What happens when a conservative senatorial aid, a liberal political activist, and a newly-crowned Miss Georgia walk into a bar? The results are hilarious, but this play is no joke. Lauren Gunderson’s THE TAMING takes on America’s overheated political rhetoric, some surprising truths about our founding fathers, and the passions of three slightly insane women who just might be revolutionary geniuses.
Written by Lauren Gunderson. Directed by Marissa Wolf.
THE TAMING marks Lauren Gunderson’s return to Crowded Fire with this commission after the wildly successful 2011 world premiere of her rollicking EXIT, PURSUED BY A BEAR (the first full Gunderson production in the Bay Area) which has had many productions regionally and nationally. “We were eager to work with Lauren again,” said Crowded Fire Artistic Director Marissa Wolf. “She writes with such startling humor and breathtaking poignancy, and her use of sharp, nuanced language is a splendid fit with Crowded Fire’s aesthetic. Lauren’s plays always offer rich roles for women and give tremendous agency to underrepresented female voices in both a modern context and throughout history. It’s a match made in heaven.”
Initially inspired by The Taming of The Shrew, Gunderson’s farce THE TAMING grew out of her desire to wrestle with potent elements inside the Bard’s playful and problematic battle of the sexes. Inside the heightened, cheerfully absurd world of THE TAMING Gunderson spanks America’s sound bite politics with the switch of actual history and proves Shakespeare’s point that true debate is hot. Hey, y’all, can we talk? THE TAMING features actors Marilet Martinez, Marilee Talkington and Kathryn Zdan with dramaturgy by Laura Brueckner.
Lauren Gunderson (THE TAMING) Lauren Gunderson is an award-winning playwright living in San Francisco. She studied at Emory University and NYU’s Tisch School of Performing Arts, where she was a Reynolds Fellow in Social Entrepreneurship. Her work has been produced and developed at companies across the U.S., including South Coast Rep (EMILIE, SILENT SKY), The Kennedy Center (THE AMAZING ADVENTURES OF DR. WONDERFUL AND HER DOG!), Playwrights Foundation, The Lark, and The O’Neill (FIRE WORK). EMILIE: LA MARQUISE DU CHATELET DEFENDS HER LIFE TONIGHT is published with Sam French. The first play in her Shakespeare Series, EXIT, PURSUED BY A BEAR is published with playscripts. Her second in the Shakes Series, TOIL AND TROUBLE, premiered last year at Impact. BY AND BY will premiere at Shotgun Players this May. She is currently under commission with SF Playhouse, Crowded Fire, and South Coast Rep and is working on a musical with Harry Connick Jr. She has spoken nationally and internationally on the intersection of science and theater. She is a Playwright in Residence at The Playwrights Foundation, and a proud Dramatists Guild member. More on Lauren here: www.LaurenGunderson.com
Marissa Wolf (Director) Artistic Director of Crowded Fire Theater, Wolf’s recent directing credits include PRECIOUS LITTLE by Madeleine George at Shotgun Players (2012 Top Ten list in the SF Chronicle), and the West Coast Premieres of THE BEREAVED by Thomas Bradshaw and SONGS OF THE DRAGONS FLYING TO HEAVEN by Young Jean Lee (nominated Best Director by Broadway World San Francisco and the Bay Area Critics Circle Award) with Crowded Fire Theater. She has directed at The Magic, Cutting Ball Theatre, Shotgun Players, Vanguardian Productions, and Playwrights Foundation. Wolf previously held the Bret C. Harte Directing Internship at Berkeley Rep for two years, where she assisted renowned directors, including Tony Taccone, Les Waters, Lisa Peterson, Frank Galati, and Mary Zimmerman. Marissa has her degree in drama from Vassar College, and received additional training at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London.
Runs: October 3-26, 2013 Press Night Monday October 7, 8 pm (Previews October 3, 4, & 5)
At: Thick House, 1695 18th St., SF (between Carolina St.& Arkansas St. in Potrero Hill )
Performances: Wed-Saturdays 8 PM Special Opening Night Monday October 7, 8 pm
Note: No performance Wed.October 9
Tickets: Prices range from $10-$35 progressively during the course of the run.
We offer Pay-What-You-Can Preview performances and student/senior/group rates.
Visit www.crowdedfire.org for more information and to purchase tickets.
Box Office by phone (415) 746-9238
Join us for the TalkBack!!
October 16th — “Beauty & Power” with Mira Veda, Rachel Roberts, and playwright Lauren Gunderson
Mira Veda, Editor-In-Chief and founder of Lipstick and Politics- (L&P), Artist, Activist, Blogger and Entrepreneur who also blogs for the Huffington Post. She is Head of Communications at Connected Patents, a company focused on strategic IP development. As an Artist/Songwriter, Mira has been on the board of the Grammys and co-chair of membership committee. She serves on board of West Coast Songwriters. @miraveda
Rachel Roberts, Digital Director at Juice Beauty, has spent the last decade launching and managing luxury spas and skincare brands, giving her a unique perspective on the myths, misconceptions and marketing tactics within the beauty industry, and their impact on women’s lives.
Get your tickets for THE TAMING here! 