'Ubu Roar' Kicks Off Suffolk's 2019-20 Theater Season

The Theatre Department kicks off its fall season with Ubu Roar, a profane, outrageous, and timely satire of a play that caused a revolution in Paris 100 years ago after the 22-year-old playwright, Alfred Jarry, in a merciless critique of a king who ruled his country like a spoiled child, shouted the vulgarity "Merde!" from the stage. 

The Suffolk Theatre production, which runs September 19-21 and 26-28 at the Modern Theatre, 525 Washington St., exposes blind ambition, greed, incompetence, gross profanity, fake violence, absurdly ridiculous jokes ….it's a wild ride.

The play is designed to appeal, first and foremost, to undergraduate students and is an outgrowth of Juvenilia, a new program in the Theatre Department that provides professional opportunities to current students and alumni alike in partnership with the National Theatre of Allston. The mission is to engage in work that speaks to the complicated world we live in a lively theatrical way.

Juvenilia is the brainchild of Professor Wes Savick who directs the play, which was translated and adapted by Brenda Withers from Alfred Jarry’s King Ubu.

The show features a three-piece band led by alumnus Joey Del, Class of 2018. The band plays sets before and after the show and performs throughout the play. 

The Suffolk University Theatre Department offers a student-centered program. Students write, direct, and design original plays and intern with leading Boston, U.S., and international theater companies. They work in classic, musical, and experimental genres with a special focus on new work.

 

Fall Showcase

A festival of student-written and -directed one-act plays

October 10 -13, Sullivan Studio Theatre, Sawyer Building, 11th floor

• Area 51: Written & directed by Courtney Langlais, Class of 2020. Intrepid podcasters venture into the desert to investigate the disappearance of young woman.
• Genre TBD: Written & directed by Kaleigh Ryan, Class of 2020. Pushed, pulled—people identify themselves in certain ways. Results are complicated.
• In the Shadows: Written & directed by Gabriella Quigley, Class of 2019. Mourning family members search for their love for one another.

Fall Spotlight Performances

New student work in development. Each performance takes place at 5 p.m. in the Sullivan Studio Theatre, Sawyer Building, 11th floor, and is followed by a community pizza party.

• October 4, The Experiment: Written by Will Grubb, Class of 2021, directed by Anastasia Bolkwadze, Class of 2021. Lucifer: "I'm worn out by this ^#%$* job! I'll give my POWERS to that teenager in the cornfield....and enjoy myself."
• November 1, Night Shift: Written & directed by Nick Cenci, Class of 2019. A bored night watchman notices an unexpected—unwelcome— occurrence in the video monitor.
• December 6, Doughboy: Written & directed by Justin Peavey, Class of 2020. A courtroom drama inspired by a 1920s murder trial.

The Seven Deadly Sins

By Thornton Wilder, directed by Wesley Savick and guest alumni directors. The world premiere of Wilder’s entire series of one-act plays in The Seven Deadly Sins.

November 21-24, Modern Theatre, 525 Washington St.

Spring 2020

December 2-6—Auditions for spring productions—open to all

Spring Showcase

A festival of student-written and -directed one-act plays

February 5-9, Sullivan Studio Theatre, Sawyer Building, 11th floor

• Little Dog: Written & directed by Olivia Florek, Class of 2021. Even when self-discovery arrives, it can be hard to admit what we must.
• Flicker: Written & directed by Ma’chel Martin, Class of 2020. Forest sounds and a campfire enable two friends to speak honestly—finally.
• Rodéo: Written & directed by Micaleen Rodgers, Class of 2020. Dancing, singing, juggling, pickle-eating cowboys cheer up their rodeo bull-rider friend who has been thrown off too many times.

Spring Spotlight Performances

New student work in development. Each performance takes place at 5 p.m. in the Sullivan Studio Theatre, Sawyer Building, 11th floor, and is followed by a community pizza party.

• February 7, Here Comes the Moon: Written & directed by Alice Byrne, Class of 2020. Based on Beatle George Harrison’s “Here Comes the Sun,” celebrating his life and music and his struggle with cancer.
• March 6, A Lunatic’s Guide to Dating Narcissists: Written by Grace Rizzuto, Class of 2021, directed by Ryan Stack, Class of 2021. Getting close to people is difficult. Wanna’ know who to stay away from?
• April 10, The Lover: By Harold Pinter. Directed by Stephanie Coyle, Class of 2020. An untrusting, unhappy, untruthful (married) couple let it all out.

Violet

Music by Jeanine Tesori, libretto by Brian Crawley. Based on the short story "The Ugliest Pilgrim" by Doris Betts. Directed by guest artist Maurice Emmanuel Parent.

April 2-5, Modern Theatre, 525 Washington S.

Seminar

By Theresa Rebeck, directed by Laura Shink A writing seminar goes awfully awry.

April 16-18, Sullivan Studio Theatre, Sawyer Building, 11th floor