PlayGround Theatre's 2007-8 Season
By: Beau Higgins Oct. 09, 2007
Nilo Cruz' ADAPTATION OF GABRIEL GARCÍA MÁRQUEZ'
A VERY OLD MAN WITH ENORMOUS WINGS TO OPEN
PLAYGROUND THEATRE'S 2007-08 SEASON OCT 30 –NOV 18
AT MIAMI BEACH'S BYRON CARLYLE THEATER
ARTISTIC DIRECTOR STEPHANIE ANSIN TO GUIDE
PRODUCTION FEATURING AN ENSEMBLE CAST
OF FLORIDA'S MOST ACCOMPLISHED ACTORS
The PlayGround Theatre, considered to be among South Florida's most accomplished theaters for young people will launch its fourth year, Tuesday, October 30, when it opens its 2007-08 season with Pulitzer Prize winner Nilo Cruz' adaptation of Nobel Prize winner Gabriel Garcia Marquez' critically acclaimed A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings at the Byron Carlyle Theater, 500 71st Street, Miami Beach, a temporary move from its originally announced home theater in Miami Shores due to a delay in the theater's renovations.
Directed by the company's Artistic Director, Stephanie Ansin, the production, whose targeted audiences for this production are youthful theatre-goers ages 8 and up, will feature an ensemble cast of the area's most accomplished actors, several of whom have been actively engaged in earlier PlayGround Theatre productions. Included are Melissa Almaguer, Edgar Caraballo, Jeff Keogh, Kristen Dawn McCorkell, Jesús Quintero, Valerie Stanford and Ricky Waugh. Daniel Lugo will make his company debut.
A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings will begin an ambitious 2007-2008 season which includes two premieres, Lewis Carroll's classic fairy tale, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, a contemporary version adapted and directed by Stephanie Ansin for the entire family (March 12-April 20, The PlayGround Theatre; May 10 & 11, Rinker Playhouse, Kravis Center), and Pulitzer Prize finalist Sarah Ruhl's much acclaimed The Clean House, also directed by Ansin (May 29-June 22 The PlayGround Theatre). Also scheduled is Hans Christian Andersen's magical fairy tale The Steadfast Tin Soldier for children 3 years and up (December 6-23, The PlayGround Theatre; January 11-13 at Colony Theater; May 12-15 at the Amaturo Theater, Broward Center).
A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings, Cruz' first play for young people was developed in 2002 at the Children's Theater Company in Minneapolis. Adapted by Cruz from Márquez' short story of the same title published in 1955 in the collection, "Leaf Storm and Other Stories," the play takes place in a remote Caribbean town where on one evening, a mysterious creature that resembles a very old man with enormous wings, falls from the sky. Found by two children, fear turns to understanding when they, and eventually the villagers, realize this strange "angel" means them no harm, but is a symbol of the healing and love he can bring to their world.
In an artist's statement, Cruz wrote, "A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings is close to my heart. I am attracted to Master Márquez' work because of his use of lyrical images. Like García Márquez, I make use of magic realism in my plays, although I call it realism that is magical. My characters usually leave their immediate reality through the imagination. The whole landscape of Mr. Márquez's work lends itself to grand and fantastic theater. He has a way of capturing both adult and young audiences with his whimsical and humorous imagination."
Award-winning author Gabriel García Márquez was born on March 6, 1928 in Aracataca, a town in Northern Colombia. He studied law for two years before changing direction and pursuing journalism. He has lived and worked all over the world writing for newspapers and magazines, and publishing serials, short stories, novels, and political essays. In 1975 Márquez helped to found the Colombian party "Firmes" and formed HABEAS, an organization dedicated to the assistance of political prisoners. In 1982 he was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature.
Playwright Nilo Cruz's work has been produced at prestigious theaters across the U.S., including the Magic Theatre in San Francisco, the McCarter Theatre in Princeton, the New York Theatre Workshop, and The Public Theatre and New York Shakespeare Festival in New York. He has held residencies at The Royal Court Theatre and at The Public Theatre/New York Shakespeare Festival. He holds an MFA from Brown University. Born in Matanzas, Cuba, Mr. Cruz was raised in the U.S. and currently resides in New York. Mr. Cruz has joined The PlayGround Theatre's Board of Advisors.
Set and puppet design are by Emil Kapelush, costumes by Yana Glushanok, lighting by S. Ryan Schmidt, and original music from Luciano Stazzone, Fernando Diez and Luciana De Oto, with sound design by Luciano Stazzone and choreography by Octavio Campos.
A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings will open at the Byron Carlyle Theater, 500 71st Street, Miami Beach on Tuesday, October 30 at 10am. Additional performances Wednesday, October 31 at 10am; Thursday, November 1 at 10am; Friday, November 2 at 10am and 7pm; Saturday, November 3 at 3pm & 7pm; Sunday, November 4 at 3pm; Tuesday, November 6 at 10am; Wednesday, November 7 at 10am; Thursday, November 8 at 10am & 4pm; Friday, November 9 at 10am & 4pm; Saturday, November 10 at 3pm; and Sunday, November 11 at 3pm; Tuesday, November 13 at 10am; Wednesday, November 14 at 10am; Thursday, November 15 at 10am & 4pm; Friday, November 16 at 10am and 4pm; Saturday, November 17 at 3pm; Sunday, November 18 at 3pm.
From their home venue The PlayGround Theatre, 9806 N.E. 2nd Avenue, Miami Shores the company will tour to the Colony Theatre, 1040 Lincoln Road, Miami Beach; the Amaturo Theater at Ft. Lauderdale's Broward Center, 201 SW 5th Avenue. Ft. Lauderdale; and the Rinker Playhouse, at the Kravis Center, 701 Okeechobee Blvd., West Palm Beach.
Tickets are $15 each; $10 each for groups of 20 or more; $5 when purchased by students through Culture Shock. Free tickets are available for schools and community groups.
Tickets are available by phone (305) 751-9550 ext. 231;
For further information you may e-mail: info@theplaygroundtheatre.com; and visit their website: www.theplaygroundtheatre.com.
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