British Romantic Comedy to Get New England Premiere at Barrington Stage

Brooke Bloom and Ryan King in 'Lungs'

(PITTSFIELD, Mass.) – What is the future for romantic comedy in a dystopian era? What happens to a young couple embarking on their future, planning a family, when the very existence of the planet they live on is in jeopardy? And how can you entertain and provoke an audience by staging a drama about these issues? Such will be the challenge when Barrington Stage Company kicks off its 2012 season with the New England premiere of British playwright Duncan Macmillan’s acclaimed new two-character drama, Lungs, inaugurating the newly named St. Germain Stage (formerly Stage 2) from May 23 through June 10.

Directed by Aaron Posner (BSC’s My Name Is Asher Lev), Lungs stars Brooke Bloom and Ryan King in their Barrington Stage debuts.

Lungs tells the story of a young couple contemplating having a child in a world of global anxiety and political unrest. If they overthink it, they’ll never do it. But if they rush, it could be a disaster. What will be the first to destruct – the planet or the relationship?

Lungs received a world premiere at Washington, D.C.’s Studio Theatre in September 2011, where it inaugurated their Studio Lab series. Under the

Brooke Bloom

direction of Aaron Posner, the Washington Post called it “smart and stimulating.” The Helen Hayes Awards recently nominated Lungs for a Charles MacArthur Award for Best New Play or Musical.

Duncan Macmillan (playwright) is a multi-award winning writer and director. His plays include Platform (Old Vic Tunnels); Monster (Manchester Royal Exchange/Manchester International Festival); The Most Humane Way to Kill A Lobster (Theatre 503); Sleeve Notes (various); This One’s for You, Hula Girl (Old Vic New Voices 24 Hour Plays); I Wish To Apologise For My Part In The Apocalypse; So Say All of Us; and Family Tree (all BBC Radio 4). He has served as the Writer-in-Residence at Paines Plough and the Royal Exchange, and has completed attachments at the National Theatre and the Royal Court/BBC. Macmillan is a member of the Old Vic New Voices Company and a fellow of the TS Eliot UK/US Exchange, as part of which his play Skyscraper was performed at the Public Theater in New York.

Performances of Lungs will take place at Barrington Stage Company’s St. Germain Stage (formerly Stage 2) located on the upper level of the Sydelle and Lee Blatt Performing Arts Center, 36 Linden Street, Pittsfield, from May 23 through June 10. The performance schedule is Tuesday through Friday at 7:30pm, Saturday at 4pm and 8pm, and Sunday at 3pm.  There is an additional performance on Thursday, June 7 at 3pm.  Please note the Saturday evening performance on May 26 is at 7:30pm.  Tickets are $15-$39; with preview prices of $15 on May 23 & 24. Special discounts are available for groups of 10 or more. To purchase tickets or for more information, call the Barrington Stage Box Office at 413-236-8888 or visit Barrington Stage Company. The Box Office is located at 30 Union Street.

 

Ryan King

CONVERSATIONS WITH…The Actor at the Center with BSC Artistic Director Julianne Boyd and the cast of Lungs, takes place on Friday, May 25 at 4:30pm at the St. Germain Stage (formerly Stage 2), 36 Linden Street, Pittsfield. Join Brooke Bloom and Ryan King to discuss the process of bringing to life their characters in this actor-centric production. Free (reservations recommended).

Barrington Stage Company, a professional award-winning Equity regional theatre located in the heart of the Berkshires, in Pittsfield, MA, was co-founded in 1995 by Artistic Director Julianne Boyd. Barrington Stage’s mission is three-fold: to present top-notch, compelling work; to develop new plays and musicals; and to find fresh, bold ways to bringing new audiences into the theatre — especially young people. Barrington Stage garnered national attention in 2004 when it workshopped, and premiered William Finn and Rachel Sheinkin’s musical hit The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, which later transferred to Broadway’s Circle-in-the-Square Theatre where it won two Tony Awards and played more than 1,000 performances. In 2009/2010 Barrington Stage produced the world premiere of Mark St. Germain’s Freud’s Last Session, which later moved Off-Broadway to the Marjorie S. Deane Little Theater and then to New World Stages and has played more than 600 performances. Barrington Stage was voted “Best Live Theatre” by the Berkshire Eagle readers in 2011 and was named “Best Theatre Company” in Metroland’s Best of the Capital Region 2009-2011.

 

 

 

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