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Event
The Durang Shebang!
The Durang Shebang!
Raising Funds for IRC's production of Eugene Ionesco's Rhinoceros
Sunday, May 18, 2014 at L'Etage Cabaret
Seldom-performed short works by Christopher Durang, the American playwright known for his unique blend of outrageous and absurd comedy will highlight The Durang Shebang! a fundraising event to support the IRC's Fall 2014 production of absurdist author Eugene Ionesco's Rhinoceros.
The IRC ensemble (and friends) will bring the humorous, seldom-performed shorts to life. Many of the evening's performers will also appear in the IRC's production of Rhinoceros as part of the 2014 FringeArts Festival, September 3 - 21 at the Skybox @ The Adrienne. At press time, scheduled The Durang Shebang! performers include David Stanger, Sharon Geller, Ethan Lipkin, Sonja Robson, Mike Dura, Tomas Dura, Bob Schmidt, Lee Pucklis, Kristen Norine, Heather Cole, Andrew Carroll, Sarah Knittel, and Jennifer MacMillan. There will be two showings of The Durang Shebang! at L'Etage Cabaret, 6 pm and 8 pm. Tickets are $20 and may be purchased at Brown Paper Tickets: http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/616332.
The Durang Shebang! is a 70 minute compilation of short works spanning the Tony award-winning playwright's career. Selections include: Mrs. Sorken, the evening's hostess, expounding on an evening at the theatre as performed by Sharon Geller; DMV Tyrant, the all-to-familiar escapades of a man trying to renew his license performed by David Stanger and Kristen Norine; Diversions, where a man contemplates his existence, which becomes exponentially complicated once the community gets involved; Women in a Playground, in which two mothers discuss the sins of the father; Phyllis and Xenobia, where two sisters quarrel over differing recollections of their mother's demise; Gym Teacher, where our worst grade school athletic nightmare comes to life, and Kitty the Waitress, where a fine dining customer is treated to a fancy feast courtesy of the feline persuasion.
Proceeds from The Durang Shebang! will fund the IRC's September 2014 production of Rhinoceros, a wildly theatrical and cautionary tale of the consequences of conformity and the dangers of a society in oblivion. First produced on Broadway in 1961, the original cast featured Broadway veterans Zero Mostel and Eli Wallach as Jean and Beringer. Mostel's wild transformation from man to rhinoceros won him a Tony award for Best Actor.
Eugene Ionesco (19091994) was a Romanian-born playwright and author who called by his contemporaries a "tragic clown," the "Shakespeare of the Absurd," the "Enfant Terrible of the Avant-Garde," and the "Inventor of the Metaphysical Farce" titles that give credence to his rise from a young playwright at a tiny Left Bank theater to an honored member of the Académie Française. In an excerpt from The Hermit, Ionesco writes: "I thought that it was strange to assume that it was abnormal for anyone to be forever asking questions about the nature of the universe, about what the human condition really was, my condition, what I was doing here, if there was really something to do. It seemed to me on the contrary that it was abnormal for people not to think about it, for them to allow themselves to live, as it were, unconsciously. Perhaps it's because everyone, all the others, are convinced in some unformulated, irrational way that one day everything will be made clear. Perhaps there will be a morning of grace for humanity. Perhaps there will be a morning of grace for me."
2014 marks The Idiopathic Ridiculopathy Consortium's eighth season presenting rarely-produced absurdist works from authors around the globe. In 2013, The IRC presented a critically-acclaimed, sold-out production of Czechoslovakian novelist and playwright Franz Kafka's The Castle; the IRC's recent production of French author Jean Giraudoux's Ondine, scored critical and box office success as well.
Praise for the IRC's production of The Castle: "The Castle is pure Kafka, and this Philly Fringe Festival entry, highly entertaining."- Howard Shapiro, NewsWorks.org. "IRC's excellent Castle gets the Kafkaesque to a K. Weird enough to please even the Weirdmaster."- Toby Zinman, The Philadelphia Inquirer. "Anna Kiraly's smart scenic design...Robin Stamey's hazy lighting and Erica Hoelscher's ever-impressive costumes enhance the illogic...(the preposterous players) led by the marvelous David Stanger, Ethan Lipkin and Kirsten Quinn turn in spot-on performances in keeping with the disturbingly risible theme...the mere sight of Michael and Tomas Dura will keep you in stiches..."- Debra Miller, Phindie.com.
Rhinoceros will operate under a contract with Actors' Equity Association. The IRC is a 501C3 non-profit organization and a member of The Greater Philadelphia Cultural Alliance. The IRC's 2014 season is made possible in part by generous grants from Wyncote Foundation; The Samuel S. Fels Fund; The Philadelphia Cultural Fund; The Pennsylvania Partners in the Arts program of the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts, a state agency funded by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency with support also provided by PECO and administered regionally by the Greater Philadelphia Cultural Alliance; The Charlotte Cushman Foundation; CHG Charitable Trust; and Plannerzone.
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LocationL'Etage Cabaret (View)
624 South 6th Street (above Beau Monde)
Philadelphia, PA 19147
United States
Categories
| Kid Friendly: No |
| Dog Friendly: No |
| Non-Smoking: Yes! |
| Wheelchair Accessible: No |
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