Providence, RI – Anne Washburn’s popular tale of the re-invention of The Simpsons in a post-apocalyptic future comes to Brown University Theatre this April, directed by Connie Crawford in the intimate setting of Leeds Theatre.
Since its premiere at the Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company in Washington D.C, in 2012, Mr. Burns, a post-electric play has been delighting audiences with its unique storytelling structure. The show looks at what happens to stories as they get retold across time and generations. By the end of this show, we see an opera based on a play, based on a conversation, remembering an episode of The Simpsons, based on the remake of the classic film, Cape Fear.
The play examines how we use stories to rebuild our lives when the world changes suddenly and catastrophically. Set in a murky future where electricity has failed and society has crumbled, a group of survivors pass the time by recalling their favorite episodes of The Simpsons. Cut to a few years later and these fire-side conversations have become a touring theatre show based on the most loved—and best remembered—episodes. By the end of Washburn’s story, we are deep in the future where larger than life characters based on half-remembered versions of these same tales have become myths stored deep in the history and imagination of the people.
Director Connie Crawford says:
Mr. Burns is a wild ride, for both the audience and the performers. The joys and struggles of creating theatre bring us together in rehearsal, in performance, and, in the world of the show, in a treacherous landscape.
At Brown, our small ensemble of 8 actors portray 18 different characters. These versatile young actors sing, dance, fight, and act in a variety of performance styles from opera and melodrama, to sketch comedy and realism.
Washburn suggests that retelling beloved stories can heal the human spirit. Retelling is not always easy, especially in a post-electric world with no TV, no radio, and no internet. In Mr. Burns, the characters create new family through retelling and performing episodes of The Simpsons. These shared memories morph through performance to build new culture from the ashes of one destroyed.
Mr. Burns, a post-electric play is produced by the Brown University Department of Theatre Arts and Performance Studies and by Sock & Buskin, the student-faculty-staff board that selects and runs the mainstage theatre season at Brown University. The show runs selected dates from April 7-18. Performances are at 8pm on April 7-9, 13, 14 and 18. Sunday matinees at 2pm on April 10 and 17. Tickets: $15 ($12 seniors, $7 students). Brown University first year and transfer students go free on Thursdays.
For ticket sales and more information: call (401) 863-2838, or visit the Box Office in the Leeds Theatre Lobby (83 Waterman St, Providence), Tuesday-Friday from 12pm-4pm, or email boxoffice@brown.edu. To book online, visit: brown.edu/tickets. More information on the Brown Theatre performance season available at: brown.edu/theatre.
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If you have any questions or to schedule an interview with the director or the cast, please contact:
Paul Margrave, Marketing Coordinator
(401) 863-2730 / paul_margrave@brown.edu / brown.edu/theatre