French Playwright Dominates Valley Theater This Season

It's not often that one playwright gets so much stage time in a single season, let alone in a single locale. This season, though, three VAlley Theatre companies will present four of Yasmina Reza's most recognized plays: Life X 3, God of Carnage, The Unexpected Man and ART.

A French actress turned accomplished playwright, Reza is known for her wit, intelligent language, Parisian sophistication and straightforward simplicity. She is the recipient of numerous awards, including three Molieres, two Laurence Oliviers and two Tonys. With her plays now being translated and performed in 35 languages, it's no surprise her works are landing in quadruplicate on Valley stages.

The Valley's "Reza-thon" begins with Life X 3 at Theatre Artists Studio October 14-30. The play presents three versions of two couples trying to make a success of one evening. Hubert and Inez arrive a day early for a dinner party at the Parisian home of Henry and Sonia. Their premature arrival, along with one precocious six-year old, ignites the tempers of this explosive evening. Over an improvised meal of chocolate fingers, Cheez-Its and white wine, the couples trade acidic insults on every social and professional level. But alter the mood to this defective dinner party and the dynamics change as boldly as a glass of French Sancerre!

"It's not very often we get the opportunity to re-shape the events of an evening, especially when the stakes are so high," said Dominik Rebilas, who is directing Life X 3 for The Studio. "That's why this play is so intriguing to me, both as an actor and as a director. Every night before an audience, the characters re-invent themselves in triplicate. Three times they fight to find placement within themselves, each other and with the universe. Are they successful? You'll have to come and see."

This funny, intelligent and edgy play examines our connections with each other, ourselves and the cosmos, or proves how truly disconnected we are. It features the talents of Scott Hyder (Hubert), Drea Pruseau (Inez), Andrea Dovner (Sonia) and Dominik Rebilas (Henry).

The Studio's second Reza piece is The Unexpected Man. While traveling on a train, a woman ends up sitting next to an author she admires. What will she do? Will she speak to him? Will she take out and read her copy of his book in hopes of grabbing his attention? Instead of launching into dialogue, the play takes us inside the travelers' minds, as they look for ways to break the ice and speak to one another. Reza beautifully captures the nervous energy of two strangers struggling to find a way to make conversation, and skillfully builds and reveals her characters before they are allowed to speak. Theatre Artists Studio will devote four months to the rehearsal process for The Unexpected Man, which runs February 10-26, 2012.

Other Valley presentations of Reza's work this season include God of Carnage, produced by Arizona Theatre Company in November, and Southwest Shakespeare Company's production of ART in March 2012.

Life X 3 runs from October 14 through October 30 at Theatre Artists Studio, 4848 E. Cactus Road, Suite 406, in Scottsdale, Arizona, just south of Cactus Road off of Paradise Village Parkway East. Show times are Friday and Saturday nights at 7:30 pm and Sundays at 2:00 pm.

Tickets are $20 for General Admission; $10 for Students 25 & Under and $15 for Groups of 10 or More, Seniors 65 & Over & Members of the Military (both active and retired). Tickets can be obtained by calling the box office at 602-765-0120 or online at: www.thestudiophx.org.

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