Professional actors. Professional productions.

Announcing Riverside Theatre's 2016-17 Season

July 25, 2016 - 1:33 PM
Under the guidance of artistic director Sean Lewis, we are excited to announce our new lineup for the 2016-17 season at Riverside Theatre:                                  

BLACK AND BLUE

Written and directed by Sean Lewis
Starring Barrington Vaxter, Alyssa Perry
, Ryan West and Tierra Plowden
                                                              
Sept. 9-Sept. 25, 2016

Ten years ago Charlie was a cop on a beat and Marcus was a suspect in the Fuller Park section of Chicago. Ten years since their paths crossed, their lives have gone in different directions but questions remain: was it abuse? Brutality? Or solid police work? Charlie's sister Charlotte is looking into the case for herself this time, and this particular evening she's decided to bring Marcus home with her to really figure out what is what.

Sean says: "Some plays are perfect, some are timeless and some are necessary. This is an in-process production about one of the most immediate issues in our country today."

THE TAMING

Written by Lauren Gunderson
Directed by Angie Toomsen
Starring Kristy Hartsgrove Mooers, Jordan Arnold and Cara Clonch Viner
Oct. 28-Nov. 13, 2016

Just in time for the Election Season comes a politically-minded comedy starring three of the funniest women in Eastern Iowa. What happens when a conservative senatorial aide, a liberal political activist and a newly-crowned Miss Georgia walk into a bar? The results are hilarious, but this play is no joke. Lauren Gunderson’s THE TAMING takes on America’s overheated political rhetoric, some surprising truths about our founding fathers, and the passions of three slightly insane women who just might be revolutionary geniuses.

Sean says: "I was thinking, 'What do I usually want during election season?' The answer: Wild, frivolous and smart comedy. For fans of KIMBERLY AKIMBO and END DAYS, this is one to vote for."
 
EVERY BRILLIANT THING 

Written by Duncan Macmillan and Jonny Donahoe
Starring Tim Budd

Nov. 26-Dec. 11, 2016    

1. Ice cream, 2. Water fights, 3. Things with stripes, 4. Christopher Walken's voice, 5. Rollercoasters. Starring one of the area's most beloved actors, EVERY BRILLIANT THING is the story of a young boy who attempts to ease his mother's sadness by creating a list of all the best things in the world. Through adulthood, as the list grows, he learns the deep significance it has on his own life. A truly beautiful evening.

Sean says: "One of the best pieces I saw in New York last year. It gives me all the things I want from a holiday-timed play: beauty, family, community and awe. Can't miss."
 
A VIEW FROM THE BRIDGE
Written by Arthur Miller
Starring Patrick Du Laney and Kristy Hartsgrove Mooers
 Jan. 20-Feb. 12, 2017  

An American Classic. The great Arthur Miller confronts the American dream in this dark and passionate tale. In Brooklyn, longshoreman Eddie Carbone welcomes his Sicilian cousins to the land of freedom. But when one of them falls for his beautiful niece, they discover that freedom comes at a price. A story about family, betrayal and in America who gets to belong.

Sean says: "Arthur Miller is one of my favorite playwrights, and here you have the last of the big three: DEATH OF A SALESMAN, ALL MY SONS and now A VIEW FROM THE BRIDGE. No one writes America like Miller."
 
LADY MACBETH AND HER PAL, MEGAN 
Written by Megan Gogerty 
Directed by Saffron Henke
Starring Megan Gogerty
Feb. 24-March 12, 2017  

Megan Gogerty is back for her fourth solo show premiere at Riverside Theatre. LADY MACBETH AND HER PAL, MEGAN uses Shakespeare’s tragedy to examine one woman’s fraught relationship with standup comedy. Part personal narrative and part textual analysis, comedian and monologist Megan Gogerty (HOUSEBROKEN, HILLARY CLINTON GOT ME PREGNANT) asks the question: What if, instead of being just a corn-fed, Midwestern standup comic with a penchant for Star Trek, Megan was actually Lady Macbeth? Hasn’t every woman, at one point or another, wanted to commit regicide? Funny, subversive and engaging with cultures both pop and high, LADY MACBETH AND HER PAL, MEGAN parses the difference between empowerment fantasies and actual empowerment.
Sean Says: "Megan is by far a Riverside favorite. There is no one else that will bring you the humor with insight like the erstwhile Ms. Gogerty."
RELATIVITY 
Written by Mark St. Germain

Directed by Angie Toomsen
Starring Saffron Henke

A National New Play Network Rolling World Premiere

April 14-30, 2017
 

In 1902, Albert Einstein had a daughter. Two years later she disappeared, and was never mentioned again. What happened?  Relativity imagines one theory while exploring the two contradictory Albert Einsteins: the beloved Public Figure, and a stunningly different Private Einstein. Starring Saffron Henke who has wowed local audiences in SYRINGA TREE and VENUS IN FUR.

Sean says: "A fast paced and surprising look at an intellectual giant. Like a mash-up of PICASSO AT THE LAPIN AGILE and DOUBT, the play uses wit and intelligence to uncover possible truths."

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