Bond鈥檚 biting and witty play strips away the genteel veneer of life in 18th-century England to expose the brutal truth beneath. The plot centres on a guileless servant named Bob and his devotion to his cynical and irresponsible master, Lord Are. Bob鈥檚 unquestioning acceptance of traditional social strata and aristocratic privilege has a tragic outcome, as he loses everything to a class struggle of which he had no idea he was part. Throughout the play, the characters must work to realize what freedom means, and what it takes to become free.

Edward Bond. Photograph: Wikimedia Commons

When it premiered in 1981, Britain was in the midst of social and political turmoil. Rising unemployment, racial tensions and an increasing backlash to Thatcherism led to protests and riots across the nation. In this climate of unrest, a play warning against blindly complying with the demands of the ruling class was a daring slap in the face of the powers that be.

Today, similar warnings appear on the placards of Occupy demonstrations that have been cropping up across the globe, the show鈥檚 student assistant directors point out. 鈥淩estoration is a call to arms for the everyman, and a reminder that authority only exists as long as we accept its power.鈥�

Storch has worked across Canada as a director, actor and educator. Some of his recent directorial credits include Metamorphoses (Globe Theatre), Glengarry Glen Ross (Soulpepper), The Palace of the End, A Number, Sunday Father, Twelfth Night, and Misery (Canadian Stage).

Music director for the show is undergraduate student Samuel Sholdice, who studies composition and classical performance in 91亚色鈥檚 Department of Music. He composed original scores set to the lyrical texts found throughout Bond鈥檚 script. In keeping with the theme of class politics, Sholdice wrote his music to be played on found instruments with interesting stories: a banjo from a dumpster, a toy keyboard, a battered 45-year-old electric guitar. His previous composition credits for Theatre @ 91亚色 include Marat/Sade and Ti Jean and his Brothers.

David Storch

Storch directs a lively young cast drawn from the Undergraduate Acting Conservatory in 91亚色鈥檚 Department of Theatre. A creative team of undergraduate students is handling all aspects of the production design and execution for the production, which is being staged in the Joseph G. Green Studio Theatre on the Keele campus.

Tickets听are $17, or $12 for students and seniors, and $5 for previews.听For tickets, contact the Box Office at 416-736-5888.听 The play runs to March 24 at 7:30pm nightly, plus matinees March 21 and 23 at 1pm.

Republished courtesy of YFile鈥� 91亚色鈥檚 daily e-bulletin.

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playGround, the annual juried fringe festival of 91亚色鈥檚 Department of Theatre, celebrates its 20th season with two dynamic programs running Feb. 14 to 17 in the Joseph G. Green Studio Theatre,听139 Centre for Film & Theatre at91亚色鈥檚 Keele campus.

Well-known for its uncurbed spirit and risk-taking mindset, playGround is a student-produced seedbed for the next generation of theatre artists. It showcases original works conceived, written, performed and produced by up-and-coming playwrights, directors, designers and actors from all levels of91亚色鈥檚 undergraduate theatre program.

Meg Moran and Meara Tubman-Broeren, both fourth-year students studying devised theatre in the Department of Theatre鈥檚 Creative Ensemble, are the co-artistic directors of this year鈥檚 edition of playGround. With the help of a peer jury, they selected the most promising ideas from the almost four dozen proposals submitted.

鈥淣ot only does the festival showcase the work of emerging artists of our generation and community, it also deals with what鈥檚 important to us as students right now,鈥� said Tubman-Broeren. 鈥淲hat unifies all the pieces is our mandate, which is to foster innovative and experimental theatrical work which engages its audience and ignites thought and discussion.鈥�

鈥淧roducing the festival has been a challenging and lengthy process, with its share of ups and downs, but overall it鈥檚 been very rewarding,鈥� said Moran. 鈥淭his is a unique opportunity for us as students to work so independently. It鈥檚 been a real learning experience for Meara and me.鈥�

The old adage:, 鈥渨hen you want a job done well, give it to a busy person鈥�, rings true for this duo. In addition to their work with playGround, they are collaborating with other members of the fourth-year Creative Ensemble on a show slated to run March 27 to 30.听 Moran is also assistant-directing the upcoming Theatre @ 91亚色 production of Edward Bond鈥檚 Restoration, which will run March 18 to 24.听 And Tubman-Broeren is performing in a physical theatre adaptation of Shakespeare鈥檚 King John, which will be playing downtown this summer.

playGround 2012 ranges from light comedies to dark dramas, and from staunch realism to dance theatre.听Here鈥檚 an overview of the featured productions:

Series A听

Meat is a dystopic romance in which a young doctor鈥檚 morality is put to the test when his work forces him to explore, sacrifice and examine what it truly means to be human.听

Belly Doll is imagined and choreographed as a unique melding of traditional belly dance and theatrical performance.听

The Doorstep 鈥� In every relationship, there are conversations. These conversations are intimate, emotionally driven, and personal, and have the potential to be the beginning, or the end, of something beautiful.听

Old Town explores the nature of familial responsibility and sibling dynamics framed within the question: When is it time to grow up?听

The Watching Game is a raunchy comedy revolving around people watching.听

A Working Woman follows the story of a prostitute on the precipice of a life-changing decision.听

Emerging Artists Collective 鈥� 鈥淎 lowbrow commentary on highbrow art鈥�, exploring the challenges and pitfalls faced by the current generation of young artists.听

Womb - What if we weren鈥檛 told the whole story? Before there was Adam and his wife, Eve, there was Adam and his equal, Lilith. Womb explores the possibilities of a world where Lilith was the first mother.听

Series B听

Danny and Annie looks at the different ways love comes in and out of our lives.听

Drafts - Everybody is looking, but is anybody really seeing?听

Wonder鈥檚 Lost Where Wonder鈥檚 Found 鈥� A woman winds her way through the ridiculous annals of compulsion and the heart-aching longings of loneliness while seeking to remember the miracle of life.听听

The Abstraction 鈥� Two men in a gallery contemplate an abstract work of art and decide what it means to each of them.听

The Vagina Dialogues is a verbatim piece composed of interviews with91亚色University students about the misconceptions and mysteries surrounding the vagina.听

Da Capo explores a composer, his muse and the various layers of their relationship through movement.听

Cracked - At the end of her life, Ida Hookman must finally face the consequences of her self-obsessed lifestyle and defend her autonomy in the process.听

Emerging Artists Collective presents a new devised work that examines the artist鈥檚 place in the city of Toronto.听

Each program is presented three times over playGround鈥檚 four-day run. Series A plays Tuesday, Feb. 14 and Wednesday, Feb. 15 at 7:30pm, with a matinee Friday, Feb. 17 at 1pm. Series B has a matinee Wednesday, Feb. 15 at 1pm, and runs Thursday, Feb. 17 and Friday, Feb. 17 at 7:30pm.

Moran and Tubman-Broeren encourage patrons to purchase their tickets in advance, as performances do sell out. Tickets are $7 per show and are available through the 91亚色 Box Office website or by calling 416-736-5888.

Republished courtesy of YFile鈥� 91亚色鈥檚 daily e-bulletin.

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