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“Transitions” is an appropriate theme for the 2006/07 season of the Department of Theatre and Dance at SUNY Fredonia, says Chair Stephen E. Rees, as the department is undergoing a few of its own. The upcoming Walter Gloor Mainstage Series is an eclectic mix of old and new, comedy and drama, that includes the return of a perennial holiday favorite, A Christmas Carol, as well as the debut performance of The Fredonia Dance Ensemble.
Due to major renovations of its on-campus performance spaces in spring 2007, audiences will attend the dance concerts—and a second department production, the long-running Tony Award –winning Broadway musical, Pippin—at the historic 1891 Fredonia Opera House. Rounding out the season are a second 2001 Tony award-winning drama, Proof, and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged), a comic twist on the Bard.
The Complete Works kicks off the season with a wild, laugh-filled ride on October 13. For over a quarter of a century, this show has delighted and surprised audiences with its un-Shakespeare-like references to hip-hop, football, TV cooking shows and psychology. Director Paul Mockovak puts his own stamp on the production by adding three women to the traditional cast of three men and, in his words, “doubling the fun.” Viewers are sure to enjoy this fast-paced, madcap version of the Bard’s classic texts. If you hate Hamlet, you’ll love The Complete Works.
A Christmas Carol, Charles Dickens’ beloved and enduring tale of redemption, enlivens the holiday
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Director Ted Sharon suggests that Scrooge isn’t the only one redeemed in the course of the play. “Great theatre,” he notes, “gives us a vision of ourselves that we might not have otherwise seen and invites us to be a little better than we might have been”—a truly special holiday gift.
David Auburn’s critically acclaimed play Proof comes to Fredonia on February 23, 2007. Winner of two Tony awards, a Pulitzer Prize and a Drama Desk Award when it was first produced for the New York stage in 2000, this Department production continues a policy of bringing exciting new plays to local audiences.
Proof is the story of Catherine, who sacrifices her own chances for personal happiness and professional success to care for her father, a brilliant mathematician, during his descent into madness. After her father’s death, a breakthrough mathematic proof is found among his papers. But whose work is it—Catherine’s or her father’s? The title’s double meaning becomes evident as “proof” of authorship is sought.
As the mystery unfolds, Catherine’s loyalty, sorrow and affection for her father vie with her bitterness, anger and fear that she is like her father in more than mathematical talent. “This play does a stunning job of exploring the mysteries of the human spirit,” comments director Tom Loughlin. “The close interplay of the characters provides some deep emotional insights into the struggles we face with family, love, and the twin curse of genius and madness.”
On a lighter note, the Fredonia Dance Ensemble steps into spring at the 1891 Fredonia Opera House with a debut performance in March featuring original choreography by Director Helen Myers. Additional guest choreographers include local favorite Elaine Gardner of Buffalo’s Pick of the Crop Dance Company. In this first public performance of The Ensemble, Professor Myers promises “innovative original works that will capture the beauty of the body in motion.”
Concluding the season is Pippin, a Tony Award-studded, 1970’s rock musical written and composed by Roger O. Hirson and Stephen Swartz that has been delighting audiences for over 30 years. Opening on April 20, Pippin is the coming-of-age story of the naïve yet ambitious title character, son of Holy Roman Emperor Charlemagne, and his quest for a meaningful and extraordinary life.
Along the way, Pippin experiments enthusiastically with warfare, murder, lust and love. His adventures, guided and narrated by the Leading Player, are related through a series of incongruously merry, show-stopping musical numbers that will incorporate much of Bob Fosse’s landmark choreographic style, according to Director Paul Mockovak.
Department Chair Stephen E. Rees is enthusiastic about these upcoming events, explaining, “We have tried to select shows that will entertain our established audience and draw new visitors to our stages. Each season always brings a new set of challenges to the faculty and students,” he adds, referring to some of this season’s unusual circumstances.
“This year we have several new and returning faculty, a larger than usual number of first-year students and, most particularly, major rehabilitation projects in Rockefeller Arts Center that will close our performance venues on a rotating basis. Regardless of the hurdles, we are committed to our ongoing mission of creating quality productions that are so valuable in training our young performers, designers and technicians,” Rees concludes.
Performance dates and times are:
- The Complete Works of Shakespeare (Abridged) –
October 13, 14, 19, 20, 21 at 8 P.M. October 15 at 2 P.M. in Bartlett Theatre
- A Christmas Carol –
November 30, December 1, 2, 7, 8, 9 at 8 P.M. December 3 and 10 at 2 P.M. in Marvel Theatre.
- Proof
February 23, 24, March 1, 2, 3 at 8 P.M. February 25 at 2 P.M. in Bartlett Theatre.
- The Fredonia Dance Ensemble
March 8, 9, 10 at 6 P.M. March 11 at 2 P.M. at The 1891 Fredonia Opera House
- Pippin
April 20, 21, 26, 27, 28 at 8 P.M. April 22 at 2 P.M. The 1891 Fredonia Opera House
