Theatre Companies
Charles Sturt University
Arabian Nights
Tales of Love, Lust, Hilarity & Sorrow
To kick off the University Theatre Ensemble's 2008 season is 'Arabian Nights' by Tony Award-winning playwright Mary Zimmerman. This acclaimed adaption weaves ancient tales of wonder into a rich and poetic testament to the transformational power of storytelling.
The world descends into darkness when King Shahryar finds his wife in the arms of her lover. Killing them both, he begins a regime of systematic murder.
Making a promise to teach all women a lesson and that he will never be betrayed again, Shahryar declares that every night he will marry, love and kill a virgin girl. For three years the citizens of Baghdad suffer his assault on their daughters. Until a young scholar named Scheherazade devises a plan to not only rescue herself and her sister but all daughters of Islam through her artful story telling.
Mary Zimmerman's 'Arabian Nights' takes lesser known folk tales from the collective surviving manuscripts from Persian, Indian and Arabian sources, 'One Thousand and One Nights' to weave a rich tapestry of myth, fable and morality play. Drawing analogies between ancient and contemporary society, Zimmerman's adaption highlights the social and cultural divides between people that continue to exist in our world communities.
'Arabian Nights' offers us a smorgasboard of storytelling devices - song, dance, choral speaking, slapstick, circus, word play, poetic metaphor, the erotic and bawdy - to charm, entertain and confront our sensibilities as an audience. The tales of Scheherazade are a testimony to the storyteller's capacity to articulate the human condition through the spoken word. Reminding us of the power of stories to reflect, influence and effect change in all of us.
Date - 30th May - 14th June, 2008 @ 8pm
Location - The Riverina Playhouse, Cross Street, Wagga Wagga
Written by - Mary Zimmerman
Directed by - Kerreen Ely-Harper
Performed by - 3rd year students BA(Acting for Screen & Stage)
Tickets - $22 adults, $20 groups, $18 concession, $11.50 concession
Bookings - Wagga Wagga Civic Theatre Booking Office or ph : (02) 6926 9688
In a Certain Kingdom, In a Certain Land : A Russian Fairy Tale
The University Theatre Ensemble is pleased to present for it's second Playhouse production for 2008 a premier of the play 'In a Certain Kingdom, In a Certain Land : A Russian Fairy Tale', by Kathleen Oien.
Kathleen Oien's 'In a Certain Kingdom, In a Certain Land : A Russian Fairy Tale' offers audience members of all ages the opportunity to see an original play based on traditional Russian fairy tales and folk tales. It brings together the many vibrant threads of Russian folk culture with a retelling of the stories of Vasilisa, the beautiful and courageous heroine, Prince Ivan, the bold hero, Baba Yaga, the great and terrible witch, and a host of other lively and commercial characters.
The play begins at a traditional Russian peasant wedding. With the arrival of the Narrator, a master storyteller who crashes the wedding in hopes of free food and drink, we enter the magical, mysterious, sometimes heroic and often hilarious world of Baba Yaga, who may decide to have you for supper, turn you into a toad, or take you in and look after you. We meet a jaunty little fox named Sasha who would rather get his supper by stealing it, and a bold falcon named Ilya, who sometimes flies into trees instead of around them. There is the Rusalka, a lovely woodland nymph who loves to play tricks on people, the disagreeable stepmother and her equally unpleasant daughters, just to name a few of the characters.
'In a Certain Kingdom, In a Certain Land : A Russian Fairy Tale has been lovingly designed by a dedicated group of artists, inspired by the illustrative artwork of Ivan Bilibin. The theatre will be transformed into an enchanted forest, where audience members are led to their seats by lantern light. The passion shared by the actors, directors and designers will coalesce to create a magical experience not to be missed. The production will provide audiences with a rare occasion to experience elements from a folk culture not well known in the West. This CSU production promises you an entertaining, accessible and culturally rich experience in the theatre.
'In a Certain Kingdom, In a Certain Land : A Russian Fairy Tale' will be highly enjoyable to students and teachers from early primary ages through secondary, providing them with a rare occasion to experience elements from a folk culture not well known in the West. UTE has scheduled performances especially for schools at a special price. Details of these performances can be obtained by phoning the School of Visual and Performing Arts at CSU on 69332473.
Date - 25th July - 3rd August, 2008 @ 7pm
Location - Riverina Playhouse, Cross Street, Wagga Wagga
Written by - Kathleen Oien
Directed by - Elisabeth Howe
Tickets - Adult $6.50, Family $23 (purchased at the door)
Bookings - Wagga Wagga Civic Theatre Booking Office or ph : (02) 6926 9688
Animal Farm
George Orwell's classic novel 'Animal Farm' is one of the greatest political works of modern literature and Peter Hall's adaption skilfully maintains Orwell's satiric flair and insight, combining humour, heart and savage truths as it reveals the processes by which some animals become more equal than others. A timely tale from one of the greatest writers of the twentieth century.
Through its third year actors, the University Theatre Ensemble is bringing to the stage Orwell's classic novel as adapted for the stage by famed British director Peter Hall.
While 'Animal Farm' was Orwell's response to his disillusionment with Communism, it speaks to any despotic form of government. The animals of Manor Farm overthrow their cruel human master and undertake to run the farm themselves. They form a collective, sharing all the work and all the food. The pigs, smartest of the animals, band together to provide leadership to the other animals. They preach solidarity above all, and defence against their human enemies takes priority above food and freedom. Slowly and subtly the pigs begin changing the rules to give themselves more power and privelages. Soon the rest of the animals are no better than they were under the humans--once again they are starving and near destitute.
This production of 'Animal Farm' will particularly offer teachers and students, as well as the general public, the opportunity to see a contemporary stage adaptation of this classic literary text. The play's themes, motifs and symbolism all particularly relevant to current English curriculum subject areas.
Teenagers are especially influenced by peer pressure. In exploring the skilful use of peer pressure used by the pigs to keep the other animals in line, the students can analyse their own lives and discover how peer pressure controls their actions.
Date - 23rd August - 6th September, 2008 @ 8pm
Location - Riverina Playhouse, Cross Street, Wagga Wagga
Written by - George Orwell
Adapted by - Peter Hall
Directed by - Steve Matthews
Tickets - $22 Adults, $20 Groups, $18 Concession, $11.50 Students
Bookings - Wagga Wagga Civic Theatre Booking Office or ph : (02) 6926 9688
The Tempest
Love, Tragedy & Comedy
The University Theatre Ensemble is proud to stage for it's last production for 2008, William Shakespeare's 'The Tempest'. A play that has delighted audiences for almost 400 years and is regarded as Shakespeare's last complete work, 'The Tempest' is described by The Royal Shakespeare Company as "Shakespeare's magical last play, his poignant farewell to the stage - has love, tragedy and comedy combined in equal measure".
Returning from a royal wedding in Tunis, the political rulers of Italy including the King Alonso and the heir to the throne, Ferdinand are shipwrecked on a strange Mediterranean island by a tempestuous storm. We soon learn that this tempest has been conjured by a vengeful Prospero, the former Duke of Milan, who was deposed in a political coup twelve years earlier by members of his political party.
Along with his three year old daughter Miranda, Prospero was put to sea in a small boat with little hope of survival. Presumed dead by those in Italy, they instead arrived at this island inhabited by spirits and shadows where Prospero, already well-versed in the art of magic, begins to refine and strengthen his powers. Assisted by Ariel, a spirit of nature rescued by Prospero from eternal entrapment, the deposed Duke begins his game of revenge reveals itself, Prospero chooses forgiveness over retribution and charts a course for calmer waters and a peaceful end to his journey.
'The Tempest' is directed by visiting lecturer, Peta Downes. Peta has worked as a producer, director, arts educator and performer. She has worked with the Bell Shakespeare Company as an associate director and educator, writing and directing three works for their Actors at Work program and conducting Shakespeare master-classes and workshops for the company across Australia. She has also worked as an actor trainer for Sydney's Actors Centre and Actors College of Theatre and Television.
Director Peta Downes says of the play "The Tempest was written by Shakespeare to be a sensory and theatrical experience. Centred on the ideas of love, the natural order of things, magical power and the spiritual world, 'The Tempest' is both a comedy and drama with easily recognisable characters that combine to represent the different sides of human nature. 'The Tempest' is when forces of nature conspire to right past wrongs and restore natural order to the world".
Date - 1st - 15th November, 2008 @ 8pm
Location - Rivernina Playhouse, Cross Street, Wagga Wagga
Written by - William Shakespeare
Directed by - Peta Downes
Tickets - $22 Adults, $20 Groups, $18 Concession, $11.50 Students
Bookings - Wagga Wagga Civic Theatre Booking Office or ph : (02) 6926 9688
Student CastMembers