Medicine Show Theatre Announces Premiere of UBU IN CHAINS

Medicine Show Theatre Ensemble, one of New York's longest-running experimental theatres, will open Ubu in Chains by Alfred Jarry in June, using an original translation by Obie-winning Medicine Show artistic director Barbara Vann.

Preview performances are set for Wednesday, June 10 and Thursday, June 11 at 8 p.m.

Opening night is Friday, June 12 at 8 p.m. and the show closes on Sunday, June 28 at 6 p.m.

Performances are scheduled for Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays at 8 p.m. and Sundays at 6 p.m. Running time is 90 minutes.

The theatre is located at 549 W. 52nd Street, 3rd Floor, near 11th Ave., subway C/E 50th St.

The plot follows the fictional ex-King Ubu of Poland, a tyrant who gives up his worldly pleasures to become a slave and have the state take care of him. It was one of three Ubu plays Jarry wrote in French near the turn of the 20th century that became precursors to the Theatre of the Absurd. They were considered wild and comic for the way they overturned society's conventions. This version is no less wild, comedic or relevant today, as tyranny and the role of the state is ever-topical and still can be absurd. The production showcases ballroom dancing and big battles, all the while it seeks to re-define what freedom means.

Lincoln Center will stage the first of the three plays, Ubu Roi, in July.

The cast includes: Amie Amis, Bill Blechingburg, John Cencio Burgos, Dan Burkharth, Oliver Conant, David Elyha, Beth Griffith, Richard Gross, Richard Keyser, Cameron McIntosh, Lynda Rodolitz and Elizabeth Wine. Vann will direct. Additional text is by Howard Pflanzer, Stephen Policoff and Chris Brandt. New songs and arrangements are by Mark Shamrakov, who will also play keyboard and guitar. Richard Gross will play percussion, guitar and banjo. Beth Griffith will play the theremin, an early electronic musical instrument, and Amie Amis will play French horn. Fight choreography is by Nelson Howe. The set designer is Mike Shannon.

Costumes are being designed by Paata Bekaia.

Tickets are $20.00 for general admission, $17.00 for seniors and students. They are available from Smarttix at www.Smarttix.com or (212) 868-4444. For more information, log onto the company's website at www.MedicineShowTheatre.org.

Photo Credit: Medicine Show Theatre/John Quilty