2011-2012 Season
2011-2012 season information for the Theatre Department at Middlebury College.
16th Annual First Year Show: Love Song by John Kolvenbach ‘88
October 13-15 | Hepburn Zoo Theatre
LOVE SONG is an offbeat comedy about the power of love in all its forms. A journey through the chaos of being human and the yearning for everything, the characters are a hyper-efficient sister, a well-meaning brother-in-law, a pillaging girlfriend, and a misfit hero who hides behind doors. “Crisp, tough, undogmatic…a smashing, compassionate new play.”
Directed by Tara Giordano ‘02
Big Love by Charles Mee
October 27-29 | Wright Memorial Theatre
OBIE Award-winning playwright Charles mee spins an extravagantly emotional comedy about 50 Greek brides who are betrothed to their American cousins against their will. Their escape attempt launches a battle of the sexes, but love ultimately conquers all.
Directed by Cláudio Medeiros
The Art of Success by Nick Dear
November 17-19 | Seeler Studio Theatre
Playwright Nick Dear uncovers the dark underbelly of 1700s London, where rakes, whores, and murderers rub elbows with writers, politicians, and aristocrats. Based on the life of artist William Hogarth, this bawdy drama is “a scabrous comedy about the creation, purpose, promotion, merchandising, censorship, and government patronage of art” -Frank Rich, New York Times.
Directed by Richard Romagnoli
A Million Tiny Deaths
December 8-10 | Hepburn Zoo Theatre
Company of freaks seeking voyeurs for a night of fairy tales and fetish, distortion and alienation. Come grope the unknowable as we unveil “the million tiny deaths that occur in everyday human interaction.” Selections include Reza de Wet, Moira Buffini, and Lynn Notage.
Senior 700 work in Acting of Emily Rosenkrantz ‘11.5 and Directing of Kelsey Ferguson ‘11.5
Pity Party by Naomi Shafer ‘11.5
December 12 | Seeler Studio Theatre
A reading of Naomi Shafer’s playwriting thesis. After her boyfriend’s death, Eva loses her ability to communicate. The priest speaks pig-Latin, her shrink is an echo, and her friends only know how to talk about parties. Eva seeks refuge in her work, where she befriends Natalya, the seductive voice from her Russian language tapes.
Senior 700 work in Playwriting of Naomi Shafer ‘11.5
The Summer in Gossensass by Maria Irene Fornés
March 15-17 | Hepburn Zoo Theatre
A play within a play unfolds in London in 1891. Elizabeth Robins and Marion Lea are two actresses dying to get their hands on a translation of Henrik Ibsen’s lates play, Hedda Gabler, to be the first in England to produce it. Fornes took inspiration from the true story of Robins’ production to create this wild comic riff on the passions of theatre people.
Senior 700 work in Acting of Lucy Van Atta ‘12
Independent 500 work in Directing of Sasha Rivera ‘12
Stop Kiss by Diana Son
April 5-7 | Hepburn Zoo Theatre
What do lesbians, helicopters, coma patients, and cats have in common? Not an Andrew Lloyd Webber musical; it is Diana Son’s Stop Kiss, the funny, heart-wrenching senior work of Blakelee Clay-McBee and Hallie Woods. Want to know how they all fit together? Join them.
Senior 700 work in Acting of Hallie Woods ‘12 and Directing of Blake Lee Clay-McBee ‘12
The Imaginary Invalid by Molière
April 12-14 | Wright Memorial Theatre
Suffering from tuberculosis, shortly to follow his recently deceased wife and infant son, Molière begins writing what will be his final play, The Imaginary Invalid. Based on the ensemble work of Jacques Lecoq, this production of The Imaginary Invalid is an exploration of the tragedy of Molière’s final hours, the comedy of his very last oeuvre, and the ironic parallel of two realities that crash together in an explocion of macaronic Latin, disesase, love, lazzi, and death.
Senior 700 work in Costume Design of Emily Jacke ‘12.5
Directed by Jay Dunn ‘00.5
Serious Money by Caryl Churchill
May 3-5 | Seeler Studio Theatre
In the trading pits and board rooms of London’s financial district, the City, Caryl Churchill finds the precise pitch of the arena of arbitrage, insider trading, greenmail, corporate raiding, and leveraged buyouts. “Sexy greed is the late ’80s,” and Serious Money is an acidly funny arrow pointing to the present…
Senior 700 work in Acting of Lucy Van Atta ‘12 and Aubrey Dube ‘12
Independent 500 work in Costume Design of Jordan Jones ‘13
Directed by Cheryl Faraone
The Titan Project: Prometheus by Charles Giardina ‘12
May 10-12 | Hepburn Zoo Theatre
The Titan Project: Prometheus is a bold reinterpretation of the myth of the fire-bearing creator of humanity. Set in a gritty future ravaged by warfare and disease, the play launches the Titan Prometheus out of the mythical, and into the realm of dark science fiction. In a bleak world with no allies, Prometheus struggles against the warring factions as well as the demons of his own past in order to find and save his long-lost love.
Senior 700 work in Acting of Christo Grabowski ‘12, Directing of Charles Giardina ‘12, and Costume Design of Camila Quiñonez ‘12
Independent 500 work in Lighting Design of Alan Sutton ‘14
Knacker’s Yard by Sasha Rivera ‘12
May 14 | Seeler Studio Theatre
A reading of Sahsa Rivera’s new play. Knacker’s Yard explores how differences in class and heritage complicate one couple’s love story. The full-length work will be presented in a free staged reading and talkback with the playwright.
Senior 700 work in Playwriting of Sasha Rivera ‘12