Will Eno's MIDDLETOWN to Make Canadian Debut at Shaw Festival

Meg Roe directs the hypnotic Middletown, written by Pulitzer-nominated and Drama Desk Award-winning playwright Will Eno, as an intimate experience shared by actors and audience. The Canadian premiere of Middletown begins previews on July 13 at the Shaw Festival's Jackie Maxwell Studio Theatre.

Veteran Shaw actors Gray Powell and Moya O'Connell star in Middletown, which is a series of intersecting vignettes in an ordinary suburban town where fears, hopes and dreams erupt through the seemingly banal details of everyday life.

The Shaw's production invites the audience to be a part of the staging of Middletown by completely removing the backstage area and setting it in the round. The actors, set pieces and props transition seamlessly between the audience and playing space. Camellia Koo's minimalist set and costume design emphasize the simple beauty of everyday objects, which appear and reappear throughout the performance, allowing design elements to have their own story arc.

Lighting design by Kevin Lamotte brings a constellation of stars to Middletown through fibre optic lights that surround the audience. Alessandro Julia­ni's original music and sound design blends physical and digital instrumentation to create a sense of familiarity and mystery, mirroring the ways that Middletown's characters contemplate life's great mysteries in the most ordinary of circumstances.

Middletown is on stage at the Jackie Maxwell Studio Theatre (10 Queen's Parade, Niagara-on-the-Lake) from July 13 to September 10 (opening July 30).

Cast: (in alphabetical order)

Karl Ang, Male Doctor
Kristopher Bowman, Man on a Date
Fiona Byrne, Aunt/Female Doctor
Benedict Campbell, Cop
Claire Jullien, Female Tourist
Jeff Meadows, Mechanic
Peter Millard, Male Tourist
Natasha Mumba, Sweetheart
Moya O'Connell, Mrs. Swanson
Gray Powell, John Dodge
Tara Rosling, Librarian
Sara Topham, Tour Guide

Creative & Production:

Director Meg Roe
Designer Camellia Koo
Lighting Designer Kevin Lamotte
Composer/Sound Designer Alessandro Juliani
Stage Manager Meredith Macdonald
Assistant Stage Manager Susanne Lankin

The Shaw Festival's 2017 season is on stage April 5 through October 15. The playbill features Me and My Girl, Saint Joan, Dracula, 1837: The Farmers' Revolt, Androcles and the Lion, Wilde Tales, The Madness of George III, Dancing at Lughnasa, An Octoroon, Middletown, 1979 and Secret Theatre.

Direct bus service from Toronto to Niagara-on-the-Lake on the Shaw Express began April 5. Patrons can choose to come for one day or stay for the weekend with a round trip costing $25. A ticket to a 2017 Shaw Festival performance is required to access this service.

Tickets for the 2017 Festival season and Shaw Express are available through the Box Office at 1-800-511-SHAW and online at www.shawfest.com.

The Shaw Festival celebrates the life and spirit of Bernard Shaw by creating theatre that is as entertaining and provocative as Shaw himself.