TORONTO, March 20, 2001 -- Led by a creative team from Toronto’s Necessary Angel Theatre Company, Theatre @ York caps off its season with a fully-staged workshop production of The Piper, running March 27 to 31 at York University’s Burton Auditorium.
The opening night performance on March 27, coinciding with World Theatre Day, is dedicated to the memory of Al Waxman, who served as adjunct professor in York’s Theatre Department from 1988-1995.
Richard Rose, founding artistic director of Necessary Angel Theatre Company and a York alumnus, returns to his alma mater to direct theatre students in the incubation process for this new Canadian play. Written by Necessary Angel’s playwright-in-residence Colleen Murphy, with original songs and music by Rose’s longtime artistic collaborator Don Horsburgh, The Piper is in development for an upcoming mainstage presentation by Necessary Angel. Set and costumes are by award-wining designer, York theatre professor Shawn Kerwin, with lighting design by Aaron Kelly.
Loosely based on the legend of The Pied Piper of Hamelin, The Piper is a tale of love, seduction, neglect and broken promises, set in an amoral society dedicated the pursuit of pleasure. A subversive investigation into the twisted morality of politics and consumerism, it is a humorous but ultimately harrowing look at how parents fail their children.
Playwright Murphy and composer Horsburgh have joined Rose at York University for intensive rehearsals with the large, hand-picked student cast drawn from the Department of Theatre’s graduate and 4th year acting ensembles. Rose, who has just accepted an appointment as adjunct professor in the department, appreciates the supportive environment the university provides for research and development.
"It lets us explore ideas and try things out in a kind of protected setting", he explains. "It allows us the time and provides the infrastructure essential for the development of new work."
The young actors involved in the production find the constant give-and-take with the professional creative team exhilarating, and they share Rose’s excitement at the chance to participate in the birth of this brand new work.
"It’s a huge challenge, keeping up with an evolving script", says Rachel McAdams, who plays one of the children. "You have to be really well prepared, and always ready to accept changes".
Rose enjoys working with the students, and feels The Piper offers an ideal learning opportunity for them. "It’s a story told in an epic, expressionistic style reminiscent of early Brecht plays," he says. "The style of language, spoken choruses and music combine to provide the ensemble with a great opportunity to explore a new kind of theatricality, to which the audience will certainly enjoy bearing witness."
Rose ranks among Canada’s leading theatre directors. He has directed most of Necessary Angel’s productions since founding the company in 1978, starting with the North American smash hit Tamara and including Coming Through Slaughter, Seven Lears, Beating Heart Cadaver, Inexpressible Island, Not Wanted on the Voyage, Prague, Glenn, and most recently, Clout. He has also worked in film, opera, and with many other major stages, among them Canadian Stage, the Manitoba Theatre Centre and the National Arts Centre. As associate director at the Stratford Festival for eight seasons, with a three-year stint as director of the Young Company, Rose’s credits have included Taming of the Shrew, Coriolanus, Comedy of Errors, As You Like It and Robertson Davies' World of Wonders. At present, concurrently with directing The Piper at York University, he is working on an adaptation of Davies’ Tempest-Tost for Stratford’s 2001 season.
The Piper previews Sun. Mar. 25 and Mon. Mar. 26 and opens Tues. Mar. 27, with performances running nightly through Sat. Mar. 31 in Burton Auditorium at York University, 4700 Keele Street. Curtain time is 7:30 p.m., 6:00 p.m. on Wed. Mar. 28, with matinees Wed. Mar. 28 and Fri. Mar. 30 at 1:00 p.m. Admission is $12, students and seniors $8. A group rate of $5 per person is available for groups of 15 or more. The Sunday preview is PWYC, Monday preview is $5. Tickets are available at the door or in advance through the Theatre @ York box office, tel. (416) 736-5172 ext. 3.
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For further information, please contact:
Brigitte Kleer
Public Relations Manager, Faculty of Fine Arts
York University
tel. (416) 736-2100 ext. 77143
bkleer@yorku.ca
