The Clean House
Directed by F. Reed Brown
Written by Sarah Ruhl
Produced by special arrangement with Samuel French
Shows (Evenings at 7:30pm):
Fri. 7/10 - Sat. 7/11, Wed. 7/15 - Sat. 7/18, Wed. 7/22 - Sat. 7/25
This extraordinary new play by an exciting new voice in the American
drama was runner-up for the Pulitzer Prize. After its acclaimed
run at Yale Repertory Theatre it was done to equal acclaim at
several major theatres coast to coast before winding up off
Broadway at Lincoln Center, where it had an extended run. The
play takes place in what the author describes as "metaphysical
Connecticut", mostly in the home of a married couple who are
both doctors. They have hired a housekeeper named Matilde, an
aspiring comedian from Brazil who's more interested in coming up
with the perfect joke than in house-cleaning. Lane, the lady of
the house, has an eccentric sister named Virginia who's just nuts
about house-cleaning. This theatrical and wildly funny play is a whimsical
and poignant look at class, comedy and the true nature of love.
"Fresh, funny ... a memorable play, imbued with a melancholy but
somehow comforting philosophy: that the messes and disappointments
of life are as much a part of its beauty as romantic love and
chocolate ice cream, and a perfect punch line can be as sublime
as the most wrenchingly lovely aria." - NY Times.
"A rich work about big themes from a young playwright with an
original and audacious voice." - Variety.
"Casts a spell that had me hooked." - NY Daily News.
The Cast |
Matilde | Jess Silva |
Lane | Kathleen Loftus |
Virginia | Ginger Pierce |
Charles | Brian Allaire |
Anna | Vivian Jordan |
The Crew |
Director | F. Reed Brown |
Asst. Director | Jeff Maclay |
Costumes | Catherine Vigne |
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Brian Allaire
lives in Morrisville, working at Lamoille Union. He does
carpentry in my spare time for money. He's done many plays
with the Lamoille County Players, The Montpellier Theater
Guild, and one with The Valley Players. Having taken a
few years off to raise two boys, this is his first show
with The Festival Players. He enjoys most kinds of music,
most kinds of food, and is very fond of finding new forms of
punctuation! Charles happens to be his middle name, so he won't get confused.
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F. Reed Brown
Reed is thrilled to be returning to Waterbury to direct, having
staged last summer's Anton In Show Business. He is an actor,
director and the Artistic Director of the Freed-Yorick
Theatre Ensemble. The co-founder of the Ozark Actors Theatre,
an Equity theatre located at the University of Missouri-Rolla
where he directed and/or designed over 60 productions during
his 14 years as artistic director there. He was the
original Hamlet in the U.S. premiere production of Heiner Muller's
Hamletmachine with the Freiese Theatre of Munich. Reed
is very thankful to have ventured to Vermont where he met his wonderful fiance, Kate.
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Vivian Jordan
has performed in NJ, NYC and VT. She made her directorial
debut last year at Essex Community Players with both
versions of The Odd Couple (male & female) that ran on
alternating nights. She is also a standardized patient
and teaching asst. at UVM College of Medicine, where she
portrays various illnesses (yes, like the Seinfeld episode).
This is her first show with Waterbury Festival Players;
she is delighted to have the wonderfully complex role of Ana.
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Jeff Maclay
is a Free & Accepted Mason and currently a theatre major at Johnson State College.
He has aspirations building a rocket entirely out of legos that can safely transport
a live simian into the upper atmosphere, and enjoys his time on the stage like no other.
He has worked with WFP before in "Rough Crossing" as Adam, as well as performing at JSC
in "Big Love" (with Reed Brown directing) as Aeolus. This is his first time stage
managing, however, and he has found the experience quite an adventure. He hopes to
continue his career and work with WFP more in the future. Enjoy the show!
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Kathleen Loftus
is enjoying her eighth summer in Morrisville and is delighted to be working at
WFP. She has performed in many summerstock and Boston area theatres. Recently
she played Mrs. Van Daan in Diary of Anne Frank at Quarryworks. During the
academic year she teaches reading to dyslexic students at Kildonan School,
which, along with taking care of her three kids, keeps her very busy!
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Ginger Pierce
whose given name is Virginia, and has a sister Elaine, may find The Clean House a
little too close to home. A veteran of WFP she is looking forward to playing a
part a little out of character in Other People’s Money. She continues to enjoy
operating the WFP with her loving husband George.
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Jess Silva
hails from Hudson, Mass., though her family roots from Portugal. She recently performed
at the Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center playing Emily Dickinson in Reed Brown's
production of Voices. She has touched upon visual arts, dance and music, but her
heart was stolen when she discovered live theater. She is thrilled to be working on
The Clean House along with this amazing ensemble. Bejinhos!
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Catherine Vigne
is from Monkton, Vermont. She has worked on many shows in many theaters,
including the Goodspeed Opera House, North Shore Music Theater, and the
Breadloaf School of English. Her previous designs include No End of
Blame (PTP/NYC), The Five Hysterical Girls Theorem, In the Blood,
In a Pig's Valise, and Vampire (Middlebury College). She was also
associate designer on The Bewitched (Middlebury College), with which she
traveled to Fitchburg, MA and the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC.
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