Madcap hilarity hits the Willows Theatre stage

Noises Off, Michael Frayn’s hysterical British farce, opens March 31^st at the Willows Theatre in Concord

Previews begin March 27 - running through May 7, 2006: tickets on sale now 

Concord, CA.  March 3, 2006 – “The Funniest Farce Ever Written” is how the New York critics described the awesome hilarity and mind-boggling mayhem of Noises Off.  This uproarious comedy will be presented at the Willows Theatre from March 27 through May 7, 2006.  Noises Off follows the on- and off-stage antics of an inept acting troupe as they stumble from bumbling dress rehearsal to disastrous closing night.  Everything that can go wrong does, as actors desperately try to hang on to their lines, their performances, and the furniture.  Add a slippery plate of sardines and a slew of slamming doors and you have the most sidesplitting backstage comedy ever put on paper.

Written by Michael Frayn, Noises Off premiered in London in 1982, winning both the Evening Standard and the Olivier awards for Best Comedy, and ran in the West End for nearly five years.  It opened on Broadway in 1983 starring Dorothy Loudon and Victor Garber and was nominated for a Tony award.  A Broadway revival in 2001 starred Patti LuPone and Peter Gallagher.  The Willows Theatre first mounted a production of the play in 1989, then revived it in 1993.  The hilarious farce was hands down our audience choice as favorite comedy of all time!

The playwright says he got the inspiration for this three-act rollercoaster when he stood behind the scenery during a performance of one of his comedies and saw that the backstage chaos was considerably more comical than the action onstage.  Noises Off is about a troupe of has-been, never-was, and wanna-be actors led by a somewhat pretentious and strained-to-the-breaking-point director.  They are touring in a typical English bedroom farce called Nothing On through the hinterlands of the outer regions of Britain (the equivalent of Off Off OFF Broadway in America).  As the show progresses from one town to the next, the little romances, intrigues, and foibles of the cast begin to wear on them until, by the time they arrive in the last town, all semblance of the play that they were rehearsing has vanished into the mayhem of their personal and professional vendettas.  Shoelaces are tied together, plates of sardines are dumped on heads, alcohol is consumed in quantity, and sexual peccadilloes and dalliances are revealed both onstage and off.

Willows Theatre Artistic Director Richard Elliott will direct the show, which opens March 31 and runs through May 7, 2006, at the Willows Theatre, 1975 Diamond Boulevard, Concord, CA.  Preview performances begin March 27.

THE CAST

Sue Trigg – Dotty Otley (Alameda) returns to the Willows to reprise her role as Dotty for a third time!  She also appeared on our stage in Beyond Therapy, The Nerd, and Grease.  For the past three years, Sue has played the irrepressible housewife Shirley Valentine in the one-woman show of the same name, appearing at six different theaters throughout the Bay Area.

Julian Lopez-Morillas* – Lloyd Dallas (Berkeley) appeared in the 1993 production of Noises Off at the Willows as Freddy.  He is no stranger to the Willows stage, having appeared in Auntie Mame, To Kill a Mockingbird (Atticus Finch), Treasure Island (Long John Silver), and John Muir’s Mountain Days (Daniel Muir).  Julian also directed the Willows productions of Les Liaisons Dangereuses and Lettice & Lovage.

Cassidy Brown – Garry Lejeune (Oakland) is performing in his ninth production at the Willows, where he was most recently seen in Deathtrap, Treasure Island, and You Can’t Take It With You.  Cassidy is also the Casting Director for the Willows and Director of Youth Programs for the Willows Conservatory, for which he recently directed the East Bay premiere of Urinetown: The Musical.

Brittany Ogle – Brooke Ashton (San Jose) is making her debut with the Willows Theatre.  She is an AMT Theater Artists Institute graduate and has appeared with American Musical Theatre San Jose, Sierra Repertory Theater, Pleasanton Playhouse, and Broadway by the Bay.

Katie Anderson – Poppy Norton-Taylor (San Jose) is making her debut with the Willows in this production of Noises Off.  She is a graduate of Nicholls State University and has appeared locally with Palo Alto Players, Western Stage, and California Theatre Center.

Simon Vance* – Frederick Fellowes (Walnut Creek) appeared in our 1993 production of Noises Off as Garry Lejeune.  He has also been seen in the Willows productions of Treasure Island (Squire Trelawney), Joyful Noise (Bishop Henry Egerton), and 1776 (John Dickinson).  Simon has also appeared locally with Marin Theatre, TheatreWorks, TheatreFIRST, the Aurora Theatre, and Playhouse West.

Holli Hornlien* – Belinda Blair (Benicia) is making her first appearance on the Willows stage.  Her recent roles include Mary Haines in The Women (Center Rep), Mary in Dublin Carol (Aurora Theatre), The Governess in Turn of the Screw, Nan/Lina in Three Days of Rain, Sam (et al.) in Fully Committed, and Beth in Dinner with Friends. (as an ensemble member of interPLAYERS).

John Butterfield – Tim Allgood (Berkeley) reprises the role of Tim, having appeared in our 1989 production.  He is an actor and dancer and just choreographed the Willows Theatre’s recent production of Cabaret.  John is artistic director of New Urban Dance Co./Butterfield 8 and has worked locally with Center Rep, Contra Costa Musical Theatre, and Town Hall Theatre.

Chris Ayles* – Selsdon Mowbray (Lafayette) last appeared at the Willows as Sir Thomas More in A Man for All Seasons.  He has also been seen locally at California Shakespeare Theatre, San Jose Rep, Aurora Theatre, Marin Theatre Co., Center Rep, and The Magic Theatre.

*Member, Actors’ Equity Association

PRODUCTION TEAM

As artistic director of the Willows since 1986, director Richard Elliott has overseen the company’s growth from a small community theater to a nationally recognized professional LORT theater company, recipient of two NEA grants for the commission of new outdoor drama, and has overseen the development and production of more than 15 new plays and musicals.  Elliott has directed over 100 productions, garnered two Shellie awards, and won the Bay Area Theatre Critics Circle director’s award for the West Coast premiere of Brimstone.  He has produced and directed the acclaimed musical John Muir’s Mountain Days, based on the life of environmentalist John Muir, and is currently overseeing the development of a newly commissioned piece, Sacagawea.  Mr. Elliott is a past recipient of the Arts Recognition Award from the Arts & Cultural Commission of Contra Costa County.  He holds a B.A. in Theatre from West Virginia Wesleyan College and a Master’s of Fine Arts from the University of Arizona, where he was a guest director in 2005.

The design team for Noises Off includes Shaun Carroll (Properties & Set Dressing), Christopher Chesnut (Lighting & Sound), Tom Benson (Scenery), and Melissa Torchia (Costumes).  Jon M. Marshall* is production stage manager.  Matt Chang is assistant stage manager.

Ticket and Schedule Information

Tickets are $30-$35 with discounts for students (6-18), seniors (65+), and groups (10+).  To purchase tickets call (925) 798-1300 or visit the Willows Theatre Company Web site at www.willowstheatre.org.  Performances are Tuesday through Thursday at 7:30 p.m., Friday and Saturday at 8:00 p.m., and Sunday at 7:30 p.m., with matinees Wednesdays at 3:30 p.m., Saturdays at 2 p.m., and Sundays at 3 p.m.

The Willows Theatre is located at 1975 Diamond Blvd. next to CompUSA and REI in the Willows Shopping Center in Concord, across the street from the Concord Hilton and one block east of the Willow Pass Road exit off Highway 680.

The Willows Theatre Company daytime box office is located at 1425 Gasoline Alley, Concord, at the corner of Bisso Lane, one block north of Concord Avenue.  The daytime box office hours are Monday-Saturday 10 a.m. – 6 p.m. and Sunday Noon-5 p.m.  The theatre box office and will-call window, located in the theater lobby, opens one hour prior to each performance. For more information call (925) 798-1300.

Recipient of the 2002 Cyril Award of the San Francisco Business Arts Council for Nonprofit Arts Excellence, the Willows Theatre Company is led by Artistic Director Richard Elliott and Managing Director Andrew Holtz. The Willows Theatre Company 2005 sponsors are Rocco’s Pizzeria of Walnut Creek, Industrial Lumber of Martinez, Contra Costa Newspapers, Alphagraphics of Walnut Creek, The Crowne Plaza Concord, and US Bank (student/teacher discount ticket sponsor).