KINGSTON, R.I. –Febuary 10, 2010 –The University of Rhode Island Department of Theatre will present David Ives’ version of George Feydeau’s farce A Flea In Her Ear.
The play is considered one of the greatest French farces, perhaps the greatest farce ever written.
Admission is $16 for the general public, $12 for senior citizens and URI faculty/staff and $10 for students. Tickets can be purchased by calling 401.874.5843 or online at www.uri.edu/theatre.
The play will be performed in the Robert E. Will Theatre, Fine Arts Center, 105 Upper College Road, Kingston Campus. It runs Feb. 25 through 27 and March 4 through 6 at 7:30 p.m., and Feb. 28 and March 7 at 3 p.m.
Raymonde Chandebise suspects that her husband, Victor, a placid and successful insurance executive, is secretly having an affair. To find out, she and her friend Lucienne write him an anonymous love letter suggesting a rendezvous at the shady Frisky Puss Hotel.
Thinking the letter was intended for his coworker, the gigolo Tournel, Victor sends Tournel off to make the rendezvous in his place. Meanwhile, Lucienne’s jealous Spanish husband shows up with pistols and Camille, Victor’s nephew, fails to warn everyone due to his ridiculous speech impediment.
The winner of the 2006 Jefferson Award for best adaptation, the play offers “…a hilarious evening of classic comedy,” according to the Chicago Critic.
The production will be directed by Alan Hawkridge, (The Foreigner, Amadeus and Les Liaisons Dangereuses), costume design by Associate Professor David T. Howard (The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, Little Women, The Merchant of Venice), scenic design by visiting guest artist Katryne Hecht, lighting design by visiting guest artist and URI alum Matthew Terry, and sound design by guest artist Michael Hyde.
Members of the cast, their characters, and hometowns are:
Cast, Character, Hometown
Erick Betancourt, Owner of Frisky Puss, Johnston
Collin Brown, Rugby, Saunderstown
Albert Coelho, Homenides, East Providence
Jesse Dufault, Tournel, Narragansett
Benjamin Grills, Victor Emmanuel Chandebise, Westerly
Kira Hawkridge, Eugenie, Pawtucket
Michael Puppi, Camille, Narragansett
Betsy Rinaldi, Lucienne, Coventry
Benjamin Rose, Dr. Finache, Charlestown
Hillary Scofield, Antoinette, Exeter
Johnny Sederquist, Baptiste, Middleboro, Mass.
Caitlin Tango, Olympia, Ridgefield, Conn.
Katie Travers, Raymond Chandebise, Franklin, Mass.
Birk Wozniak, Etienne, North Kingstown
Pictured above
URI students (from left) Ben Grills of Westerly, Katie Travers of Franklin, Mass., Jesse Dufault of Narragansett, Betsy Rinaldi of Coventry, and Albert Coelho of East Providence star in URI Theatre’s production of A Flea in Her Ear. URI Theatre photo by Randy Osga.