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To see a video review of the performance, click here>> Performances are: Friday, Oct. 15 and Saturday, Oct. 16 at 8 p.m.; Sunday, Oct. 17 at 2 p.m.; and Thursday, Oct. 21 through Saturday, Oct. 23 at 8 p.m. Tickets are available through the SUNY Fredonia Ticket Office, by phone at 716-673-3501 (1-866-441-4928) and online. Additional information can be found at fredonia.edu/rac |
Boys will be boys – or will they?
That will be among the issues in question when the Department of Theatre and Dance at SUNY Fredonia presents the classic British farce “Charley’s Aunt.”
Six performances are planned, beginning Friday, Oct. 15 in the Robert W. Marvel Theatre of Rockefeller Arts Center.
Set at Oxford University in 1890, “Charley’s Aunt” follows the hijinks of a pair of love-sick students – Charley Wykeham and Jack Chesney – who are in need of a chaperone to spend time with the young ladies they would like to marry.
A solution appears to be at hand when Charley’s aunt from Brazil – “where the nuts come from” – plans a visit. When she fails to arrive on time, Charley and Jack are forced to improvise — twisting fellow student Lord Fancourt Babberly’s arm until he agrees to don women’s clothing and pose as the aunt.
Things go less than smoothly from there as the cross-dressing “aunt” becomes the object of affection for two gentlemen — including Jack’s own father. To complicate matters even more, the real aunt finally arrives at a most inopportune time.
Written by Brandon Thomas, “Charley’s Aunt” made its debut in 1892 and broke records with an initial run of 1,466 performances. It has become one of the most popular comedies in the world, having since been adapted for both Broadway and film.
Stage adaptations include the 1948 musical “Where’s Charley?”, which starred Ray Bolger and featured music by Frank Loesser.
The most popular film version was released in 1941 starring comedic legend Jack Benny in the cross-dressing role of Fancourt Babberly.
The creative team for the SUNY Fredonia production includes director Paul Mockovak, who also directed “Kiss Me, Kate” last spring; scenic designer Gregory Kaye; costume designer Anna Slocum and lighting designers Todd Proffitt and Jessica Bertollo. The cast includes Michael Valvo, Nick Gerwitz and Jake Bradley in the lead roles.
Sponsored by Coldwell Banker Phil Mathyer as part of the Lake Shore Savings Season, “Charley’s Aunt” is the first offering in the Walter Gloor Mainstage Series.
