatt
REVIEWS BELOW
April 13-29
A Bunbury World Premiere, the romantic comedy in two acts is in the old style --where the guy gets the girl or the girl gets the guy -- depending on your point of view. But, in this buoyant romp, the guy is a bit long in the tooth, and the girl is no spring chicken either. Recently retired to a ramshackle, out-of-the-way corner of waterfront, Ned is content to quietly pursue his three passions: building boats, writing songs and designing his own demise. A mysterious young customer in his boat shop abruptly catapults him into an entirely new life, full of music, love, and responsibilities.
Starring
Emmy Nominated Actor/ Patrick Tovatt
With
Alice King
Francis Whitaker
Set Design by Emmy Award Winning Designer/ David Weller
Lighting Design by Gerald Kean
Costume Design by Hannah Greene
Props by Bekah Aebersold
Dates and Times of Performances
April
19 - 7:30
20 - 7:30
22 - 2:00
26 - 7:30
27 - 7:30
28 - 7:30
29 - 2:00
Alice King, Francis Whitaker, & Patrick Tovatt in Boatwright. Photo: Bunbury
Boatwright
By Patrick Tovatt
Directed by Juergen Tossmann
Review by Leila Toba
Entire contents copyright © 2018 Leila Toba. All rights reserved.
Boatwright is an original play written by and starring Emmy Nominated Actor Patrick Tovatt about an eccentric man getting up in years living in a humble abode where he spends his days writing and singing little ditties on his guitar and building boats. One day, a young man walks into his establishment and what was once a quiet and simple life is instantly turned on its head. With a set conceived by three-time Emmy award-winning designer David Weller, this play is gorgeous and makes the stage at this theater seem much larger than it is in real life while keeping the good taste to present it in a simple fashion appropriate to the material.
Ned (Tovatt) really sets the scene for the show, presenting himself as an old-fashioned curmudgeon, with a distaste for the modern world. His home is thoughtfully chosen around him, with tools hanging on one wall, and blush-worthy artwork hanging on another. He quickly endears himself to the audience in his interactions with Gage, (Francis Whitaker) who is fascinated with the art of building boats but works in IT. They teeter on the edge of a fight in their exchange but find themselves still willing to communicate. Much to Ned’s surprise in saunters Margo (Alice King), and revelations are made that will change all of their lives forever.
Tovatt is definitely at home with this misunderstood character, his penchant for a nostalgic Bohemian past constructing a lovable and complicated life that is rife with adventure and regret. King is effervescent on stage, playing carefully between two worlds; her wild past versus the sensible choices she has had to make. Whitaker is energetic and balances out this cast with enthusiasm and charm. Watching these three actors come together for this show was an absolute pleasure.
Juergen Tossmann has really outdone himself pulling together such a strong cast and crew to create this delightful show. It was a joy to watch from start to finish, full of laughs, second chances, and thoughtful writing from Tovatt that shows us that it’s never too late to get it back.
St. Nickaklaus and the Hanukkah Christmas
by Juergen K. Tossmann
Dec 1-17
Klaus Klurman, aging actor and Jewish Holocaust survivor tries to come to terms with his failing memory and his relationship with his adopted African-American son, estranged daughter, and smoked-up-son-in-law. While the family struggles with Klaus's beginning stages of dementia, the action takes a hilarious and bizarre twist as the power of the spirit touches this unusual holiday celebration.
December
1, 2, 7, 8, 9, 14, 15, 16 - 7:30pm
3, 10, 17 - 2:00pm
"Tossmann’s script is a poignant, insightful comedy that revels in theater riffs and wordplay, but never hides its eyes from the reality of the situation.......The production gets fine performances from Tyler Madden as Klaus’ gay, African-American adopted son, Rebecca Henderson as Klaus’ married daughter and Tossmann as Rebecca’s loony pot-smoking husband.......Klaus is a powerful, egotistical man battling his emerging age, his physical vulnerability and the looming dementia that coexists with his still formidable intellect. Orme brings him to life in a mercurial performance constructed of meticulously crafted physical and vocal detail — a palsied hand, a mental short circuit that carries him abruptly to a long-ago rehearsal for Othello. It’s a delightful piece of acting — all the more because it doesn’t feel much like acting at all....Marty Rosen/ Leo Weekly
Tyler Madden’s Fritz was a great balance of loyal son and brother but also a frazzled caregiver. He treated all of the scenes as if he had been part of similar real-life scenarios. Juergen Tossmann’s Frank was a hoot. While donning a Santa hat that had a marijuana leaf on it, he brought whimsy into a serious family situation. While the character of Frank seemed to be over the top at times, it fit more than hindered the flow of the show......Louisville has been very fortunate to have Matt Orme display his craft for decades now, and he seems quite at home on the Bunbury Theatre stage. His depiction of Klaus was both heartbreaking and revelatory, making no apologies for what he was and what he is becoming. When he shouts, “An actor has to have passion”, his booming voice hovers over the audience like a whispering wind.
Bob Bush is one of the best scenic designers in Louisville theater, and he and his props person, Hannah Greene, knocked it out of the park with this modern living room design. With a lighted Christmas tree featuring a Star of David as a topper and a menorah on the mantelpiece, one had a feeling you could be in a swanky downtown apartment celebrating the occasion.
Annette Skaggs/ Arts-Louisville
RED
RED
by John Logan
WINNER OF THE TONY AWARD
February 16- March 4
Raw and provocative, RED is a searing portrait of an artist's ambition (Mark Rothko) and vulnerability, as he tries to create a definitive work for an extraordinary setting. A 2010 Tony Award winner, the play is "intense and exciting...a portrait of an angry and brilliant mind that asks you to feel the shape and texture of thoughts....'Red' captures the dynamic relationship between an artist and his creations." - New York Times
Show Dates and Times -
We will be holding panel discussions and talk-back sessions on various days during the run of the performances. * indicates - Panel Discussion ** Indicates Talk Back Session
FEBRUARY
Fri 16 -7:30
Sat 17 - 7:30
Sun 18 - 2:00 **
Thur 22 - 7:30 **
Fri 23 -7:30
Sat 24 - 7:30
Sun 25 - 2:00 *
MARCH
Thur 1 - 7:30 **
Fri 2 -7:30
Sat 3 - 7:30
Sun 4- 2:00
RED premiered at the Donmar Warehouse Theatre, London on December 3rd 2009, Michael Grandage, Artistic Director.
Original Broadway Production produced by Arielle Tepper Madover, Stephanie P. McClelland, Matthew Byam Shaw, Neal Street Productions, Fox Theatricals Ruth Hendel/ Barbara Whitman, Philip Hagemann/Murray Rosenthal and the Donmar Warehouse.
TUESDAYS WITH MORRIE
by Jeffrey Hatcher & Mitch Albom
Based on the book by Mitch Albom
October 6-22
Mitch is reunited with his professor, Morrie, and what starts as a simple visit, turns into a weekly pilgrimage and a last class in the meaning of life. "Unforgettable! No matter how well you tell the story, the play makes it more vivid, more shattering, more humorous." - New York Magazine
"Making the language of the boo crisper, cleverer and more palatable....aphoristic wisdom, expressed with gallows wit." - The New York Times
"A touching life-affirming, deeply emotional drama with a generous dose of humor."
Starring: J.R.Stuart & Zac Taylor
DATES AND TIMES:
October
6, 7, 12, 13, 14, 18, 19, 20, 21 - 7:30pm
8, 22 - 2:00pm
Reviewed by Keith Waits for ArtsLouisville
Entire contents copyright © 2017 by Keith Waits. All rights reserved.
Mitch Albom’s book Tuesday’s With Morrie told of the renewal of a friendship with one of his college professors in the months before the old man dies from ALS. It was a bestseller and popular television movie, and it remains an appealing inspirational story. The stage adaptation, by Albom and Jeffrey Hatcher, keeps the schmaltz at bay for most of its length with humor grounded by J.R. Stuart’s performance in the title role.
Reunited sixteen years after graduation, Mitch (Zac Taylor) is a busy sportswriter whose competitiveness has led to success but not happiness. He was close to Professor Morrie Schwartz (Stuart), whose mentorship is characterized by compassion and a New Age humanism. Morrie has gained a degree of fame after being profiled by Ted Koppel on Nightline, and Mitch works to overcome his guilt at neglecting the friendship through visits every Tuesday.
It is a simple, tw0-character interaction, staged with attention to detail in the design work, particularly in the subtle lighting design by Gerald Kean.
Morrie’s “lessons for one” is chock-full of homilies dropped like one-liners, and Stuart’s instincts as an actor are so sure and true that he maintains his expert comic timing even amidst the sentimentality. Zac Taylor is sincere and heartfelt as Mitch, but Morrie is what matters. As a director, Stuart makes certain the audience connects with Morrie as just as Albom did, which means he allows his own performance to dominate appropriately. As Morrie deteriorates, Stuart never overplays the exigencies of the disease but delivers enough realism to register recognition in the audience.
For me, as drama, Tuesdays With Morrie goes a step too far in milking the sentimentality, but if, as a memoir, we accept Albom’s account as honest and heartfelt, then this is nothing less than a love story, so perhaps the emotional intimacy is exactly right.
And there is a solid foundation in Morrie’s lessons. In the face of his imminent demise, the two men discuss mortality, with Mitch ill at ease but Morrie almost welcoming it with no regrets: “Taking makes me feel like I’m dying, giving makes me feel like I’m living.” Morrie never stops giving, and who can argue with that?