on stages: 'Nunsense' at Encore Musical Theatre and 'Red' extended at Performance Network
As Memorial Day draws closer, the unofficial first day of summer is almost here. Consequently, you’ll notice a bit of a lag in Washtenaw County theater offerings this week as the “winter” theaters close out their seasons and before the summer theaters kick into gear in June.
In the meantime, now is a great time to polish up your white shoes and catch up on some of the professional productions still running, including “Red” at Performance Network, which has been extended due to popular demand, and “Nunsense”—a hilarious spoof opening this weekend at The Encore.
With numerous seasonal shows on the horizon, including the anticipated return of Shakespeare West, the second season of The Carriage House Theater, and the well-loved Shakespeare in the Arb, Ann Arbor’s theater scene will be buzzing again very soon.
Show: “White Buffalo” by Don Zolidis, through June 2
Company: The Purple Rose Theatre Company
Type of Company: Professional Equity (SPT)
Venue/location: The Purple Rose Theatre Company, 137 Park Street, Chelsea
Recommended ages: 14+ (contains some adult language and content)
Description: When Carol Gelling discovers that a buffalo born on her farm is pure white, she thinks it’s nothing more than a curiosity. She soon learns that the birth of the white buffalo fulfills an ancient Sioux prophecy—the coming of peace on earth and unity of mankind. Almost overnight, her small farm becomes a hotbed of spiritual outpouring—from Native American pilgrims to the Dalai Lama. When a mysterious businessman offers to buy the calf, Carol must decide whether the white buffalo signals the end of her financial hardships or the beginning of her own spiritual enrichment.
Review from Examiner.com
Fun fact: Out of 32 sound cues in White Buffalo, about 12 are of thunder. None of the sound effects of thunder used in the show are used more than once.
For tickets and information: 734-433-7673, www.purplerosetheatre.org
Show: “Red” by John Logan, through June 3
Company: Performance Network Theatre
Type of Company: Professional Equity (SPT)
Venue/location: Performance Network Theatre, 120 East Huron, Ann Arbor
Recommended ages: 16+, Contains adult themes and language.
Description: For two years from 1956-58, the abstract expressionist painter Mark Rothko worked feverishly in his Bowery St. studio on Manhattan's lower East side, on what was at the time the highest paid commission since the Sistine Chapel. A Russian immigrant from humble beginnings, he worked on a series of enormous murals that would adorn that bastion of capitalism - the famous Four Seasons Restaurant in Mies Van der Rohe's Seagram Building. John Logan's Tony-winning play paints a picture of the fiery artist as he works intensely on the paintings, with the help of his apprentice Ken, and struggles with his personal demons to bring forth what would ultimately be his life's greatest achievement.
Article from the Detroit Free Press
Fun fact: Approximately one gallon of red paint is used during every performance of “Red.”
For tickets and information: 734-663-0681, www.performancenetwork.org/
Show: “Nunsense” book and music by Dan Goggin, through June 10
Company: The Encore Musical Theatre Company
Type of Company: Equity Special Appearance Contract
Venue/location: The Encore Musical Theatre Company, 3126 Broad Street, Dexter
Recommended ages: All ages!
Description: When the Little Sisters of Hoboken discover that their cook has accidentally poisoned 52 of their fellow sisters, the sisters decide that the best way to raise the needed money for their burial is to put on a variety show, so they take over the school auditorium. Here we meet Reverend Mother Regina, a former circus performer; Sister Mary Hubert, the Mistress of the Novices; a streetwise nun from Brooklyn named Sister Robert Anne; Sister Mary Leo, a novice and wannabe ballerina; and the delightfully wacky Sister Mary Amnesia, a nun who lost her memory when a crucifix fell on her head. Featuring star turns, tap and ballet dancing, and comic surprises, “Nunsense” has had more that 5000 productions worldwide.
Preview from AnnArbor.com
Fun fact: Three of the five cast members in Encore’s production have been a part of this show before! The puppet featured in this production was used by Barbara Scanlon on tour.
For tickets and information: 734-268-6200, www.theencoretheatre.org
Special ticket offer: Special preview price of $18.00 on Thursday, May 17th
Worth traveling for:
Show: “M. Butterfly” by David Henry Hwang, through May 27
Company: Jewish Ensemble Theatre (JET), West Bloomfield
Type of Company: Professional Equity (SPT)
Venue/location: Aaron DeRoy Theatre; 6600 W. Maple Road, West Bloomfield
Recommended ages: 17+, Contains adult language and themes along with brief nudity.
Description: This Drama Desk “Best Play” winner and Pulitzer Prize nominee that originally starred John Lithgow and B.D. Wong is loosely based on the relationship between French diplomat Bernard Boursicot and Shi Pei Pu a Peking opera singer and spy who was his lover for 20 years. Constructed as a series of flashbacks narrated by imprisoned diplomat Gallimard, the play is an intricate series of realities inside themselves, turned inside out. The narrative of the lovers’ affair is refracted through both overt and disguised burlesque deconstructions of Madame Butterfly, both the original David Belasco play and Puccini’s opera.
Encore Michigan article
Fun fact: This show features a diverse and international cast, from the bayous of Louisiana to Soeul, South Korea.
For tickets and information: 248-788-2900, www.jettheatre.org
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