Marianne Owen News

Basic Monthly Members of ACT - A Contemporary Theatre have plenty to see in the month of May, featuring the debut of new works from KT Niehoff / Lingo Dance, New Century Theatre Company, SOIL Artist-Run Gallery, RAWSTOCK, and Hedgebrook's Women Playwrights Festival, as well as the 2010 Mainstage season opener, Horton Foote's enduring American classic The Trip to Bountiful.

Last night, as part of the Rep's New Play Program and in conjunction with a more global event, The Seattle Rep presented a one night only staged reading of "The Laramie Project: Ten Years Later". Nearly 500 people were in attendance to this free reading of the play written by members of the Tectonic Theater Project, Moises Kaufman, Leigh Fondakowski, Greg Piertotti and Steven Belber.

The Third Annual Icicle Creek Theatre Festival (ICTF), based in Leavenworth, will re-mount two new works exclusively for Seattle audiences. The Central Heating Lab at ACT is thrilled to host staged readings of HIM by Daisy Foote on August 17, 2009 at 7:30 p.m. and The Jewel in the Manuscript by Rosemary Zibart on August 18, 2009 at 7:30 pm. Tickets are $10 and available through ACT.

The Third Annual Icicle Creek Theatre Festival (ICTF), based in Leavenworth, will re-mount two new works exclusively for Seattle audiences. The Central Heating Lab at ACT is thrilled to host staged readings of HIM by Daisy Foote on August 17, 2009 at 7:30 p.m. and The Jewel in the Manuscript by Rosemary Zibart on August 18, 2009 at 7:30 pm. Tickets are $10 and available through ACT.

The Third Annual Icicle Creek Theatre Festival (ICTF), based in Leavenworth, will re-mount two new works exclusively for Seattle audiences. The Central Heating Lab at ACT is thrilled to host staged readings of HIM by Daisy Foote on August 17, 2009 at 7:30 p.m. and The Jewel in the Manuscript by Rosemary Zibart on August 18, 2009 at 7:30 pm. Tickets are $10 and available through ACT.

A Contemporary Theatre's production of the brilliantly constructed social comedy Intimate Exchanges by Alan Ayckbourn will run from August 15-September 14.

A Contemporary Theatre's production of the brilliantly constructed social comedy Intimate Exchanges by Alan Ayckbourn will run from August 15-September 14.

Anything can happen and will in ACT - A Contemporary Theatre's production of the brilliantly constructed social comedy Intimate Exchanges by Alan Ayckbourn, August 15-September 14.

A Contemporary Theatre's production of the brilliantly constructed social comedy Intimate Exchanges by Alan Ayckbourn will run from August 15-September 14. Exploring the consequences of our tiniest everyday decisions, this laugh-out-loud farce mines the space between the lives we hoped for and the lives we have. Two actors, Seattle favorites Marianne Owen and R. Hamilton Wright, play six characters whose crucial decisions determine the course of the story on any given night. Four possible endings and without-a-net acting make Ayckbourn's riotous investigation of fate and free will a blast for audience and cast alike. 'Ayckbourn has created in very human terms a description of how capricious fate is,' said ACT Artistic Director Kurt Beattie. 'It's a dazzling tour de force for great comedic actors. And a hilarious description of our chaotic universe. It is one of Ayckbourn's greatest plays and speaks to us vividly about a lack of emotional and spiritual compass that most of us experience today.' Written by one of the world's most popular and prolific professional playwrights, Intimate Exchanges is comprised of eight plays generated from a single opening scene. At the end of each scene, a choice is made and the play divides into its various permutations from this, leading to a basic structure of one prologue; two first scenes; four second scenes; eight third scenes and sixteen fourth scenes. Although there are 16 different permutations, the play is split into eight distinct plays, each of which has an alternate ending. 'The female character makes a decision in the first few lines of the play and from that two quite different scenes develop. The play is about those tiny decisions we all make in our lives that lead to bigger consequences. It's a huge concept and is very difficult as there are just two actors playing a total of ten roles. All the characters are very different and it is a feat of memory for the actors to learn about 16 to 17 hours worth of dialogue. After a production like this you don't have a nerve in your body because it can't get any worse!' said Ayckbourn in an interview with Scarborough Evening News, January 4, 2006. Intimate Exchanges is rarely performed featuring all 16 storylines due to the inherent challenges of navigating the quick-changes necessary to keep the momentum of the play, not to mention the need for two actors capable of convincingly playing multiple characters-all with different dialects, looks, ages and emotional states, and often occupying disparate physical spaces. ACT will stage two possible story lines, each with two possible endings for a total of four different plays. Four set scenarios are being designed, along with 24 costumes showcased in more than 30 changes averaging 30-seconds each! All carried out by a master team of dressers and the stellar acting talents of Owen and Wright. 'It's a great challenge for the director and actors because it needs to move speedily and with nuance,' concluded Beattie. Audiences will have an opportunity to see all four versions based on a pre-determined schedule (see below) which will be made available online and in the lobby space. Director Kurt Beattie, the cast and production team members are available for interviews. Pre-production photos will be available by August 1. To learn more about the playwright, visit Alan Ayckbourn's official website: www.alanayckbourn.net. For more information about ACT's production or to arrange interviews, please contact Jacquelyn Rardin at (206) 292-7660 ext. 1327 or jacquelyn.rardin@acttheatre.org.

Anything can happen and will in ACT - A Contemporary Theatre's production of the brilliantly constructed social comedy Intimate Exchanges by Alan Ayckbourn, August 15-September 14.

ACT-A Contemporary Theatre announces a stellar line-up of local talent performing in the remaining three shows of its 2008 season.

Jeff Stetizer directs Village Theatre's fresh production of a stale show with a near-perfect cast.