THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING EARNEST Opens The Gamm's 33rd Season

The Sandra Feinstein-Gamm Theatre (The Gamm) opens it 2017-18 season with Oscar Wilde's masterpiece The Importance of Being Earnest, a Trivial Comedy for Serious People. FrEd Sullivan, Jr. directs this hilarious critique of late Victorian society, featuring Jeff Church (Septimus Hodge in Arcadia) and Marc Dante Mancini (Bobby in American Buffalo) as bachelors Jack Worthing and Algy Moncrieff who share alter egos named Ernest. Wilde's last and most enduringly popular play promises to astonish audiences with its scathingly witty dialogue, delightfully absurd plot twists, and unforgettable characters.

"Earnest is theatrical perfection and its subtitle, 'A Trivial Comedy for Serious People,' is perfect for Gamm audiences. We are excited to kick off Season 33 with Wilde's masterpiece. Ironically it was premiering in London's West End in 1895 as the author's life was falling apart around him. Convicted of 'unnatural crimes,' which is to say homosexuality, Wilde was sentenced to two years of hard labor in Reading Gaol, never to write another play," said Gamm Artistic Director Tony Estrella.

"We began last season with Tom Stoppard's Arcadia and for Earnest we are bringing back much of the team who made that production such a success," Estrella continued. "Fred is directing an incredible cast including BranDon Whitehead, who played Ezra Chater in Arcadia, as Wilde finding his way into his own creation. It promises to be unlike any Earnest before it."

The Importance of Being Earnest runs from September 14-October 15 at The Gamm Theatre, 172 Exchange St., Pawtucket, RI. Tickets are $44,$52 and $60; preview performances (September 14-17) are $33. Call 401-723-4266 or order online at gammtheatre.org.

ABOUT THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING EARNEST

A farcical masterpiece with rapid-fire wit and eccentric characters, The Importance of Being Earnest is Wilde's last and most celebrated play. In late Victorian London, companions-in-cavorting Jack Worthing and Algernon "Algy" Moncrieff have fallen in love with two ladies who have their hearts set on marrying a man named Ernest. In pursuit of romance, both men concoct an elaborate deception. When Algy's aunt, the formidable Lady Bracknell, starts sleuthing about for the truth, an outlandish surprise is revealed. Wilde's buoyant comedy of manners will keep you anticipating a fresh twist of plot from one moment to the next.