Wednesday, May 31, 2006
One-woman show debuts at The New Harmony Theatre
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The New Harmony Theatre’s artistic director, Scott LaFeber, likes a challenge. He opens the 2006 season on June 9 with the theatre’s first one-woman show. Jane Wagner’s The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe features one actress playing 12 roles in a single evening of theatre. LaFeber counts himself lucky to welcome back New Harmony Theatre favorite Jenn Thompson to tackle this “performance of a lifetime.” The Tony Award-winning comedy runs through June 25 at Murphy Auditorium in New Harmony. Wagner is an Emmy Award-winning writer and long-time collaborator with Lily Tomlin, for whom she wrote The Search for Signs. In 1986 when the play first opened on Broadway, Tomlin won the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play. When the play returned to Broadway in 2001, it won the Tony for Best Revival of a Play. While the play features many characters, it centers on the experiences of Trudy, a New York bag lady who tries to help aliens better understand humankind. According to LaFeber, this whimsical premise allows Wagner to combine arch social commentary with brilliant humor. The Washington Post called The Search a “hilarious saga of dreams collapsing, good intentions souring, and bandwagons careening off-track…a chronicle of the human heart trying to mend its bruises and ease its disappointments.” New Harmony Theatre audiences may remember Thompson as Sylvia the dog in The New Harmony Theatre’s 2004 production of Sylvia. She played Alma in Eccentricities of a Nightingale and the title role in Anna Christie, all at The New Harmony Theatre. Thompson said she is happy to be working at The New Harmony Theatre again this summer. “It’s a special place,” she noted. Thompson’s acting credits include roles on Broadway (Tony Award-winning productions of Ah, Wilderness!, The Heiress and Annie), in regional theatres around the country, and in television and film. LaFeber and Thompson rehearse six days a week for this unique production, and Thompson is working to memorize the 50-page script. When she isn’t rehearsing, she looks forward to welcoming her family to southern Indiana. Thompson’s parents, also professional actors, will “tread the boards” at Murphy Auditorium as John and Nettie Cleary in the second show of the season, The Subject Was Roses. The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe runs June 9–25 at Murphy Auditorium. Performances are Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m., Sundays at 2 p.m., and Thursdays at 7:30 p.m. There is one Saturday matinee at 2 p.m. on June 24. Subscriptions and single tickets for all performances at The New Harmony Theatre are on sale now. Subscriptions are $55 for adults and $50 for seniors (60 and over). Single tickets are $22 for adults, $20 for seniors, and $10 for anyone 25 or younger. To purchase tickets, call the box office at 1-877-NHT-SHOW or visit wwww.newharmonytheatre.com. The New Harmony Theatre is a professional Equity theatre produced by the University of Southern Indiana. All plays are performed at Murphy Auditorium at 419 Tavern Street in New Harmony. Box office hours are noon until show time on performance days; noon until 5 p.m. when there is no performance. The box office is closed on Tuesdays. |
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