Bedlam Theatre

***** SET A *****

Today is the Last Beautiful Day Until Tomorrow

Written and Directed by Molly Van Avery – In collaboration with and starring Maren Ward

A nerdy alien archeologist sends itself to earth to search through our remains in hopes of figuring out human behavior. Using humor and vivid language, this show is a curious attempt to celebrate our existence through imagining the end of it.

Cirkus Kalashnikov

A Bulgarian circus tale by Aditi Kapil, Directed by Christopher Kehoe

An immigrated former Bulgarian ringmaster, who now drives a subway train, has a karmic tendency to kill people. From the upcoming full-length play Agnes Under the Big Top.

Brenda McIntire, CEO

Smart performance art  by Paige Collette

Brenda McIntire began her career in the porn industry, but now she runs one of the largest print and copy corporations in the world.  Her obsessions include sex, sadness, and Diet Coke, and today at a university career forum, she gets cozy with the business leaders of tomorrow.

Terror-less

Cedar-Riverside youth take on security stereotypes

Created by Sharmarke Farah with John Bueche

Directed by John Francis Bueche and Christopher Allen

Can you profile fear and ignorance? Security check points and pre-conceived notions are not very good at detecting the hope, power and good intentions that hide inside our humanity.  Created by Cedar-Riverside teens and Bedlam artists, “Terror-less” contrasts the stereotypes of Homeland Security to our common interests in home, land and security.

Since 2006 Bedlam has been running CRAZY (Cedar-Riverside Art Zone for Youth) as a venue of expression and access to Bedlam programming for neighborhood youth. Sharmarke Farah has been involved in CRAZY for the past three years and has found particular success in the spoken word and improv genre.

A Dry Spell

A multimedia meditation Written and performed by Ronnell A. Wheeler

Echoes of the past flood the meory of meteorologist Gabriel Daniels as he delivers the weather forecast submerged in a barrel of water. His photjournalist and lover, Piesces, tries to maintain an objective point of view as Gabriel draws him into a romp down memory latne. They must reconcile their differences in order to break the dry spell.

Death of a Bee Keeper

by Soozin Hirschmugl

Local puppeteer and performance artist Soozin Hirschmugl in collaboration with the ensemble  present a multimedia intrepertation of the The Death of the Beekeeper, texts by Lars Gustafsson. The ten-minute production features veiled beekeeping dances, live animation, and bee-related soundscapes.

PERFORMANCES:
Apr 16, 2010 7:00 PM
Apr 17, 2010 9:00 PM
Apr 18, 2010 3:00 PM
Apr 22, 2010 9:00 PM
Apr 24, 2010 7:00 PM
Apr 25, 2010 5:00 PM

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***** SET B *****

4 Short Plays About Torture

written by Dominic Orlando, directed by Brian Balcom

A new Army recruit thinks he knows the difference between right and wrong, but as the conflict deepens, the line becomes less clear. Will his values change or will be abandon them all together? Which is worth more: God, Country, or Self?

Sheer

A physically driven romp by Lelis Brito

Sheer is a multidisciplinary work investigating the states of excitement, fear, and joy, and the confusing terrain between them.  Developed with an ensemble of over 8 performers, the idiosyncratic material evolves from the stories that emerge from people’s bodies. Physically intense, the performers find their capacity for sheer joy, sheer excitement, sheer fear, at the sheer cliff of perception.

Bootleggers

A hip hop monologue in three by Reggie Edmund

A rhythmic play examining the decline of the entertainment industry, destruction of the Amercian dream, and entre-po-negroism.

Coffee with an Alien

An intergalactic fairy tale by Kait Sergenian and Alberta Mirais

At first, the unexpected visitor was only in her mind.  But then, as the stranger sat and sipped from the steaming cup of coffee in the dark night kitchen, Louise realized that her guest was quite real, and very, very interesting…

Gut Wrenched and Rising or This Means You’re Gay Now

A circus-influenced ensemble performance about the joys and dangers of being transgendered Created by Walken Schweigert, Directed by Sofi Shank

This performance explores the experiences of transgendered people, showing how they can be both empowering and dangerous. We are a cast of transgendered actors, using material from our own lives to create a show that is visually compelling, physically engaging for the actors involved, and politically stimulating.

The Loneliest Astronaut

An existential comedy about space camp by Ben Egerman

Comedic writer & director Ben Egerman and an incredibly sexy ensemble of god-like theatre Wizards defy gravity and sanity in a piece that explores what happens when illusions are shattered, when dreams die, and when it all happens at Space Camp. Hear the voices of 10-year old Space Campers in a piece that mixes movement-based and documentary (or mockumentary) theatre styles, with a generous serving of sci-fi kitch and existentialist philosophy added in for good measure.  If you aren’t moved by this play, you’re probably dead on the inside.

Gretchen/Faust

Directed by David Hanzal

Performed by Julie Kurtz and Laura Lechner

Costumed by Megan Wannarka

Created by the ensemble and inspired by the music of Boito, Schubert, Gounod, Stein & others

Faust’s abandoned love journeys in search of the soul. A re-imagination of opera, featuring Julie Kurtz (Susanna in Theatre de la Jeune Lune’s Figaro), co-created with David Hanzal, Laura Lechner, and Megan Wannarka.

PERFORMANCES:
Apr 16, 2010 9:00 PM
Apr 17, 2010 5:00 PM
Apr 18, 2010 7:00 PM
Apr 23, 2010 7:00 PM
Apr 24, 2010 9:00 PM
Apr 25, 2010 3:00 PM

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***** SET C *****

Wingman,

A new play where the audience becomes the performance written by Eric “Pogi” Sumangil, directed by Jess Finney

Every guy has the Iceman to his Maverick: the buddy that talks you up in front of the girl at the bar, or hangs out with her friend so you can get your flirt on one-on-one.  The relationship between Man and Wingman is one of trust, honor, and duty.  So, men, choose your Wingman wisely. Or…a commentary on how we’re always being watched, like, in our society. Voyeurism and shit.

Walk It Off

An athletic comedy created by Jon Mac Cole and Tom Lloyd

About a community ed. volleyball league for singles Six individuals search for connection within a competition courting gon the court has never been this awkward. Bump, set, romance?

String Theory

a theatrical poem by Stephen Schutzman, directed by Cherie Anderson

This play examines the mutli-dimensional relevance of nouns, and the gravitational pull of verbs.  We’ll be expecting lunch.

Identity Crisis: My Unconventional Pathway To Homelessness

A semi-autobiographical spoken word theater piece Created and performed by Corey Walton Directed by Brian Grandison

A spoken-word glimpse of Corey Walton’s upcoming one-man show of the same title.  Through the lens of one-man’s life, this piece dispels the notion that homelessness is exclusively a social-economic issue.  This semi-autobiographical story taps the unexplored connection between character issues and homelessness.

Two Guys Just Standing There Looking at Each Other and Maybe Pulling Things Out of Bags. And There’s a Timekeeper

An experiment in task-based improvisation by Jason Ballweber and George McConnell

Jason Ballweber (local theatre favorite and member of Four Humors) and George McConnell (the other guy) will stand there looking at each other for ten minutes. They will each have a bag of things. They might pull things out of their bags as they stand there, just looking at each other. And there’s a timekeeper.

Halfway to Paradise,

A poetic drama written by Carson Kreitzer, directed by Jen Elwood

HALFWAY TO PARADISE is inspired by the shootings in an Amish schoolhouse in Lancaster County, PA on October 2, 2006. A girl’s life hangs in the balance; a nurse weighs bitter fury and hope. The play takes place between a harsh, irrational reality and a delicate, poetic memory.

Long Day’s Journey into Puss

A lip synch drag experience created and performed by Jeffry Lusiak

Former Artistic Director of Outward Spiral Theatre creates and performs a one woman drag extravaganza that takes heroine Puss Puss on an epic journey in search of true love.

PERFORMANCES
Apr 17, 2010 7:00 PM
Apr 18, 2010 5:00 PM
Apr 22, 2010 7:00 PM
Apr 23, 2010 9:00 PM
Apr 24, 2010 5:00 PM
Apr 25, 2010 7:00 PM

Buy tickets!