2nd Story Announces its UpStage/DownStage Season
2nd Story Theatre
Can there be too much of a good thing? From the enthusiastic response to the news that 2nd Story planned to double the number of plays produced this season, it seems the answer is a resounding “no”. Of building a 70-seat second space and adding programming, Artistic Director Ed Shea said, “For years 2nd Story operated under the assumption that less is more, but it turns out more is more. When it comes to professional-quality live theatre, there cannot be too much of a good thing. Not only is there a market for more, there is a need and a desire for more. With the construction of our second space, we can give audiences more comedy, more drama, more entertainment, and more food for thought.”
2nd Story’s UpStage/DownStage plays will be very different, yet much the same: same high quality, same low price. DownStage will be a little more intimate, a little more intense. UpStage will provide a little more spectacle, a bit more bling. Subscription packages are available. See all 10 plays for $210. Stay UpStage for 5: $105. See the 5 DownStage plays for $105. Or try a taste of both: 7 plays for $147. Preview packs are also available. Call the box office at (401) 247-4200 for more information.
$20 preview tickets are available for the first three performances of all UpStage and DownStage plays. The regular price for individual tickets is $25. “Under 21” tickets are $20 at any performance.
Performance times will be staggered. UpStage plays perform on the half-hour - Thursdays through Saturdays at 7:30pm, Sundays at 2:30pm. DownStage starts on the hour, Thursdays through Saturdays at 8:00pm, Sundays at 3:00pm.
Season At-A-Glance
UPSTAGE: All Plays Perform on the Half-Hour
DANCING AT LUGHNASA by Brian Friel
A lyrical, haunting play set in Ballybeg, County Donegal, Ireland in the summer of 1936, around the Celtic harvest festival of Lughnasa. Told through the memory of Michael, Chrissie Mundy’s young, illegitimate son, as he remembers the women who raised him: his mother and her four older sisters.
Previews: September 27 & 28 @ 7:30PM, September 29 @ 2:30PM
Performances: October 3 – October 27 - Thursdays through Saturdays at 7:30PM; Sundays at 2:30PM
Additional Performance: Monday, October 7 @ 7:30PM
Discussion Sunday: October 13 – humanities discussion immediately following the 2:30PM performance
SAINT JOAN by George Bernard Shaw
Love of country and love of God are put to the test in a passionate examination of the life of Joan of Arc, a young peasant girl who bravely responds to her inner voices, challenging the power structure of both church and state.
Previews: November 15 & 16 @ 7:30PM, November 17 @ 2:30PM
Performances: Nov. 21 – Dec. 15 - Thursdays through Saturdays at 7:30PM; Sundays at 2:30PM
Additional Performance: Monday, November 25 @ 7:30PM
Discussion Sunday: Dec. 1 – humanities discussion immediately following the 2:30PM performance
SEVEN KEYS TO BALDPATE by George M. Cohan
Providence’s own George M. Cohan’s medley of mystery, farce and intrigue tells the story of a writer sequestered in a deserted hotel who has been challenged to pen a novel in one night, and who gets much more than he bargained for.
Previews: January 24 & 25 @ 7:30PM, January 26 @ 2:30PM
Performances: January 30 – February 23 - Thursdays through Saturdays at 7:30PM; Sundays at 2:30PM
Additional Performance: Monday, February 3 @ 7:30PM
Discussion Sunday: February 9 – humanities discussion immediately following the 2:30PM performance
LE DINDON or THE DUPE by Georges Feydeau
A comedic romp by a master of farce that is chock full of mistaken identities, illicit assignations and frenzied libidos.
Previews: March 14 & 15 @ 7:30PM, March 16 @ 2:30PM
Performances: March 20 – April 13 - Thursdays through Saturdays at 7:30PM; Sundays at 2:30PM
Additional Performance: Monday, March 24 @ 7:30PM
Discussion Sunday: March 30 – humanities discussion immediately following the 2:30PM performance
PSYCHO BEACH PARTY by Charles Busch
An irreverent shotgun marriage of Hitchcock-style psychological suspense and Beach Blanket Bingo antics. Is it Gidget goes berserk? Or Marnie goes Maui? You decide.
Previews: May 2 & 3 @ 7:30PM, May 4 @ 2:30PM
Performances: May 8 – June 1 - Thursdays through Saturdays at 7:30PM; Sundays at 2:30PM
Additional Performance: Monday, May 12 @ 7:30PM
Discussion Sunday: May 18 – humanities discussion immediately following the 2:30PM performance
DOWNSTAGE: All Plays Perform on the Hour
LOBBY HERO by Kenneth Lonergan
When a luckless young security guard is drawn into a local murder investigation, loyalties are strained to the breaking point. As a tightly wound supervisor is called to bear witness against his troubled brother, and an attractive rookie cop must stand up to her seasoned partner, truth becomes elusive and justice proves costly. A taut, terrific drama, comedy and romance all rolled into one.
Previews: September 6 & 7 @ 8PM; September 8 @ 3PM
Performances: September 12 – October 6 - Thursdays through Saturdays at 8:00PM; Sundays at 3:00PM
Additional Performance: Sunday, September 15 @ 7:00PM
Discussion Sunday: Sept. 22 – humanities discussion immediately following the 3:00PM performance
SONS OF THE PROPHET by Stephen Karam
If to live is to suffer, Joseph Douaihy is more alive than most. With unexplained chronic pain and the fate of his reeling family on his shoulders, Joseph’s health, sanity and insurance premium are on the line. In an age when modern medicine has a cure for just about everything, this is the funniest play about human suffering you’re likely to see.
Previews: October 25 & 26 @ 8:00PM, October 27 @ 3:00PM
Performances: October 31 – November 24 - Thursdays through Saturdays at 8:00PM; Sundays at 3:00PM
Additional Performance: Sunday, November 3 @ 7:00PM
Discussion Sunday: Nov. 10 – humanities discussion immediately following the 3:00PM performance
THE LYONS by Nicky Silver
As Ben Lyons lies dying, his wife of forty years flips through decorating magazines, planning a living room makeover. It’s clear that Ben and Rita have been at war for years and, when joined by their children, all efforts at a sentimental goodbye to the dying patriarch are soon abandoned. It’s a furiously funny, savagely snide family reunion, as they kick the ego out of one another. Black comedy perfection.
Previews: January 10 & 11 @ 8:00PM, January 12 @ 3:00PM
Performances: January 16 – February 9 - Thursdays through Saturdays at 8:00PM; Sundays at 3:00PM
Additional Performance: Sunday, January 19 @ 7:00PM
Discussion Sunday: Jan. 26 – humanities discussion immediately following the 3:00PM performance
A BRIGHT NEW BOISE by Samuel D. Hunter
In the bleak corporate break room of a craft store in Idaho, someone is summoning The Rapture. Will, who has fled his rural hometown after a scandal at his Evangelical church, comes to the Hobby Lobby not only for employment, but to rekindle a relationship with the teenage son he gave up for adoption long ago. A quirky, quietly affecting comic gem that delves into the always thorny issues of faith, forgiveness and second chances.
Previews: February 28 & March 1 @ 8:00PM, March 2 @ 3:00PM
Performances: March 6 – March 30 - Thursdays through Saturdays at 8:00PM; Sundays at 3:00PM
Additional Performance: Sunday, March 9 @ 7:00PM
Discussion Sunday: March 16 – humanities discussion immediately following the 3:00PM performance
TIME STANDS STILL by Donald Margullies
Sarah and James, a photojournalist and a foreign correspondent, try to find happiness in a world that seems to have gone crazy. Theirs is a partnership based on telling tough stories and making a difference. But when their own story takes a sudden turn, the adventurous couple must confront the prospect of a more conventional life.
Previews: April 18 & 19 @ 8:00PM, April 20 @ 3:00PM
Performances: April 24 – May 18 - Thursdays through Saturdays at 8:00PM; Sundays at 3:00PM
Additional Performance: Sunday, April 27 @ 7:00PM
Discussion Sunday: May 4 – humanities discussion immediately following the 3:00PM performance
WHERE: 2nd Story Theatre
28 Market Street, Warren, RI 02885
TICKETS: $20 - 25
BOX OFFICE: 401.247.4200
PRESS CONTACT: Lynne Collinson, Executive Director
Plays and dates subject to change.
Reservations subject to availability
SPECIAL EVENT at The Bristol Statehouse, 240 High Street, Bristol
GOLDA’S BALCONY by William Gibson
A story of war and peace that opens in 1973, on the eve of the Yom Kippur War, and uses flashbacks to let legendary world leader Golda Meir tell the story of her life. A dramatic look at idealism, power and the strength it takes to shape the destiny of a nation. Produced to commemorate the 75th Anniversary of Kristallnacht.
Previews: November 8 & 9 @ 8:00PM, November 10 @ 3:00PM
Performances: November 14 – December 8 - Thursdays through Saturdays at 8:00PM; Sundays at 3:00PM
Additional Performance: Sunday, November 17 @ 7:00PM
Discussion Sunday: Nov. 24 – humanities discussion immediately following the 3:00PM performance
WHERE: The Courtroom in the Bristol Statehouse
240 High Street, Bristol, RI 02809
TICKETS: $25 - $30
BOX OFFICE: 401.247.4200
PRESS CONTACT: Lynne Collinson, Executive Director
ABOUT 2ND STORY THEATRE
2nd Story Theatre is a professional, non-union company with a unique artistic aesthetic and the highest standards for excellence in the performance of great plays in an intimate setting. Founded in Newport, Rhode Island in 1978, 2nd Story Theatre established a permanent home in the historic district of Warren, Rhode Island in 2001 under the leadership of Ed Shea, Artistic Director, and Lynne Collinson, Executive Director.
2nd Story Theatre is a fully accessible venue.
Funding provided in part by a grant from the Rhode Island State Council on the Arts (RISCA), through an appropriation by the Rhode Island General Assembly, a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts and private funders.