By Michelle Hines, University Relations
Dolly Levi herself couldn’t make a better match.
UNCG Theatre and Triad Stage are teaming up for Theatre 232, a monthlong summer theatre festival with productions ranging from “The Matchmaker” – Thornton Wilder’s story of matrimonial fixer Dolly Levi and the inspiration for the musical “Hello Dolly!” – to “Morticians in Love,” a darkly comic look at romance in the funeral industry.
Theatre 232 runs June 11-July 9 at Triad Stage, 232 S. Elm St., Greensboro. It also promises acting classes, including a course in stage combat; a children’s production, “Uncle Ulysses and the Mythic Sword”; and special contemporary theatre events to be announced soon.
To purchase tickets to “Matchmaker,” call the Triad Stage box office at 336-272-0160 or visit www.triadstage.org.
For tickets or information concerning “Uncle Ulysses,” “Morticians” and additional contemporary theatre events, or to reserve a spot in the Monday daytime or Monday evening acting classes, call 336-334-4392. Information is also available at www.uncg.edu/the.
Although UNCG Theatre and Triad Stage have worked closely together since Triad Stage’s inception, Theatre 232 marks their first formal cooperative agreement. The new arrangement will provide professional theatrical experience for the university’s undergraduate and graduate acting students while continuing the Summer Repertory Theatre originally mounted in 1947.
Ten BFA and MFA students, five men and five women, were selected for the company. The students will appear in “Matchmaker,” “Morticians” and “Uncle Ulysses.” The student actors – with guidance from participating faculty members Jody Cauthen, Noah Davis, Chip Haas, Jim Wren and John Wolf – will also run the classes.
“Matchmaker” features the entire repertory acting company: Brad Brown as Cornelius; Jesse Presler as Barnaby; Lindy Flowers as Ermengarde; Josh Purvis as Ambrose; and Paige Berry, Gretchen Ferris, David Harrell, Ben Holbrook, Omoze Idehenre and Emily Rieder as waiters, dancers and guests.
The “Morticians” cast includes: Gretchen Ferris as Lydia, David Harrell as St. John, Paige Berry as Limer, Emily Rieder as Monica and Jesse Presler as Charlie.
Appearing in “Uncle Ulysses” are: Josh Purvis as Uncle Ulysses, Emily Rieder as Penny, Brad Brown as Hector, Gretchen Ferris as Mom, Omoze Idehenre as the Sphinx, Ben Holbrook as Jason, Jesse Presler as Heracles, Lindy Flowers as Atalanta, Paige Berry as Circe and David Harrell as the Minotaur and King Ymir.
Theatrical design students will have similar opportunities to learn from Theatre 232. Many of those students have been hired to assist lighting and scene designers on “Matchmaker”; designers for “Uncle Ulysses” will use part of the “Matchmaker” set.
Participating design students are: Matt Duval, Kasendra Bell, Ellie Chaika, Janelle Labitzke, Debra Holmes, Stephanie Jobe, Elman May and Matt Abdelnour.
Jim Wren, head of performance for UNCG Theatre, will direct “Uncle Ulysses.” Bill Raulerson, a third-year MFA student, will direct “Morticians.” MFA student Peter Duffy will serve as education director.
Show dates, times and ticket prices for performances and classes are:
•“The Matchmaker” — June 11- July 9 — Wilder’s classic is a hilarious game of hide and seek filled with love-starved clerks, beautiful milliners, a cantankerous millionaire and a force-of-nature matrimonial fixer named Dolly Levi. — Show times are 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Sunday evenings (except on closing Sunday when there is no evening performance) and 8 p.m. on Friday and Saturday evenings. Sunday matinees are at 2 p.m. Tickets to preview performances on June 11, 13 and 14 are $12 each. From opening night June 15, single ticket prices range from $12 to $38. Prices vary depending on the day of the week and seat location desired.
•“Uncle Ulysses and the Mythic Sword” — June 23-July 7 — Uncle Ulysses and his niece Penny take audiences into the magical world of Mythopotamia filled with incredible creatures and awesome adventures! This family-friendly play by Joe Sturgeon and Jim Wren is one hour in length and appropriate for ages 3-12. — Performances are Saturdays, June 24, July 1 and 8 at 2 p.m.; June 23, 27, 28, 29 and 30 at 10 a.m.; and July 5, 6 and 7 at 10 a.m. — Tickets for “Uncle Ulysses” are $7 for adults, $6 for children and seniors, and $5 for groups of 10 or more and for UNCG students.
•“Morticians in Love”— June 16-July 8 — Christi Stewart-Brown’s play is the epitome of dark comedy. Morticians Lydia Drury and St. John Homebody inherit competing funeral homes from their respective parents, but when arson burns out Homebody, he asks if he can join Lydia and her androgynous make-up artist and factotum, Limer, at Lydia's Eternal Acres. Before long, these two misfits decide to give love with the living a try, even if it might mean no longer sharing gurneys with comely corpses. — Performances will be staged in a 50-seat alternate studio space created in the rehearsal hall at Triad Stage June 16, 17, 23, 24, 30 and July 1, 7, 8, immediately after the evening’s performance of “Matchmaker.” Beginning at approximately 10:30 p.m., this will be a late night dose of dark comedy, dubbed “Sick N Wrong” Theatre. — All tickets for “Morticians” are $10, general admission.
•Contemporary Theatre Events — Special theatrical events to be staged June 21, June 28 and July 5 — Tickets to all contemporary theatre events are $10, general admission.
•Monday Daytime Acting Classes (Ages 11-14) — June 19, 2-5 p.m., Acting; June 26, 2-5 p.m., How to Audition for Commercials — $10 per session.
•Monday Evening Adult Theatre Classes (Ages 15 and Up) — June 12, 7-10 p.m., Stage Combat; June 19, 7-10 p.m., Acting; June 26, 7-10 p.m., Acting for the Camera — $10 per session.
Triad Stage, a not-for-profit regional theatre company based in downtown Greensboro, and UNCG have developed a strong, mutually beneficial connection. The collaboration began with Triad Stage’s inaugural production of “Suddenly Last Summer,” which featured performances by two candidates in the UNCG acting program, and has continued through this season’s world premiere of “Brother Wolf,” which was developed in collaboration with several UNCG actors. In addition, many elements of production and design over the seasons have featured the work of UNCG students and faculty, led by John Wolf, who has designed the lighting for 12 shows at Triad Stage.
