The Last Days of Judas Iscariot
Dreamwell Theatre
Dreamwell Theatre president Matt Falduto described the theme of their 2013-2014 season as “In Defense of Guilt.” Kicking things off is Stephen Adly Guirgis’ The Last Days of Judas Iscariot, featuring direction by Matthew Brewbaker and a large cast. The play is set in Purgatory, where a trial is held to determine the fate of Judas, the man who ultimately betrays Jesus in the New Testament. The trial delves into flashbacks of Judas’ childhood and testimonies from a variety of historical and Biblical figures, including Sigmund Freud and Satan. First directed by Philip Seymour Hoffman for a 2005 off-Broadway performance, this ambitious play uses humor and inventive interpretations of familiar stories to examine the nature of forgiveness.
Performances are Sept. 6-7 and 13-14 at the Unitarian Universalist Society.
Venus in Fur
Riverside Theatre
For the first play in its 2013-2014 Gilbert Street season, Riverside Theatre presents a relatively new comedy: Venus in Fur by David Ives. The play takes its name from the 1870 novel by Leopold von Sacher-Masoch, in which a man asks the woman he loves if he can be her slave. (Sacher-Masoch’s name is the basis for the term “masochism.”) Rather than write a direct adaptation of the novel, Ives sets his play in modern times and centers the action on the character Thomas, a writer-director who has adapted the novel for the stage. As Thomas complains on the phone about his difficulties with finding the right actress to play the novel’s main female character, Wanda von Dunajew, actress Vanda enters his office and demands a reading. Over the course of their reading of the script, the Vanda and Thomas gradually embody the themes of dominance and shifting power found within the novel. Directed by Sean Christopher Lewis and acted by Jess Prichard and Saffron Henke, the play features sexy scenarios and delightfully twisted humor.
Performances are Sept. 6-29 at Riverside Theatre’s Gilbert Street space. Stay for talkbacks after the Sept. 8 and 13 performances.
Cabaret
Iowa City Community Theatre
Willkommen, bienvenue, welcome to Iowa City Community Theatre’s production of the classic Kander and Ebb musical, Cabaret, directed by Josh Sazon. Brash nightclub singer Sally and writer Cliff live a life of carefree decadence in 1930s Berlin, unaware of the growing horror around them, while the mysterious Emcee of the Kit Kat Klub comments on the action with provocative musical numbers. Based on the Christopher Isherwood novel Goodbye to Berlin, the original 1966 Broadway production was directed by Harold Prince and won seven Tony awards, including Best Musical. If you have seen the 1972 film adaptation starring Liza Minnelli and Michael York, take time to see the live version—the film kept only a few of the songs from the original musical. Featuring musical numbers that are equal parts titillating and shocking, Cabaret is essential viewing for any modern musical fan.
Performances are Sept. 13-15 and 20-22 at the Johnson County 4-H Fairgrounds, Exhibition Hall A.
Underground New Play Festival
Theatre Cedar Rapids
The Grandon Studio in the basement level of Theatre Cedar Rapids is a “black box” style with a thrust stage, perfect for intimate performances and inventive staging. This is the home of the 2013 Underground New Play Festival, which showcases new works by playwrights with a strong Iowa connection. The selections include 10 minute, one act or full length plays. Some of the plays are staged readings, when actors read from scripts—sometimes with minimal props and staging. Other plays are presented fully staged and without scripts. The festival gives audiences the opportunity to see new plays, while playwrights can revise their plays according to audience comments. Get in on the early stages of what might become the next great American play!
The Underground New Play Festival runs from Sept. 12-22.
6th Annual All In a Day Play Festival
Dreamwell Theatre and City Circle Acting Company
If you can’t make the trip to Cedar Rapids, or you are in the mood for the theatrical equivalent of lightning in a bottle, check out the 6th Annual All in a Day Play Festival. Co-hosted by Dreamwell Theatre and City Circle Acting Company, the festival brings together seven writers, seven directors and 35 actors to create seven short plays in 24 hours. On the evening of Friday, Sept. 20, the writers are each assigned a location, a genre and a “dramatic detail.” For the next 12 hours, the writers must create scripts that include all three of these elements. At 8 a.m. on Sept. 21, the writers hand off the scripts to the directors and actors, who bring these scripts to the stage. Last year’s plays included a soap opera on a subway and a gripping psychological thriller in the Adventureland jail. This year . . . your guess is as good as mine.
The All in a Day Play Festival will be performed one night only on Saturday, Sept. 21 at the Coralville Center for the Performing Arts.
Jorie Slodki earned her MA in theatre research from University of Wisconsin, Madison, and has past experience in acting, directing and playwriting.
