Vermont Theatre Festival
Incorporated 1979




Unadilla Theatre



2011



Season











Iolanthe

by

Arthur Sullivan and William S. Gilbert

Iolanthe", or "The Peer and the Peri", opened at the Savoy Theatre on November 25, 1882, three nights after the final performance of Patience at the same theatre, and ran for 398 performances. Gilbert had taken pot shots at the aristocracy before, but in this "fairy opera," the House of Lords is lampooned as a bastion of the ineffective, privileged and dim-witted. The political party system and other institutions also come in for a dose of satire. Yet, both author and composer managed to couch the criticism among such bouncy, amiable absurdities that it is all received as good fun. Both Gilbert and Sullivan were at the height of their creative powers in 1882, and many people feel that Iolanthe, their seventh work together, is the most perfect of their collaborations. Strephon, an Arcadian shepherd, wants to marry Phyllis, a Ward of Chancery. Phyllis does not know that Strephon is half fairy (his upper half — his legs are mortal!) and when she sees Strephon kissing a seemingly young woman, she assumes the worst. But her "rival" turns out to be none other than Strephon's own mother, Iolanthe, a fairy — fairies never grow old. But Phyllis' guardian, the Lord Chancellor, and half the peers in the House of Lords are sighing after her. Soon the peers and the fairies are virtually at war, and long friendships are nearly torn asunder. But all is happily sorted out, thanks to the "subtleties of the legal mind".











Woman in Black



Susan Hill


Fog, haunted houses, supernatural happenings, and dark apparitions form a terrifying specter in THE WOMAN IN BLACK. A grieving lawyer believes a curse has been cast over him by the ghost of a woman in black. The play has been on the boards continuously in London since 1989. The second longest running play in the world.









Birdsong



Sebastian Faulks



Based on Sebastian Faulks's best-selling novel, Birdsong tells the story of one man's journey through an all consuming love affair and into the horror of the First World War.While staying as the guest of a factory owner in pre-First World War France, Stephen Wraysford embarks on a passionate affair with Isabelle, the wife of his host.The affair changes them both for ever. A beautiful and haunting story about love, courage and the endurance of the human spirit Throughout the play there are echos of Siegfried Sassoon and Wilfred Owen.





Wanderlust


Nick Payne




Joy is a married woman, a GP, and struggling to remain interested in sex. Her husband Alan, however, thinks of little else. And their teenage son Tim is ready to burst. Nick Payne's frank, compassionate and open play about sex and intimacy - and whether the two have any relation one to the other.




Design for Living




Noel Coward





Design for Living, Noel Coward’s comedy about a transatlantic ménage à trois, takes the audience on the theatrical equivalent of a grand tour. Coward's three lead characters--Gilda, Otto, and Leo--arrange and rearrange themselves into differently configured relationships as they move restlessly from Paris to London to New York.



The Railway Children




Edith Nesbit








This story follows the adventures of the Waterbury children. who are forced to move when their father, who works at the Foreign office, is imprisoned, falsely, for selling state secrets to the Russians. With their mother they move from a luxurious Edwardian villa in the London suburbs to a house near the railway in the Yorkshire dales. The three children, Roberta (Bobbie) , Phylllis and Peter, find amusement in watching the trains on the nearby railway line and waving to the passengers. They become friendly with the station porter, and with the Old Gentleman who regularly takes the 9:15 down train. Meanwhile, to earn money to survive during her husband's absence, Mother writes and sells stories to magazines. After many adventures Bobbie eventually discovers the truth of her father's absence. He is eventually able to help prove their father's innocence, and the family is reunited. This 1903 children's story is rarely absent from theatres in the UK. A 2010 production at Waterloo Station was a sensation.




The Cherry Orchard


Anton Chekhov






The Children of the Unadilla present this famous Russian classic. Chekhov’s comedy proves that boredom has never been so riveting. Following up on last summer's Uncle Vanya.
































Regular Theatre Tickets: Adults $20, Children 12 and under $10










Parents with small children are asked to use discretion before bringing them to adult plays. Please call the box office if you are in doubt. Babes-in-arms cannot be admitted.



Curtain Time 7:30 Sharp

Reservations and Information: 802-456-8968 or at : unadilla@pshift.com








501 Blachly Road
Marshfield Vermont 05658




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Directions From Montpelier: take Rt 2 East to East Montpelier, then Rt 14 North to North Montpelier. One mile North of North Montpelier turn right on Max L. Gray Road and follow it for 5 miles to the theatre.
From St Johnsbury: Go to Marshfield Villege on Rt 2 West. In Marshfield Village turn right on Creamery St (sign East Calais) Go up hill bearing left onto the Calais Road. At third 4 corners turn right on East Hill Road. Follow to Blachly Road and the theatre.