Curio Theatre's NOISES OFF to Open May 8

Curio Theatre Company finishes its 10th Anniversary Season with Michael Frayn's hilarious theatre satire, Noises Off. The show runs April 30-May 30. Performances are Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays, at 8 p.m. Opening Night is Friday, May 8 at 8 p.m. The show will be performed at Curio's home space at the Calvary Center for Culture and Community, 4740 Baltimore Avenue. Tickets cost $15-$25 and are available online at www.curiotheatre.org or by phone at 215-525-1350.

Noises Off, Michael Frayn's uproarious play within a play follows the on-and off-stage antics of the members of a mediocre touring company as they blunder from an ominously bad dress rehearsal to a spectacularly disastrous performance.

This 1982 play came about in the 70s when Frayn was watching from the wings a performance of The Two of Us, a farce that he had written for Lynn Redgrave. He said, "It was funnier from behind than in front, and I thought that one day I must write a farce from behind." The prototype, a short-lived one-act play called Exits, was written and performed in 1977. At the request of his associate, Michael Codron, Frayn expanded this into what would become Noises Off. It takes its title from the theatrical stage direction indicating sounds coming from offstage.

Curio is giving away a chance to win two season passes to next season to anyone who attends opening night dressed 80s style. The show is directed by Peter Reynolds, who is directing at Curio for the first time. The cast includes Kyra Baker as Belinda Blair as Flavia Brent, Newton Buchanan as Lloyd Dallas, Steve Carpenter as Tim Allgood, Andrew J. Carroll- as Garry Lejeune as Roger Tramplemain, Isabella Fehlandt as Brooke Ashton as Vicki, Rachel Gluck as Poppy Norton-Taylor, Aetna Gallagher as Dotty Otely as Mrs.Clackett, Doug Greene as Frederick Fellowes as Philp Brent and Sheikh, and Len Kelly as Selsdon Mowbray as Burglar.

The Set Designer is Curio Artistic Director Paul Kuhn. Tim Martin is the Lighting Designer. Aetna Gallagher is the Costume Designer. Kathleen Soltan is the Stage Manager.

Curio Theatre Company's mission is to serve audiences in West Philadelphia and beyond with high quality, affordable theatre performances; to develop artistic talent through ensemble, company-based training and rehearsal processes; and to further academic, social, and personal development through arts education. The artistic and the educational arms of the theatre company are intertwined as we make our home in the diverse community of West Philadelphia. Curio Theatre Company is a 501(c)3 non-profit company based in West Philadelphia. We are currently approaching our 10th season of plays, and 10th year of theatre school operation. The Company was founded by professional artists and administrators who met at the Hedgerow Theatre in Rose Valley, PA, over the past 15 years and incorporated as a non-profit organization in October 2004. After touring locally and internationally for several years, the Company began a search for a permanent home. In January 2005, Curio Theatre Company joined in partnership with the Calvary Center for Culture and Community at 4740 Baltimore Avenue, Philadelphia. This partnership provides Curio with a performance venue and classrooms within the Calvary Center as well as office space and company housing in the adjacent parish house. In return Curio is assisting the Calvary Center in creating a professional Performing Arts Venue in the heart of West Philadelphia.

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