Providence, RI — Starting in October, Brown University Theatre will open its 2016–17 season with By The Way, Meet Vera Stark by Lynn Nottage ’86. Directed by Kym Moore, this satirical comedy is set in the Hollywood of the glamorous 1930s, the revolutionary 1970s, and the present day. Playing off screwball comedies, the show tells the story of Vera Stark, a black actor of the 1930s who finds unexpected fame but struggles to break free of the Hollywood studio system. By The Way, Meet Vera Stark runs September 29 to October 2 and October 6 to 9 in Leeds Theatre.
The Family Weekend Dance Concert, produced by Sydney Skybetter, presents a weekend of new choreography and familiar favorites. This year's concert features the Brown Dance Extension performing Repertory Etudes by David Parsons and Robert Battle, as well as a new work by Brown dance alumna, Nadia Hannan '13. The concert also includes a choreographic collaboration by New Works/World Traditions and RawKin RhythMix, as well as a contemporary West African ballet performed by New Works/World Traditions to a live Mande djembe drumming. The concert runs October 21 through 23 in the intimate Ashamu Dance Studio in Lyman Hall. The studio offers both traditional theatre seating and floor cushions for an even closer (and cheaper) view of the action.
In November, director Spencer Golub presents The Love Song of J. Robert Oppenheimer by Carson Kreitzer. The play follows the life of Oppenheimer, the head scientist working to develop the atomic bomb for the USA. What drives a person to create such a device? And what happens when scientific impulse meets military pragmatism? The Love Song of J. Robert Oppenheimer run November 3 to 6 and 10 to 13 in Stuart Theatre.
Featuring new work that evolves out of the Family Weekend Dance Concert, Brown University Theatre presents its annual Fall Dance Concert, produced by Michelle Bach-Coulibaly, Sydney Skybetter, and Julie Adams Strandberg. Performances run from November 17 to 20 and will be held in Ashamu Dance Studio.
Closing out the fall semester, the annual senior slot show this year is Hecuba, written by Marina Carr and directed by Sienna Vann ’17. The senior slot show is proposed and directed by a Brown undergraduate senior student. This modern re-telling of the Greek tragedy runs in Leeds Theatre from December 1 through 4.
Brown Theatre welcomes in the spring with a production of Lin-Manuel Miranda’s hit musical, In The Heights. Set largely in the Latinx community of Washington Heights, New York, this show was the blockbuster Broadway hit of 2008. In the heat of summer, the future of the community rests in the balance and a hidden winning lottery ticket could change everyone’s lives forever. In The Heights music and lyrics by Lin-Manuel Miranda; book by Quiara Alegría Hudes ’04 MFA; conceived by Lin-Manuel Miranda; and directed by Sarah dAngelo. The show runs March 2 through 5 and 9 through 12 in Stuart Theatre.
The 2016–17 season continues in April with Invasion! by Jonas Hassen Khemiri, translated by Rachel Wilson Broyles, and directed by Ashley Teague ’17 MFA. Deconstructing how the West constructs the Arabic male identity, the play takes a sharp and highly-crafted swipe at the prejudice and ignorance in our perceptions of the Middle East. Invasion! runs April 6 though 9 and 13 through 16 in Leeds Theatre.
Closing out the season, the Festival of Dance, produced by Julie Adams Strandberg, presents a program of assorted choreography from the contemporary to the classic. The concert runs from May 4 to 7 in Stuart Theatre. This is swiftly followed by a celebration of the creative work of the department’s dance students in the Commencement Dance Concert at 7pm on May 27 in Stuart Theatre, produced by Michelle Bach-Coulibaly.
Brown University Theatre’s 2016–17 season performances are produced by the Brown University Department of Theatre Arts and Performance Studies and by Sock & Buskin, the student-staff-faculty board that selects and runs the mainstage theatre season at Brown University. Performances usually take place Thursday through Saturday at 8pm and 2pm on Sundays. Tickets are $15 (adults) / $12 (seniors) / $7 (students). For more information visit brown.edu/theatre.
To book tickets, call (401) 863-2838, or visit the Box Office in the Leeds Theatre Lobby (83 Waterman Street, Providence, RI 02912), Tuesday–Friday from 12–4pm during the semester, or email boxoffice@brown.edu. To book online, visit: brown.edu/tickets.
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If you have any questions or to schedule an interview with the Chair of the department or production directors, please contact:
Paul Margrave, Marketing Coordinator
(401) 863-2730 / paul_margrave@brown.edu / brown.edu/theatre