Past Productions:

The New York Premiere of

RITTER, DENE, VOSS
by Thomas Bernhard
September 23 - October 10, 2010 in New York
La MaMa E.T.C.

The acclaimed production comes to New York…!

“A breathless Beckettian farce… intensely mannered and exquisitely controlled.”
(Eye Weekly Toronto)

OFFICIAL MEDIA RELEASE

FACEBOOK EVENT PAGE

September 23 - October 10, 2010
Thur - Sat 7:30pm | Sun 2:30pm

La MaMa E.T.C.
first floor theatre
74A East 4th Street NY NY 10003
(See map to theatre)

Tickets $TBA | $TBA student senior artist

Tickets & info:
212-475-7710, www.LaMaMa.org
or in person at the box office (74 E 4th Street NYC)
Advance tickets recommended

Directed by Adam Seelig
Featuring Shannon Perreault, Maev Beaty & Jordan Pettle
Sets & Costumes by Jackie Chau (NY installation by Nathan Heverin)
Lighting Design by Kate McKay (NY installation by Raquel Davis)
Translation by Kenneth Northcott & Peter Jansen
Music by Ludwig van Beethoven


SYNOPSIS

Ritter, Dene, Voss involves the Worringer sisters —both Viennese actresses— preparing for their brother’s return from the Steinhof mental institution in Vienna, where he has been a patient for some time. Dene is the driving force behind an attempt at reintegrating him into family life while Ritter remains skeptical. When Voss, a tormented genius (loosely based on last century’s great, idiosyncratic philosopher, Ludwig Wittgenstein), finally appears, it becomes clear that he never planned to stay for good. The play takes place before, during, and after lunch, unfolding through caustic dialogue in this ‘misanthropic comedy.’

THOMAS BERNHARD
(1931-1989)

Famous for his ranting style, Thomas Bernhard is widely regarded as one of the most provocative writers of the 20th-century. His plays, which explore social power dynamics, combine the angst of Samuel Beckett with the absurdist comedy of Eugène Ionesco.

Bernhard was born in Holland in 1931 but grew up in Austria. A chronic lung disorder in 1948 led to his confinement in a sanitarium until 1951. In 1952 he enrolled in the Akademie Mozarteum in Salzburg in 1952 to pursue his interest in music and theatre, and graduated in 1957 with a thesis on Antonin Artaud and Bertolt Brecht. In 1965 Bernhard made his home on a farm in upper Austria where he lived reclusively until his death in 1989. He was the recipient of many international awards, including the prestigious Georg Büchner Prize.

Bernhard’s many plays include Histrionics, Eve of Retirement, and The Force of Habit. One of his most celebrated novels, The Loser (1983), involves the iconic Canadian pianist Glenn Gould.

PRODUCTION HISTORY

One Little Goat presented the English-language world premiere of Ritter, Dene, Voss in Toronto in 2006. Hailed by The Canadian Theatre Review as “flawless,” the production toured to Chicago’s Trap Door Theatre in December 2007, where Newcity Chicago ranked it as its #1 production. The play was first performed in German by Ilse Ritter, Kirsten Dene and Gert Voss at the Salzburg festival in 1986. It went on to be performed with the original cast at the Burgtheater in Vienna every two years for the next ten years.


 

The World Premiere of

TALKING MASKS
a play by ADAM SEELIG

“Riffs on Sophocles’ biggest hit... ****!”
(Brian Joseph Davis, EYE Weekly)

OFFICIAL PRESS RELEASE

FACEBOOK EVENT PAGE

November 13 - 28, 2009
Tue – Sat 8pm

Walmer Centre Theatre
188 Lowther Ave, 1 block NW of Bloor & Spadina
(See map to theatre)

Tickets $20 . $12 student senior artist - add $3 final week (Tue pwyc)

Book early and get a free copy of the published play!

Tickets & info:
416-915-0201

(no service fees!)
Advance tickets recommended
(or "first-come, first-served" tickets at the door on the night of performance)

TALKING MASKS

Featuring Richard Harte, Jane Miller, Andrew Moodie, Cathy Muprhy
Written & Directed by Adam Seelig
Set & Costumes Jackie Chau
Lighting Laird MacDonald
Projections Jason Brown
Sound Christopher Stanton
Stage Management Wendy Lee
Production Assistant Ruthie Pytka-Jones

"Talking Masks (Oedipussy)" involves a son, two mothers and an absent father who, in exploring the intertwined fates of their family, fuse two of the world’s most enduring myths: the tragedy of Oedipus, and the harrowing tale of half-brothers Isaac and Ishmael. What unfolds is a wild progression of rapid-fire interactions that expose as much as they mask about the “charactors”.

Adam Seelig is a poet, playwright, stage director, and the founder of One Little Goat Theatre Company. Born and raised in Vancouver, Seelig has also lived in Northern California, New York and Jerusalem. He is the recipient of a Commonwealth Fellowship for his work on Samuel Beckett’s manuscripts. In addition to Talking Masks (now published by BookThug), Seelig's plays include Antigone:Insurgency (Toronto 2007) and All Is Almost Still (New York 2004).


The English Canadian Premiere of

SOMEONE IS GOING TO COME
a play by JON FOSSE

“one of the most provocative pens in contemporary theatre”
(Globe & Mail)
translated from the Norwegian by Harry Lane & Adam Seelig

OFFICIAL PRESS RELEASE

March 13 - 29, 2009
Tue – Sat 8pm, Sun PWYC 2pm

Walmer Centre Theatre
188 Lowther Ave, 1 block NW of Bloor & Spadina
(See map to theatre)

Tickets $20 . $12 student senior artist - add $3 final week

Tickets & info:
416-915-0201

(no service fees!)
Advance tickets recommended
(or "first-come, first-served" tickets at the door on the night of performance)


PRAISE FOR ANTIGONE!

NOW! Magazine (four stars)
EYE Weekly (lead preview)
YourGreekNews.com (web TV preview)

Sets & Costumes by Jackie Chau
Lighting Design by Kate McKay
Sound Design by Kathy Zaborsky (2007 Dora nominee)
Stage Manager, Liz Air

OFFICIAL PRESS RELEASE

November 9 – 25, 2007
Tue – Sat 8pm, Sun PWYC 2pm

Walmer Centre Theatre
188 Lowther Ave, 1 block NW of Bloor & Spadina
(See map to theatre)

Tickets $20 . $10 student senior artist . add $2 final week

Tickets & info:
416-915-0201

(no service fees!)
Advance tickets recommended
(or "first-come, first-served" tickets at the door on the night of performance)



RITTER, DENE, VOSS
a play by THOMAS BERNHARD

Toronto 2006 - Chicago 2007

The press is raving about Ritter, Dene, Voss:

Newcity Chicago's #1 production
Now Magazine, Critic's Pick
Eye Weekly, Four Stars!
Classical 96.3 FM
Stage and Page
Stage Door

English language world premiere!

Alchemy Theatre
133 Tecumseth St (near Queen & Bathurst) Toronto

Advance tickets recommended
Call 416.915.0201

NO SERVICE CHARGE


(or "first-come, first-served" tickets at the door on the night of performance)

Directed by Adam Seelig
Featuring Shannon Perreault, Maev Beaty & Greg Thomas
Sets & Costumes by Jackie Chau
Video Design by Ben Chaisson (2006 Dora nominee)
Lighting Design by Kate McKay
Production Manager, Sandi Becker
Translation, K Northcott & P Jansen
Music by Ludwig van Beethoven

A razor-sharp ‘misanthropic comedy’ by the provocative Austrian playwright and novelist, Thomas Bernhard (1931-89), involving two sisters and their volatile brother (loosely based on last century’s great philosopher, Ludwig Wittgenstein). Presented by Toronto’s rising new theatre company, One Little Goat. (More...)




 

...TOWARDS A POETIC THEATRE...