FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 15, 2004
SAINT
JOHN THEATRE COMPANY'S SECOND STAGE DELVES INTO
OBSESSION!
To some, the Saint John Theatre Company:
Second Stage will seem a little obsessive over the next few
weeks. The collective will be presenting "Obsession: A Series
of One-Act Plays" at the New Brunswick Museum on Friday, April 30th
and Saturday, May 1st. Each of the four productions will explore a
uniquely different aspect of fixations, compulsions, addictions,
passions and infatuations.
"We have a neurotic family,
two alcoholics, two fishermen and a shame-filled coconut caresser,"
says John Mazerolle, director of the play "Trout". "In other words,
the usual variety you'd expect from a series of one-act
plays."
In "Trout", written by William R. Lewis, two
older gentlemen cast aside the day's work and go fishing.
According to Mazerolle, the play offers an array of funny,
thoughtful and poignant moments yet also manages to be fast-paced
and lyrical all at once. Featuring Bob Vienneau and Gilbert
Boyce, Mazerolle is proud of his cast's efforts to
date.
"They work so hard and practice so much when I'm
not around... I have the uneasy suspicion that if I told them to put
on gills and drown themselves to understand what it's truly like to
be a trout, they just might do it," he jokes.
In terms
of working with an eager cast, Dan Culberson agrees. He'll be
directing "Penguin Blues", a short one-act play by Ethan Phillips
("Neelix" of "Star Trek: Voyager" fame) about two characters coming
to grips with their alcoholism.
"Rehearsals have been
fantastic so far," says Culberson. "I have the honour and privilege
of working with a couple of actors (Tim O'Brien and playwright Bet
O'Toole) who've done this before and are very dedicated to bringing
their own interpretations and 'homework' to the
rehearsals."
"Obsession" progresses Second Stage's
reputation for staging entertaining and intriguing evenings of
one-act plays. And there have been many of them for audiences to
enjoy. By this May, the organization will have mounted 24 plays over
the last three years.
"We've certainly come a long way
in a short time," says Second Stage chair Jay Rawding, who will be
directing the other two plays. "The wonderful support we've received
from the theatre company and the community at large has helped us to
grow more and learn more with each subsequent
production."
With "Coconut", written by Dan Culberson,
and "Any Time But Now", by John Mazerolle, the organization
continues one of its main objectives, which is to foster the
development of local writers. The first play depicts a husband and
father who would rather touch a coconut than get a job, while the
second depicts a husband and father who would rather listen to his
old record collection than come to terms with his fractured family
and his looming mid-life crisis.
Featured in these two
shows are Brian Taylor, Julie Assaff, and Dee Stubbs ("Coconut");
Mark Driscoll, Willow Edwards, Ryan Gilbert, and Jessica Larsen
("Any Time But Now").
The plays will be staged Friday,
April 30th and Saturday, May 1st at 8:00 p.m. Tickets are $10.00 and
are available in advance beginning Monday, April 19th at the New
Brunswick Museum lobby or at the
door.
-30-