UC Irvine's Claire Trevor School of the Arts Department of Drama to Present BOEING-BOEING

UC Irvine's Claire Trevor School of the Arts Department of Drama presents Marc Camoletti's classic farce Boeing-Boeing. A madcap comedy listed in the Guinness Book of World Records as the most performed French play throughout the world. Translated into English by Beverly Cross and directed by Chancellor's Professor of Acting Eli Simon, Boeing-Boeing is a stylistically lush and comically rich romp of a tale. At the center is swingin' bachelor Bernard, who has a flat in Paris and relationships with three gorgeous stewardesses, all unaware of his duplicity. When the new and speedier Boeing jets deliver all three women to him simultaneously, however, the jig is up and hilarity ensues.

Boeing-Boeing lands on the heels of a couple of this season's more serious offerings, Naomi Wallace's The Liquid Plain and Distinguished Professor Mihai Maniutiu's The Electra Project, providing some springtime comic relief. According to Professor Simon, it is "a perfect vehicle for the exploration and execution of high-impact farce." With vivid costuming and cleverly constructed sets, the play's comedy relies on nimble physicality as well as brisk wordplay. "This style of theater takes situation comedy and pushes it to extreme levels of zaniness," says Professor Simon. "Any madcap comedy should have lots of doors, and this show has seven! Imagine swinging bachelors and hip airline stewardesses flying in and out of those doors with split-second timing -- that's farce, that's fun... that's Boeing-Boeing."

The English language adaptation of Boeing-Boeing was first staged in London at the Apollo Theatre in 1962 then transferred to the Duchess Theatre in 1965, which ran for seven years. It has been adapted to film in five languages. The 2008 Broadway revival won Tony Awards for Best Leading Actor (Mark Rylance) and Best Revival of a Play. This production is sure to be an enormously entertaining romp!

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