The Boulder Ensemble Theatre Company (BETC) is proud to announce the lineup of plays for their 9th season (2014-15). In the midst of an incredible season that has already seen their audience increase by 86%, BETC is excited to unveil another slate of unique and innovative work. In Season Nine, BETC will once again present four shows at the Dairy Center for the Arts in Boulder and the holiday hit, “The SantaLand Diaries”, at the Denver Center for the Performing Arts. BETC will be expanding the length of their Boulder runs, so that each production runs a full four weeks.
AMBITION FACING WEST
By Anthony Clarvoe
A regional premiere
October 9 – November 2, 2014
Don’t look back. Three generations of one family move ever westward, restless, seeking. As they migrate from Croatia, through Wyoming, and onward to Japan, the land of opportunity keeps moving, and the past keeps catching up. This unforgettable family provides “an exquisitely rendered commentary on the human condition” (DC Theatre Scene). After the pain of saying goodbye, what wonders lie ahead?
Comments from Stephen Weitz, Producing Ensemble Director: “We’re starting off the season with an amazing piece that interweaves the stories of three generations to marvelous effect. This beautifully wrought tale touches on so many aspects of the immigration conversation. The yearning for opportunity and fresh starts. The uncertainty for those who leave and the fallout for those who remain behind. Though almost two decades old now, the play is incredibly relevant.”
THE SANTALAND DIARIES
By David Sedaris, Adapted for the stage by Joe Mantello
Returning to the Denver Center!
November 28 – December 24, 2014
Crumpet the Elf returns in this acclaimed holiday production. BETC and Off-Center @ The Jones partner for more hilarious holiday hijinks. Looking for a little more snark in your stocking this year? “The SantaLand Diaries” is the sure cure for the common Christmas show.
PED Comments: “Bringing the show to Denver last year was an amazing success and we’re very excited to be returning to the Denver Center. This year, we’re so pleased to be working with the folks from Off-Center @ The Jones. We’ve got a whole new design in the works and this intimate venue is a great fit. And the Off-Center experience promises to add some fun new surprises!”
THE ALIENS
By Annie Baker
A regional premiere
January 29 – February 22, 2015
Out back of a tiny Vermont coffee shop, long-time dropouts KJ and Jasper consider the finer points of Bukowski (and brownies), while high-schooler Evan Shelmerdine navigates the awkwardness of teenage turmoil. These unlikely mentors and the boy they befriend are the subject of playwright Annie Baker’s simple, compassionate observations of life between the lines and greatness found in the most unlikely of places.
PED Comments: “Annie Baker is a wonderful voice in American theatre. The language she creates is somehow commonplace, but at the same time full of character and rich meaning. ‘The Aliens’ is a sweet and charming play that deals with the despair and dead-ends in our lives, but also examines the greatness that might be hiding in every one of us.”
STUPID F##KING BIRD
By Aaron Posner
Sort of adapted from Chekhov’s “The Seagull”
A regional premiere
March 12 – April 5, 2015
You’ve never seen Chekhov like this. Aaron Posner’s irreverent update of “The Seagull” lets us into a country house where unrequited desire is drowned in equal parts alcohol and sarcasm. In true Chekhovian fashion, actresses, playwrights, doctors, and novelists bare their souls as they search desperately for the truth of love and art. This guilty pleasure of a comedy even dares to ask our audience: “What are you doing here, anyway?”
PED Comments: “Every now and then we like to revisit a classic and Aaron Posner has provided us a marvelous vehicle with his “sort of adaptation” of Chekhov’s ‘The Seagull.’ While the story remains largely the same, the play delves into all sorts of new meditations on the nature of love and the meaning of art. It manages
to be ridiculously funny in places and deadly serious in others. I’m very excited to bring this highly theatrical piece to our audiences.”
HYSTERIA
By Terry Johnson
A regional premiere!
April 23 – May 17, 2015
Sigmund Freud is dying. But before he does, there are visitors to be met, and reckonings to be made. A life-long friend insists upon a rewrite. A mysterious girl turns up in his study, demanding time on his couch. And once Salvador Dali himself arrives, the stage is set for a splendidly silly exploration of the subconscious that makes for “audacious and dazzlingly clever farce” (Financial Times, London).
PED Comments: “I’ve been wanting to do this play for many years now. I saw a wonderful production almost fifteen years ago and it has stuck with me ever since. I’ve never seen another play that manages to be a full-out hysterical (pardon the pun) farce, while at the same time delving into some of the darkest subjects imaginable. This play recently had a highly successful revival in London and I have no doubt that it will be a wonderful exclamation point on Season Nine.”
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