Forum Theatre Presents ONE FLEA SPARE 2/19

Forum Theatre, the resident company of Round House Silver Spring, will continue its 7th Season with Naomi Wallace's biting and bawdy One Flea Spare, as well as a festival of her plays and poetry.

Winner of the 1996 Kesselring Prize, Susan Smith Blackburn Prize, and Obie Award for "Best Play," One Flea Spare tests the limits of compassion in a tale of sex, class, and disease. The Naomi Wallace Festival will include readings of three other plays from the MacArthur "Genius Award" recipient and a showcase of original works inspired by her poetry.

Amid the chaos of the Black Plague in seventeenth century London, a precocious young girl and uncouth sailor desperately seek shelter - only to find themselves quarantined in the home of a wealthy couple. With a callous guardsman keeping watch, this unlikely group has no choice but to live with one another. In the ensuing weeks, moral and physical boundaries break down as they fight to survive the disease and one another.

Raising painful questions about class, gender, and intimacy, One Flea Spare is an ideal fit for Forum's seventh season, which focuses on "Home and Origins." Artistic Director Michael Dove says: "Very few writers area as sharply relevant as she is and even fewer combine politics and poetic language as effectively."

Cast includes Andy Brownstein, Davis Hasty, Nanna Ingvarsson (Forum's Angels in America: Part 1 & 2), Sarah Taurchini, and David Winkler.

Creative team includes scenic designer Lisi Stoessel (Forum's Scorched), costume designer Heather Lockard (Angels in America), lighting designer Cory Ryan Frank, sound designer Elisheba Ittoop, and properties designer Christina Smith, with production stage manager Stephanie Junkin and deck manager Mandy Yu.

One Flea Spare runs February 19-March 12 at Round House Silver Spring. Tickets are $25 for all performances ($20 for seniors, groups, and Round House subscribers; $15 for students and patrons under 30). To purchase, visit www.forumtheatredc.org or call the Round House box office at 240-644-1100.

Performances are Thursday-Saturday at 8:00 PM and Sundays at 2:00 PM. Additional shows Saturday, March 5 at 2:00 PM, Monday, March 7 at 7:30 PM, and March 12 at 2:00 PM.

Open Forum discussions will follow the performances on February 27, March 3, March 6, and March 10.

There will be two Pay-What-You-Can Previews on Thursday, February 17 & Friday, February 18.

Naomi Wallace FESTIVAL
Produced by Stephanie Freed and Hunter Styles
February 7 through February 28

All events are pay-what-you-can and open to the public. Complete schedule below:

Monday, February 7 @ 7:30 PM
The Hard Weather Boating Party
directed by Jennifer Nelson?featuring Alex Perez, J.J. Johnson & MJ Casey
Woolly Mammoth Theatre
641 D St NW
Washington, DC 20004

Monday, February 14 @ 7:30 PM
The Trestle at Pope Lick Creek
directed by Mitchell Hébert
featuring Aaron Bliden, Julia Proctor, John Lescault, Amy McWilliams & Teniece Johnson
Silver Spring Civic Building
One Veterans Place
Silver Spring, MD 20910

Monday, February 21 @ 7:30 PM
The Fever Chart
directed by Hunter Styles and Stephanie Freed
featuring Jjana Valentiner, James Flanagan, John Kevin Boggs, Casie Platt, Michael Tolaydo & Michael Mitchell

The Fever Chart will be presented at a private residence. Event is open to the public, but RSVP's must be sent to tickets@forumtheatredc.org and the location will be sent in response.

Special Event
Featuring short theatrical responses by local writers, dancers, and artists to poems in Wallace's anthology "To Dance a Stony Field" (1995).

Monday, February 28 @ 7:30 PM
Forum (Re)Acts
Round House Theatre Silver Spring
8641 Colesville Road
Silver Spring, MD 20910

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