Theater At Monmouth Announced 2018 Season: ROAR! The Year Of The Woman

This summer, Theater at Monmouth celebrates wily, wicked, and wonderful women through classic literature's most fantastic females. From fierce matriarchs, unfaithful wives, and every Madonna in-between, Roar! The Year of the Woman spotlights the ladies who move mountains for their families, friends, and most importantly, themselves. Taking on tyrants, freeloaders, and faithless frauds these femme fatales fight for what they believe in, charting a course to a better world for their sisters and daughters.

The 2018 Summer Repertory includes Shakespeare's Twelfth Night directed by Kristin Clippard and Richard III, directed by Dawn McAndrews; Daniel Elihu Kramer's Pride@Prejudice directed by Janis Stevens; Matthew Barber's Enchanted April directed by Kate Bergstrom; and Frederick Knott's Dial "M" for Murder directed by Sally Wood. The Family Show is The True Story of Little Red adapted by Dawn McAndrews and directed by Tess Van Horn. For the Fall Show, opening September 14, TAM returns to Gilbert & Sullivan with Pirates of Penzance directed by Adam P. Blais, music direction by Rebecca Caron. Since its founding in 1970, TAM has produced Shakespeare's works and many other classics both during the Summer Repertory Season and on tour throughout Maine.

"Not only are women featured center-stage," says producing artistic director Dawn McAndrews, "but all the summer repertory directors, costume designers, and set designers are women. When I began planning this season 18 months ago, I had no conception of just how relevant the theme of Season 49 would be." In addition to the plays programmed for the summer, TAM invites audiences to join us for Classics in Context Discussions before each opening night in July for audiences to dialogue with artists and scholars about the cultural, social, and historical background of the plays.

SUMMER REPERTORY SEASON

Performances take place in Cumston Hall, a 250-seat Victorian opera house designed by Harry Cochrane. Since its founding TAM has rehearsed and performed in rotating repertory, inviting audiences to see the actors in different roles in different shows in one weekend.

Pride@Prejudice | June 23 - August 17

by Daniel Elihu Kramer | directed by Janis Stevens

Elizabeth Bennet and Mr. Darcy fall in love all over again in this romantic deconstruction of Austen's beloved novel. Playfully reinvented with modern-day characters literally stepping off the page to blog, google, and tweet, this homage to one of the world's most popular love stories is delivered with humor, wit, and just a little sass.

"Die-hard Austen fans will not be disappointed...and newcomers to the plot will easily follow the romantic adventures of the Bennet sisters, helped by the witty asides and notes on the book delivered throughout the play." -Lesley Ann Beck, Berkshire Arts Almanac (Chester Theater Company)

Janis Stevens is an accomplished actor, educator, and director on both coasts of the U.S. and in Europe. She is currently rehearsing the title role in Marjorie Prime for American Stage Theatre Company. Other regional credits include: Resident Artist with TAM, playing such roles as Paulina in The Winter's Tale, Amanda in The Glass Menagerie and Amanda in Private Lives; Macbeth, A Midsummer Night's Dream and The Taming of the Shrew at Idaho Shakespeare Festival; among many, many others. Janis is a Drama Desk Nominee for Outstanding Solo Performance in Vivien. She has directed numerous productions at TAM, Sacramento Theatre Company, and Capital Stage among others. 2018 is Janis's 16th season at TAM.

Twelfth Night | July 5 - August 19

by William Shakespeare | directed by Kristin Clippard

Orsino loves Olivia. Olivia loves Cesario. Cesario's really a woman disguised as a man who's fallen for her boss, Orsino. Love, and a little mischief, throws everyone for a loop in this comic jaunt of misdirected desire. Where music is the food of love, and nobody is quite what they seem, anything proves possible.

"Twelfth Night is, above all, about people living in disguise-not only to others, but also to themselves-and gradually uncovering their essential natures."-Ben Brantley New York Times (Classic Stage Company)

Kristin Clippard has worked as an actor, director, educator, playwright, producer, dramaturg, and administrator since receiving an MFA in Directing from the University of Iowa. Her focus is staging new voices and re-mixing the classics. She is currently Producer in Residence at Orlando Shakespeare Theatre through a partnership with the New Play Development Network coordinating Playfest and the NNPN showcase of new plays. Recent directing credits include: Merry Wives of Windsor (Richmond Shakespeare), God of Carnage (Incline Theatre), Macbeth (Cincinnati Shakespeare), The Imaginary Invalid and A Midsummer Night's Dream (Annapolis Shakespeare), among others.

Richard III | July 12 - August 18

by William Shakespeare | directed by Dawn McAndrews

Crowned by means of shameless seduction, lies, and bloodshed, Richard Plantagenet makes the happy earth his hell as he carves a bloody swath through all that stand in his way. Shakespeare's "game of thrones" concludes the "War of the Roses" play cycle with one of literature's most ruthless, remorseless, and relentless characters.

"But, if there is a psychological key to Richard's character, it lies in his unabashed contempt for women. He attacks "tell-tale women" with a misogynist rasp and listens to his mother's curses with manifest impatience. Unloved since birth, this is a Richard who seeks consolation in the fruitless acquisition of power." - Michael Billington, The Guardian (Arcola Theatre)

Dawn McAndrews has worked at theatres across the country including Shakespeare Theatre Company, Steppenwolf Theatre, Goodman Theatre, Arena Stage, Portland Stage Company, and Shakespeare Festival St. Louis. Directing credits include The Pajama Game (UMO); Haroun and the Sea of Stories (Colby); The Language Archive (Public Theatre); The Winter's Tale, Romeo and Juliet, The Mousetrap, Henry IV Part 1, Of Thee I Sing (TAM); The Glass Menagerie, Holiday, and Three Days of Rain (1st Stage); Sarah Ruhl's Eurydice, Timberlake Wertenbaker's Antigone, as well as adapting and directing the original production of A Christmas Carol at Portland Stage.

Enchanted April | July 19 - August 16

by Matthew Barber | directed by Kate Bergstrom

Feeling lost in the shadows of marriage and post-WWI society, two London housewives rent a villa in Italy for a ladies-only holiday, reluctantly recruiting a pair of difficult upper-class women to share the expense and experience. Under the Mediterranean sun, the women clash, bond, and bloom; ultimately finding their lost selves in the garden of earthly delights.

"Enchanted April is a success as a romantic comedy, promising better times and sunnier outlooks for most everyone." -Matthew Murray, Talkin' Broadway (Belasco Theatre)

Kate Bergstrom returns to TAM after directing last season's production of Three Days of Rain. She is Artistic Director of On the Verge Summer Repertory in Santa Barbara, CA. She's directed, devised, produced and taught at theatres and schools including UCLA, REDCAT, Highways Performance Space, La Mirada Center for the Performing Arts, and others. Directing credits include: The Children's Hour (Granoff Center for the Arts,) The Taming of the Shrew (Brown/Trinity,) Footprints at Laetoli & Caylee's First Big Show! (OTV 2015,) These Walls (OTV 2016,) Woyeck (UCLA) and Wholed (REDCAT 2013.).

Dial "M" for Murder | July 26 - August 17

by Frederick Knott | directed by Sally Wood

Money. Marriage. Murder. A retired tennis pro plots the murder of his unfaithful wife-but when she turns the tables on her attempted assailant, she is convicted of murder. Can the police detective who brought her to trial now decipher the clues that will save her life? The play that inspired Hitchcock's suspense classic weaves an ever-tightening web of danger and deception.

"Dial 'M' for Murder is not so much a "whodunit" as a "will-he-get-away-with-it" thriller. But it kept audiences guessing in the early 1950s in London's West End and later on Broadway. And it still works." -Jeffrey Walker, DC Theater Scene (Olney Theatre Center)

Sally Wood is a professional director, actor, and fight choreographer. Sally has directed for Portland Stage Company, Theater at Monmouth, AIRE, and The Fenix Theater Company, where she is also a founding member. In addition to an active career as a director, she has choreographed fights for more than 20 productions. Sally spent ten years as a company member at the TAM, including six as Artistic Director. Recently, Sally had the great pleasure of working with living, breathing playwrights, directing four world premieres in the last five years. She received a BA in Theater from Rollins College and an MFA in Performance from the University of Tennessee.

FAMILY SHOW

Each summer, TAM presents a play for families adapted from classic literature. Due to the popularity of these productions, the Family Show now opens in late June and runs throughout the season.

The True Story of Little Red | June 30 - August 16

adapted by Dawn McAndrews | directed by Tess Van Horn

We all know the story of Little Red who set off through the woods to bring sick Grammy some bread. But what if Red wasn't so sweet, and Grammy not helpless but strong, the Woodsman a bully, and the Wolf the top dog? So how do we know which version of the story is true? In the end we'll leave that decision to you.

Tess Van Horn is a Maine-based director and teaching artist. She has worked with Fenix Theater, Good Theater, Hinge/Works, Maine Playwright's Festival, Portland Theater Collective, Portland Stage, and is founding member of Lorem Ipsum Theatre Collective. She holds a BA in Theater from Sarah Lawrence College where she focused on physical theater, Viewpoints, and devised work with Daniel Stein, Dan Hurlin, and Kym Moore. She is an adjunct theater professor at SMCC and teaching artist with Stages Youth Theater.

FALL SHOW

TAM is pleased to announce that due to audience demand Gilbert & Sullivan returns for the Fall Show.

Pirates of Penzance | September 13-23

by Gilbert & Sullivan | directed by Adam P. Blais | music director Rebecca Caron

Gilbert and Sullivan's hilarious farce is packed full of sentimental pirates, bumbling British Bobbies, and
improbable paradoxes. Join the band of swashbuckling buccaneers, Victorian maidens, and the delightful "model of a modern Major-General" for a rollicking romp over the rocky coast of Cornwall.

"The show works its magic gradually...the stage is filled with absurd stereotypical costumes, garbing actors rocking and swaying while singing corny lyrics, which causes one's adult critical reserve to cave in. After that, one drinks the kool-aid of Victorian light opera entertainment and its comedy, inoffensive and very effective 140 years later and counting."-David Glenn Robinson, CTX Live (G&S Austin)

Adam P. Blais returns to TAM having previously directed the 2017 Family Show, My Father's Dragon, and choreographing productions Of Thee I Sing, Patience, The Sorcerer, and Ruddigore. He has worked with The Public Theatre, Shakespeare & Company, The University of Maine, Waterville Opera House, and others. Favorite credits include Sweeney Todd, Speech and Debate, Grey Gardens, Sister Act, August Osage County, and It's Only a Play. Adam holds a BA in Theatre from the University of Maine, and a MA in Leadership Studies from the University of Southern Maine. During the day, he serves as the Supply Chain Coordinator for a local hospital, and the Drama Director at Mt. Ararat High School and Middle School.

MONMOUTH, MAINE

Monmouth is located just off Route 202 in the Winthrop Lakes region of central Maine. By car, the Theater is 25 minutes from Augusta, 25 minutes from Lewiston, 45 minutes from the Mid-Coast region, 50 minutes from Portland, and 90 minutes from Bangor. Monmouth and neighboring towns Winthrop, Hallowell, Augusta, and Lewiston offer a variety of attractions suitable for the whole family, including the Monmouth Museum, Cobbossee Colony Golf Course, Mount Pisgah Hiking Trail, Children's Discovery Museum, Maine State Museum, Viles Arboretum, Bates College Museum of Art, Thorncrag Nature Sanctuary, and more. These areas also offer a myriad of dining options including The Sedgley Place, Pepper's Garden & Grill, DaVinci's Eatery, Fish Bones, Gritty McDuff's Brewpub & Restaurant, Joyce's Restaurant, The Liberal Cup, and Slates Restaurant. Visitors can enjoy a stay in Monmouth at one of the several bed and breakfasts or nearby hotels, including A Rise and Shine B&B, The Roost, Hilton Garden Inn, and Senator Inn & Spa.

CUMSTON HALL

All performances take place in historic Cumston Hall, which towers dramatically over Monmouth's Main Street. While Dr. Charles M. Cumston donated the funds for the building to the Town of Monmouth in 1899, it has always been a gift shared with the community at large. A registered National Historic Building since 1976, the building's architecture is a mix of Romanesque-style asymmetrical columns and towers and varying external textures of the Queen Anne period. The 250-seat opera hall features elaborate plaster carvings, and a fresco mural ceiling.

SUBSCRIPTIONS, SINGLE TICKETS, AND GROUP SALES

A TAM subscription offers savings and exclusive benefits like priority seating and ticket exchanges. Gold, Flex, General, Senior, or Senior Plus Passes are available for purchase, so whether you want a ticket for each show or five tickets to one show, there's an option for you. Single tickets for the Summer Repertory and Fall Play are $34 for adults, $29 for senior citizens, and $20 for students (18 and under). Family Show tickets are $15 for adults, $10 for children.

Opening Nights are Educator Nights. Educators receive 20% off tickets with a photo ID at the Box Office.

Under 30 Rush Tickets: For patrons under 30, twenty $10 Rush Tickets are available at each performance in the season. Sign up by contacting the Box Office, either by emailing boxoffice@theateratmonmouth.org or calling 207.933.999 the morning of the performance. Tickets can be picked up 30 minutes before curtain.

To reserve single tickets, subscriptions, or arrange group sales, please visit www.theateratmonmouth.org or call the box office at 207.933.9999.