Zuppa Theatre at the Graduate Centre for Study of Drama

[Bruce Barton]

The Graduate Centre for Study of Drama, University of Toronto, is  
hosting Halifax's Zuppa Theatre Company as its Artists-in-Residence  
this semester, and we're excited to be offering they're latest  
production to Toronto and area audiences.  Having just concluded a  
successful run at Halifax's Neptune Theatre (which commissioned the  
project), the company opens _Poor Boy_ at the Drama Centre's Glen  
Morris Studio Theatre this Thursday, March 19, for a 4 show run.  We  
hope that any of you within commuting distance will take advantage of  
this chance to see one of the East Coast's theatrical wonders.

The production press release follows.

Bruce

***

Zuppa Theatre Company’s
Poor Boy

“A glorious crash of pop style and melancholy beauty unfurling beneath  
a vinyl sky, Poor
Boy is a new benchmark for Zuppa, but every show is—ten years in, this  
peerless company
is as innovative, as inspirational and as breathtaking as when it  
began.”
-Tara Thorne, CBC Radio

"[a] highly atmospheric and theatrical production
full of brilliant and startling visual imagery ... and rich,  
melancholic music."
-Elissa Barnard, The Chronicle Herald

The Graduate Centre for Study of Drama is pleased to present Zuppa  
Theatre Company’s Poor Boy, playing at the Studio Theatre from March  
19th to 22nd.

Pop sensation Sherman Oakes has lost his lover, experimental art rock  
diva Ella Savant. Wallowing in despair, he sets off on a pilgrimage to  
the hotel in which she died with the music of an uncompleted album  
rattling in his head. He is pursued by a persistent manager,  
determined to see his superstar return to the top of the charts.  
Sherman nosedives into self-delusion and self-destruction but, in his  
comically absurd and desperately tragic plummet, the people he meets  
and the people who follow him won't let him forget the life is trying  
to escape.

Hailed by The Coast as “Halifax’s most inventive theatre company,”  
Zuppa Theatre is back with a free adaptation of the myth of Orpheus  
and Eurydice. Poor Boy takes Zuppa’s signature experiments with music  
and theatre to the next level to create what is best described as a  
“pop music fantasia.” Developed collaboratively, in stages, over an 18- 
month period, the play features Zuppa’s ground-breaking approach to  
performance and the talents of its ensemble members, who act, sing,  
play instruments, and engage in impressive physical stage work. This  
limited engagement at the Studio Theatre comes on the heels of a  
successful run at the Neptune Theatre in Halifax.

Boldly original and always entertaining, Poor Boy showcases the  
artistry of one of Canada’s most innovative physical theatre  
companies. Poor Boy is directed by Alex McLean with original music by  
Jason MacIsaac and David Christensen, dramaturgy by Bruce Barton,  
costume design by Leesa Hamilton and lighting design by Louisa  
Adamson. The ensemble cast features Claire Gallant, Susan Leblanc- 
Crawford, Stewart Legere, Kathryn McCormack and Ben Stone.
March 19th to 22nd

Thu to Sat, 8pm, Sun at 2pm

Studio Theatre

4 Glen Morris Street

Tickets: $20/$15 seniors/$10 students

Box Office: 416-978-7986 or at the door

http://www.graddrama.utoronto.ca/ or http://www.zuppatheatre.com

For interview requests or any other information please contact:

Michelle MacArthur @ 416-978-7986 or reply to this email
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