Abingdon's Barter Theatre to Open 'Laugh-a-thon' UNNECESSARY FARCE, 5/8

Barter Theatre is busy making preparations to open what critics are calling "a bona fide gut-busting laugh-a-thon." The fun of "Unnecessary Farce" begins May 8 at Barter Stage II. It's the hot new comedy that has audiences raving across the country.

Eric and Billie are two inexperienced cops about to conduct a sting operation in a seedy motel. With the help of a straight-laced accountant, they think they can film the mayor admitting that he's embezzled 16 million dollars. Seems simple, but nothing is simple in a farce!

The cops are bumbling, the accountant keeps losing her blouse, and the real problem lies with the local mofia, the Scottish Clan. In particular, our group of misfits is afraid of the "Highland hit man," who always dons a kilt and bagpipes before he assassinates his target.

Will the embezzled money be recovered? Can Billie be saved from the Scotsman? What happens when the mayor's wife shows up? Why doesn't Eric have pants on?

Timing is everything in a farce, and Barter has assembled an all-star comedy cast, with Resident Acting Company Members Sean Campos, Wendy Piper, Parris Cromer, Andrew Slane and Rick McVey star alongside newcomers Darrell Johnston and Paris Bradstreet. "Unnecessary Farce" is directed by Barter Artistic Associate Nicholas Piper. Piper directed "Red Velvet Cake War" and "The Glass Menagerie" in 2012.

"Have you ever found yourself in a situation so ridiculous that even your best attempts to fix it only made it worse?" asks Piper. "And the more unusual the situation, the more the characters try to right their world, the funnier it gets."

Call 276.628.3991 or visit BarterTheatre.com for tickets and more information.

With its unique beginnings during the Great Depression, Barter Theatre, one of this nation's oldest professional non-profit theatres, is located in beautiful historic Abingdon, Virginia. Barter Theatre is a theatre of firsts: one of this nation's first professional regional theatres, the first professional theatre to be designated a state theatre - The State Theatre of Virginia and more. Today, Barter offers a variety of musicals, classics, comedies, dramas and new southern and Appalachian plays performed February - December yearly on two stages: Barter Theatre and Barter Stage II. Barter Theatre continues to be one of the nation's most vibrant and exciting professional theatre experiences.

Pictured: Sean Campos, Darrell Johnston and Wendy Piper in Barter Theatre's comedy "Unnecessary Farce."