FARMINGTON – Theater UMF will present a zany farce, “The House of Blue Leaves” by John Guare, for their spring production, playing at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Friday and Saturday, March 10, 11 and 12, and 2 p.m. Sunday, March 13, in Alumni Theatre at the University of Maine at Farmington. The play was the winner of the 1971 Critics Award and the Obie Award as Best American Play. The world of the play is wacky, hilarious, outrageous, sometimes sad and poignant – a world similar to the one in which we live today.
The play’s main character, Artie Shaughnessy, a zoo keeper, is also a wantabee songwriter. Married to Bananas, who is just that, Artie also has a girlfriend, Bunny Flingus. Bunny wants Artie to call his old friend, Billy, now a big Hollywood producer, for a job writing music for films.
Bunny and Artie will fly to California after Artie arranges a quick Mexican divorce from Bananas. In the meantime since the the first Pope ever to visit New York City will be arriving, Bunny wants Artie to go with her to watch the Pope’s parade in the hopes the Pope will bless Artie’s music.
The Pope will speak to the U.N. to encourage peace in Vietnam. Artie’s and Banana’s son, Ronnie, is due to be shipped to Vietnam, but goes AWOL and plans to build a bomb so he can blow up the Pope, who will be speaking in Yankee Stadium. The bomb goes off prematurely, killing a few “innocent” bystanders. Billy arrives, distraught about the deaths and events take on a bizarre twist.
The cast, directed by theater professor, Dr. Andrea Southard, includes Gary A. Thayer as Artie, Caroline P. Coleman as Bananas, Brianna Rush as Bunny Flingus, Ian Griffith as Ronnie, Susanne Gerry as Corrinna Stroller, Levi Galloway as Billy, Amy L. Carsten, Erin E. Bilodeau and Samantha Baker as nuns, Brandon T. Kelly as the MP and Sam Gallagher as the hospital attendant.
For reservations, please call 778-7465. Tickets are $6 for adults; $5 for students other than UMF students; $3.50 for senior citizens and children under 13; free for UMF students with ID.
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