Published On: Wed, Jul 21st, 2021

Theatre Lab at FAU Announces 2021-22 Season

Boca Raton, FL – Theatre Lab, the professional resident company of Florida Atlantic University, will return to full programming for the 2021-22 season presenting a world premiere Heckscher Theatre for Families production, a three-play MainStage Series, including a regional and two world premieres, along with its acclaimed Playwright’s Forum and Masterclass series, and the annual Theatre Lab New Play Festival. For the first event of the season, the larger-than-life Heckscher Theatre for Families production of “The Impracticality of Modern-Day Mastodons”by Rachel Teagle will move to the University Theatre on the Boca Raton campus. The Mainstage Series, Playwright’s Forum, and New Play Festival will take place in the Heckscher Stage theater space in Parliament Hall. Tickets and season subscriptions are available at www.fauevents.com or by calling 561-297-6124.

“After 18 months of virtual programming, we’re all thrilled to be returning to in-person events, beginning in September with our Heckscher Theatre for Families production: ‘TheImpracticality of Modern-Day Mastodons,’” said Matt Stabile, Theatre Lab’s artistic director. “For this larger-than-life show, we’ll be moving to the University Theatre and are currently working with Jim Hammond [former puppet-master with Broadway’s ‘The Lion King’]to design and build a 10-foot-by-12-foot puppet.”

In addition to performances for school groups during the week, Theatre Lab will offer public performances of the show on Saturdays (2 p.m. and 7 p.m.) and Sundays (3 p.m.) in September. Presale tickets are $20 for adults (with prices going up to $25 on Sept. 1) and free to all students under 18 with a paid adult admission. Saturday afternoon performances will be followed by a free creative writing workshop for students ages 8 to 17. Students who take part in the workshop are eligible to apply to be part of our educational outreach program The Future PAGES Project.

The Main Stage season will begin with the long-awaited remount of the Covid-postponed southeastern premiere of “To Fall In Love” by Jennifer Lane.

“We had one preview of ‘To Fall in Love’ before the pandemic closed our doors for the season,” said Louis Tyrrell, founding director of Theatre Lab and director of the production. “We promised our ticket holders we would be back with this beautiful show and we’re so grateful to be able to open our 2021-22 Mainstage Season with the remount of this production, featuring real-life married couple Niki Fridh and our artistic director Matt Stabile.” 

The Main Stage Season rounds out with two world premiere productions. In February 2022, the playwright of 2020’s “The Glass Piano,” Alix Sobler, returns to Theatre Lab with her newest play “Last Night In Inwood.” This comedy about the end of the world was featured in the 2021 virtual reading series, New Plays for a New Year, and will be directed by Stabile.  In March 2022, local playwright Gina Montet will join Theatre Lab with the world premiere of her dark-comedic thriller “Overactive Letdown” directed by Margaret Ledford, the artistic director of City Theatre Miami. 

“From the beginning of the pandemic, we focused on our community and how we could be there to support the needs of local artists, educators and community members,” said Stabile.  “Those efforts were revisited upon us in astounding ways and we are looking ahead to a very bright future – with expanded programming, exciting collaborations, and bigger productions.”  

Mainstage Season subscriptions are $99 for all three plays. Season subscriptions can be purchased beginning Sunday, Aug.1. Individual tickets will go on sale in September. 

In addition to the Main Stage season, Theatre Lab will once again offer the Playwright’s Forum and MasterClass Series in October. The annual New Play Festival, a weekend of readings of new works with playwrights in attendance, returns Jan. 7-9, 2022 and will include a new play from Theatre Lab’s Fair Play Intiative, a commission and development program for LGBT plays and stories made possible by generous funding from Our Fund Foundation.  

2021-22 THEATRE LAB PRODUCTIONS:

Heckscher Theatre for Families Production

“The Impracticality of Modern-Day Mastodons”by Rachel Teagle

A World Premiere

Sept. 4-19

Directed by Matt Stabile

Suddenly all childhood dreams have come true, and the world is full of astronauts, ballerinas, cowboys and princesses. It’s a brave and glorious new world for everyone but Jess, who wanted to be a mastodon when she grew up. With the help of her friendly vocational adviser and her super-spy boyfriend, Jess embarks on a journey to find her place in the world and discover why it seems to be unraveling. An offbeat comedy about ambition, vocation and restlessness.

University Theatre Performances open to the public on:

Saturdays at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m.

Sundays at 3 p.m.

Presale tickets: $20 for adults. Ticket price will go up to $25 on Sept. 1.

Up to four children tickets (under 18) free with adult admission.

MAIN STAGE SEASON:

“To Fall In Love”by Jennifer Lane

A Southeastern Premiere

Preview Performance: Nov. 19

Run: Nov. 20 – Dec. 12

Directed by Louis Tyrrell

Featuring *Niki Fridh and *Matt Stabile

Scientists claim that anyone can fall in love simply by asking and honestly answering a specific series of 36 personal questions followed by four minutes of uninterrupted eye contact. But what if the goal is to fall in love again?  Can this exercise help Wyatt and Merryn save a marriage, splintered by tragedy? 

“Last Night In Inwood”by Alix Sobler

A World Premiere

Previews: Feb. 3 -4, 2022

Run: Feb. 5 – 27, 2022

Directed by Matt Stabile

A major disaster in Manhattan has everyone on the island looking for high ground. For Danny’s family and friends, that higher ground happens to be her one-bedroom apartment in Inwood. As the world outside goes to pieces, Danny tries to keep the peace among the assorted characters gathered in her space. They might make it through this crisis if they can manage to survive each other.

“Overactive Letdown” by Gina Montet

A World Premiere

Previews: March 24 – 25, 2022

Run: March 26 – April 10, 2022

Directed by Margaret Ledford

Married and in love, Christine and Mark are eagerly expecting their first child. When the birth doesn’t go as planned, Christine’s anxious mind escapes to an imaginary world crafted from the movies she loves. Maternal instincts elude her and she pulls away, losing her grip on reality as the fantasies take over. Overactive letdown is a revealing portrayal of motherhood and an intimate unveiling of the downward spiral of postpartum depression.  

ADDITIONAL EVENTS:

Playwright’s Forum and MasterClass Series

During October, Theatre Lab will once again welcome some of the nation’s most notable playwrights to share readings of their newest plays followed by a discussion about the work, their process, and the importance new-play development.  

New Play Festival

Jan. 7-9, 2022

Theatre Lab’s annual New Play Festivals continues their tradition of providing opportunities for emerging and established playwrights to showcase their work.  This event is your opportunity to get a sneak-peek at some of the shows that might end up on our stage next season! Each reading is accompanied by a post-show discussion, an opportunity to interact with the playwrights themselves, where they will discuss the process, inspiration and plans for future development.

Jan. 7 at 7:30 p.m.

Jan. 8 at noon, 3 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.

Jan. 9 at noon and 3 p.m.

For more information about Theatre Lab, visit www.fau.edu/theatrelab.

About Florida Atlantic University:

Florida Atlantic University, established in 1961, officially opened its doors in 1964 as the fifth public university in Florida. Today, the University serves more than 30,000 undergraduate and graduate students across six campuses located along the southeast Florida coast. In recent years, the University has doubled its research expenditures and outpaced its peers in student achievement rates. Through the coexistence of access and excellence, FAU embodies an innovative model where traditional achievement gaps vanish. FAU is designated a Hispanic-serving institution, ranked as a top public university by U.S. News & World Report and a High Research Activity institution by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. For more information, visit www.fau.edu.

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