Richard Rodgers and Stephen Sondheim’s rarely performed musical Do I Hear A Waltz? and a new play by Made In Dagenham screenwriter William Ivory are among the productions to look forward to in the Park Theatre’s 2014 season.
Both productions will play in the Finsbury Park venue’s Park200, which will also welcome a new stage adaptation of Dorothy M Johnson’s short story The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance later in the year.
Do I Hear A Waltz? will kick off the season from 5 March to 30 March. The rarely staged piece, which features a book by Arthur Laurents, tells the story of an American secretary who is swept off her feet by a charismatic shopkeeper while holidaying in Venice.
It will be followed by Ivory’s Bomber’s Moon from 2 April to 11 May. The gritty drama follows former RAF gunner Jimmy as he fights his final battle against age and infirmity with the help of his new care assistant David, who has his own battle to fight.
The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance will complete the season in the venue’s largest auditorium from 14 May to 22 June. Adapted and directed by Jethro Compton, the world premiere of the tale made famous in the 1962 film starring James Stewart and John Wayne will transport audiences to the Wild West, where a tale of love, hope and revenge unfolds against the vicious backdrop of a lawless society.
The Park200 season will be complemented by eclectic programming in the venue’s intimate Park90 auditorium, which will welcome everything from a comic adaptation of Anton Chekhov’s Three Sisters to an award-winning play by Spanish playwright Josep Maria Miro.
Hot Coals Theatre Ensemble will bring physical comedy to Chekhov’s drama about three aspiring siblings from 18 February to 16 March. The production promises to offer a window into the quirky and tender world of the three sisters as they fight to keep their independence.
Sarah Sigal’s multi-generational drama World Enough And Time will follow from 19 March to 13 April. The production interweaves three stories from three different centuries in a provocative piece about women’s lives in political landscapes.
From 15 April to 11 May, Miro’s Archimedes’ Principle will tell its tale about three swimming teachers whose lessons grind to a halt when one of them is accused of inappropriately touching a child.
Pulitzer Prize winner Paula Vogel will follow from 13 May to 8 June with her deliciously demented version of Othello. A hilarious take on Shakespeare’s tragedy, Desdemona: A Play About A Handkerchief presents Othello’s wife as a volatile, passionate woman who revels in bawdy tales of conquest.
Klook’s Last Stand will complete the Park90 season from 11 June to 6 July. Written and directed by Ché Walker, who returns to the venue following 2013’s Fog, the production combines soulful music with a witty and moving story about two individuals who make a tentative stab at love.
Artistic Director Jez Bond, who this year will lead the Park Theatre to its first birthday, said of the forthcoming programming: “This new season welcomes extraordinary talent from the UK and across the globe, and furthers our ambitions to produce a great range of innovative and provocative work, cementing our unique position as a venue providing a platform for both new, experimental theatre makers, and more established companies and producers.”
The Park Theatre will reach its first birthday in May, when a special performance will take place to celebrate the occasion. Full details of the celebration are still to be announced.