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By popular demand, a revival of our award-winning production from last summer

Yasmina Reza's

The Unexpected Man

   


Press Release

Click here to download this press release as a Microsoft Word document
 
August 30, 2010

For Immediate Release

Ken Ruta to revive Award-Winning Performance in Yasmina Reza’s ironic comedy, The Unexpected Man, with Veteran Bay Area actress Susan Maeder

Stephen Drewes directs the Spare Stage production at EXIT Theater October 29 – November 14, 2010

San Francisco — In response to overwhelming audience interest, Spare Stage will revive Yasmina Reza’s The Unexpected Man with renowned local actor Ken Ruta, joined by veteran Bay Area actress Susan Maeder. The initial run during the summer of 2009 played to sold-out houses at the Exit Theatre, earning rave reviews and winning several Bay Area Theatre Critics Circle Awards, including Best Actor for Ruta and Best Director for Stephen Drewes. Critics described it as “a gem not to be missed” and “highly gratifying … a literary and theatrical affirmation”.

Ruta, perhaps best known for his many roles at ACT, is a huge fan of playwright Yasmina Reza. “I saw Art three times. Her writing is amazing. This [The Unexpected Man] is a play you have to listen to. And it’s about a man who is getting old. Perfect for me!”

Both plays were translated from the French by Christopher Hampton, whose deft touch serves the playwright well. Hampton, himself a playwright, penned the recent Broadway hit, The Philanthropist.

Susan Maeder settled in Mendocino in 1981, after living abroad for several years. She has been cast in dozens of leading roles at the Mendocino Theatre Company and Warehouse Rep, and has written and performed two one-woman shoes, Black Tulips (1994 & 1996) and Singing Back (2008). Her volume of poetry “White Song” was published by the Pot Shard Press in 1998. She recently performed in Spare Stage’s production of The Breath of Life by David Hare.

In The Unexpected Man, the pair find themselves in a compartment on a train heading from Paris to Frankfurt. She instantly recognizes him – isn’t his very face on the back of the book she’s carrying in her bag? He is oblivious of her. Their interior monologues, heard by the audience, reveal contrasts in comedic obsession; she, urgent, focused entirely on the famous author; he, laconic, worried about his digestion and his daughter’s loathsome fiancé. The play is an oddly compelling study of the relationship between writers and their readers, between a man and a woman, and between (almost) strangers on a train.

Yasmina Reza, French playwright, novelist and screenwriter, began her career as an actress, appearing in new plays as well as works by Moliere and Marivaux. In 1995 her play Art premiered in Paris to become a world-wide sensation, performed in 30 languages. The playwright’s recent Broadway hit, God of Carnage, received numerous awards and multiple Tony nominations, including best play.

The British première of The Unexpected Man was on April 8, 1998, performed by the Royal Shakespeare Company with Eileen Atkins and Michael Gambon. It enjoyed successful productions in England, Germany and New York.

The San Francisco premiere was directed by Spare Stage’s Artistic Director, Stephen Drewes. The highly anticipated revival of The Unexpected Man opens October 29 and runs through November 14, 2010 on the main stage at the EXIT Theatre.

Spare Stage is a company devoted to exceptional scripts and simplicity of production, with Drewes as Artistic Director. They launched their first full season with the US premiere of Michael Frayn’s 1993 comedy Here, eliciting positive reviews and sold-out shows at the EXIT Theatre.

Drewes launched his career at Berkeley Rep in 1970 and went on to a 40-year career as a professor of theatre arts, actor, and stage director.

This production of The Unexpected Man is supported by a generous grant from The Columbia Foundation.

Media Contact: Anna Schlegel: 415-309-8950 or annaschlegel@hotmail.com





Production Information
The PlayThe Unexpected Man
The AuthorYasmina Reza
The DirectorStephen Drewes
The CastKen Ruta (Paul)
Susan Maeder (Martha)
The VenueThe Exit Theatre
156 Eddy Street (between Mason & Taylor Streets)
San Francisco
Opening NightFriday, October 29, 2010 (no previews)
Performance DatesOctober 29 - November 14
Tickets$25 General
$18 Students, Seniors, TBA Members

to be available beginning October 1 through Brown Paper Tickets:
1-800-838-3006 or www.brownpapertickets.com

Websitewww.sparestage.org
Synopsis of Play A famous author and one of his fans find themselves in a compartment on a train heading from Paris to Frankfurt. She instantly recognizes him – isn’t his very face on the back of the book she’s carrying in her bag? He is oblivious of her. Their interior monologues, heard by the audience, reveal contrasts in comedic obsession; she, urgent, focused entirely on the famous author; he, laconic, worried about his digestion and his daughter’s loathsome fiancé. The play is an oddly compelling study of the relationship between writers and their readers, between a man and a woman, and between (almost) strangers on a train.


   
Downloadable Photos
Photographs by Peter Prato

Ken Ruta and Susan Maeder
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Ken Ruta and Susan Maeder
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Ken Ruta and Susan Maeder
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Susan Maeder and Ken Ruta
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Ken Ruta and Susan Maeder
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