The Importance of 'The Importance of Being Earnest'
London, 1895. Valentine's Day, surprisingly chilly. (Fog, likely - this IS London.)
The empire flourishes under the reign of Her Majesty, Queen Victoria (her accomplishments as related to her gender are the exception, not the rule, as she's one of the first to remind you). Theatre has become a haven for the masses, with commoners on benches down in the house and the titled upper classes in box seats above.
A new play is on offer tonight, and seems promising. The playwright has been making quite a name for himself - this is his fourth new work in the past three years, with the third enjoying a month-long run at another theater just down the street. He's very clever, the author, though there are rumors of scandalous behaviors that crop up now and then. Surely nothing with which respectable denizens of the city should concern themselves.
The audience has settled, and the lights are dimmed at last. The curtain rises on Oscar Wilde's newest work, The Importance of Being Earnest.
Oh, and do note the subtitle: 'A Trivial Comedy for Serious People.' Hmm.
The play was a smash success, though the author would be arrested just under two months later and the play closed as a result (after 83 performances). It is entirely likely that, ever since the original production, The Importance of Being Earnest has been constantly in performance: touring companies took the play across England, to Scotland and Ireland immediately after the closure in London, with a full-scale revival in the West End staged in 1902. That production transferred to Broadway the same year, and the script has been a staple of professional theaters, local companies, and educational theatre programs ever since.
Over the next few weeks we will talk about the themes and ideas, how the play shows us a vision of its time and allows us to compare it to our own, Oscar Wilde's lasting effect on theatre, what makes humor 'humor' and satire 'funny', and so much more! Some items will be Completely Trivial and others will be Utterly Serious, guaranteeing a little something for everyone. Join us!
And remember, in the words of our featured playwright: 'And idea that is not dangerous is unworthy of being called an idea at all.'
It's going to be fun.
Charisse Baxter, Dramaturg
* * * * *
The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde
Directed by Larry West
June 15-July 1
For tickets and more information go to: http://www.pinnacleactingcompany.org/
The empire flourishes under the reign of Her Majesty, Queen Victoria (her accomplishments as related to her gender are the exception, not the rule, as she's one of the first to remind you). Theatre has become a haven for the masses, with commoners on benches down in the house and the titled upper classes in box seats above.
A new play is on offer tonight, and seems promising. The playwright has been making quite a name for himself - this is his fourth new work in the past three years, with the third enjoying a month-long run at another theater just down the street. He's very clever, the author, though there are rumors of scandalous behaviors that crop up now and then. Surely nothing with which respectable denizens of the city should concern themselves.
The audience has settled, and the lights are dimmed at last. The curtain rises on Oscar Wilde's newest work, The Importance of Being Earnest.
Oh, and do note the subtitle: 'A Trivial Comedy for Serious People.' Hmm.
The play was a smash success, though the author would be arrested just under two months later and the play closed as a result (after 83 performances). It is entirely likely that, ever since the original production, The Importance of Being Earnest has been constantly in performance: touring companies took the play across England, to Scotland and Ireland immediately after the closure in London, with a full-scale revival in the West End staged in 1902. That production transferred to Broadway the same year, and the script has been a staple of professional theaters, local companies, and educational theatre programs ever since.
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| Allan Aynesworth, Evelyn Millard, Irene Vanbrugh and George Alexander in the 1895 London premiere |
Over the next few weeks we will talk about the themes and ideas, how the play shows us a vision of its time and allows us to compare it to our own, Oscar Wilde's lasting effect on theatre, what makes humor 'humor' and satire 'funny', and so much more! Some items will be Completely Trivial and others will be Utterly Serious, guaranteeing a little something for everyone. Join us!
And remember, in the words of our featured playwright: 'And idea that is not dangerous is unworthy of being called an idea at all.'
It's going to be fun.
Charisse Baxter, Dramaturg
* * * * *
The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde
Directed by Larry West
June 15-July 1
For tickets and more information go to: http://www.pinnacleactingcompany.org/
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