Mark Taper Form Season 2014

THE EPIC SONG OF PAUL ROBESON

By DANIEL BEATy

MADNESS +MAyHEM

JOE ORTON STyLE

LIFE ANDDEATH 2.0

PLUS A CHRISTOPHER

PLUMMERSPECIAL EVENT!

AT THE HEART OF EVERy STORy 2014 SEASON

THREE SIBLINGS. ONE HOT MESS!

FUNNy GIRL? FUNNy PLAy!

SCANDAL AT THE VATICAN WITH DAVID SUCHET!

6 show pack age starts at$136

Mark Taper Forum

ThIS Taper SeaSon openS anD CLoSeS WITh a BanG: hilarious farces from two of the most brilliantly twisted comedic minds at the top of their game. and in between: some of the most intrepid and compelling new drama in america and the u.K.

all these theatrical offerings are classic Taper: with extraordinary, fascinating characters at the heart of every story. and there’s no better way to enjoy them than in this intimate forum with its immediate rapport between actor and audience.

If there’s a thematic through-line for this season, it’s dialogue.not just the brilliantly crafted dialogue that resonates from the stage, but the dialogue that happens once the curtain goes down.

These plays don’t just start a conversation. They demand it. With hotbed themes like race, religion, class, betrayal, sexual politics and the ultimate controversial topic: family.

and you’re right there in the middle of it all: at the heart of every story.

We’re especially excited to welcome back the legendary Christopher plummer in a limited run of his new solo work that was the buzz of last season’s Stratford Festival. Ticket demand will be high, so subscribing is the best way to secure your seats for this extraordinary event.

Michael ritchie artistic Director

Laughter on the outside, powerful drama on the inside.

LIVE THEIR STORIES.BREATHE

THEIR FIRE.

Mar

k Tap

er F

orum

LIVE THEIR STORIES.BREATHE

THEIR FIRE.

one simple call is all it takes to GeT The ConVerSaTIon GoInG. 213.972.4444

Christopher Plummer in

A Word Or Two photo by david hou.

WInner! Tony aWarD BeST pLay

Vanya and Sonia and Masha and SpikeBy Christopher DurangDirected by Nicholas MartinJan 29 – Mar 9, 2014 The epIC SonG oF pauL roBeSon

The Tallest Tree in the ForestWritten & Performed by Daniel BeatyDirected by Moisés KaufmanWorld Premiere ProductionApr 15 – May 25, 2014 DaVID BrIanSuCheT BeDForD

The Last ConfessionBy Roger CraneDirected by Jonathan ChurchJun 7 – Jul 6, 2014Ahmanson Theatre Top neW yorK CrITICS’ pICK

Buyer & CellarFeaturing Michael urieA new comedy By Jonathan TolinsDirected by Stephen BrackettJul 9 – Aug 17, 2014

unForGeTTaBLe neW DraMa

Marjorie primeBy Jordan HarrisonDirected by Pam MacKinnonWith Lois SmithWorld PremiereSep 10 – Oct 19, 2014 MaDCap BrITISh FarCe

What the Butler SawBy Joe OrtonDirected by John TillingerWith Paxton WhiteheadNov 12 – Dec 21, 2014 BonuS opTIonS at the ahmanson Theatre a Very SpeCIaL eVenTChrISTopher pLuMMer

a Word or TwoWritten, Arranged andPerformed by Christopher PlummerDirected by Des McAnuffJan 19 – Feb 9, 2014 he SeT The DanCeWorLD on FIre

Matthew Bourne’sSleeping BeautyA Gothic RomanceMusic by TchaikovskyNov 21 – Dec 1, 2013

Mark Taper Forum 2014

“If everyone took antidepres sants, Chekhov

would have had nothing to write about.”

—Sonia in Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike

three siblings.

one hot

mess.

“ A ZAnY JoY!”

—AP

“ riotous!”—New York Post

“ hugelY entertAining!”

—USA Today

“ A ComiC tour

De ForCe.”—The Village Voice

“ A sublime stAte oF

hilAritY!”—New York Magazine

“ DeliriouslY

FunnY! the theater erupts in

booming gusts of

laughter that practically

shake the seats.”

—The New York Times

RegRet and sibling RivalRy fan the flames of laughter in this wickedly wonderful Chekhovian mash-up that equally tickles both the theatre neophyte and the ardent student of the russian classics.

Melancholy turns into mayhem when Vanya and his stepsister Sonia — along with their clairvoyant housekeeper Cassandra — are paid a surprise visit by hollywood star sibling Masha and her twenty-something boy toy Spike.

Will Vanya and Sonia ever find happiness? Will Masha sell the Bucks County farmhouse out from under them? and will Spike ever put his pants on? Master absurdist Christopher Durang (Sister Mary Ignatius Explains It All for You) turns farce into high art, when the original Broadway director returns to the Taper for this smash comedy.

“If everyone took antidepres sants, Chekhov

would have had nothing to write about.”

—Sonia in Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike

a CLaSSICaL GaS! Jan 29 – Mar 9, 2014 CenterTheatreGroup.org/Taper

By Christopher DurAngDirected by niCholAs mArtin

Winner! 2013 tonY AWArD

®

For best plAY

Written and Performed by

DanIeL BeaTyDirected by

MoISéS KauFManWorLD preMIere

proDuCTIon

The Kansas City Repertory Theatre/La Jolla Playhouse Production in association

with Tectonic Theatre Project

Paul Robeson was boRn the son of a Runaway slave and died “the most well known black man in the world.” obie award-winning writer and performer Daniel Beaty chronicles his remarkable life in an extraordinary theatrical biography. embodying not only robeson but also dozens of international personalities who crossed robeson’s path, Beaty fills the theatre with the dreams, words and songs (american classics like Ol’ Man River) of a man who sacrificed everything in the name of liberty.

We marvel at robeson’s triumphs — all-american linebacker and valedictorian while at rutgers, nFL linebacker while in Columbia Law School, and eventually international star of stage and screen (Showboat; the longest running Othello in Broadway history) — and we gasp at the indignities he suffered as a civil rights and labor rights activist during the McCarthy era.

This remarkable play with music provided by a live combo on stage is a powerful, unflinching account of a minister’s son who became the voice of the everyman around the world, daring to speak up and sing out for what was right.

“I am the third Negro ever to attend Rutgers University. And the way these white students are staring at me, I instantly wonder if the other two made it out alive.” —paul robeson in The Tallest Tree in the Forest

6 show pack agestarts at$136

a LarGer-Than-LIFe LIFe STory apr 15 – May 25, 2014 CenterTheatreGroup.org/Taper

Rome, 1978. a little-known country priest is crowned pope John paul I in an uneasy compromise. Thirty-three days later, “the Smiling pope” is found dead: the very day after he has threatened changes in the Vatican and the removal of three hostile Cardinals from their posts. no investigation or autopsy is performed, and a Vatican press release about the cause of death is later proven to be, in large part, false.

Inspired by these facts, Crane spins a fascinating piece of dramatic fiction, delving into the world’s most highly guarded institution. The Last Confession imagines what actually occurred in the Vatican’s inner chambers as seen through the eyes of Cardinal Benelli, the man who engineered John paul’s ascent.

Direct from London on a world tour to Canada, australia, South africa and Los angeles, this provocative thriller explores the machinations of power amid crises of faith and the struggle to conceal the truth at any cost.

The epic international cast of 20 is led by emmy award® Winner David Suchet (as hercule poirot in Agatha Christie's Poirot) and Tony award® winner Brian Bedford.

BY ROGER CRANEDIRECTED BY

JONAthAN ChuRCh

“INTELLIGENT & PROVOCATIVE, SATISFyINGLy

COMPLEx.”—London Evening Standard

Taperat the

ahmanson

“BRILLIANT tale of venom in the Vatican.”

—London Telegraph

Taper SeaSon MeMBerS

Season ticket members at the Mark Taper

Forum will receive top priority attention for prime seating in the

ahmanson. Section a+ members will be seated in premium orchestra, Sections a and B+ in preferred orchestra

and Section B in Mid-orchestra.

this page: The cast of the London production of The Last Confession. facing page: David Suchet and Brian Bedford. photos by john haynes

6 show pack agestarts at$136

a SCanDaLouS MySTery Jun 7 – Jul 6, 2014 CenterTheatreGroup.org/Taper

“Bless me father for I have sinned. I have killed the

Emissary of God.” —Cardinal Benelli in The Last Confession

thE ChiChEstER FEstivAl thEAtRE pROduCtiON

at the ahmanson Theatre

6 show pack agestarts at$136

featuring

from “Ugly Betty”

a new comedy by

Jonathantolinsdirected by

stephenBrackett

if you've eveR wondeRed what goes on in the basement shopping mall beneath a certain prominent Malibu residence, you’re not alone.

playwright Jonathan Tolins (Twilight of the Golds) and actor Michael urie (Ugly Betty) team up for a fabulously fictitious imagining of what might transpire when an underemployed hollywood actor finds the ultimate retail gig: sole sales clerk (and eventual confidant) to a mega-star in her subterranean sanctum sanctorum teeming with treasured mementos, career collectibles and a frozen yogurt machine.

The Funny Girl meets one funny boy when urie animates the stage with a cast of characters above and below ground: taking us on the ultimate fan fantasy in an absurdly hilarious, yet surprisingly tender and affectionate, look at celebrity and its eccentricities.

an ouTraGeouS neW CoMeDy. Jul 9 – aug 17, 2014 CenterTheatreGroup.org/Taper

“It’s a Funny-Girl Babs Inspired Comedy!” — NY Post

“I TELL yOU TO GO! The most talked about new comedy of the season!” —Ben Brantley, The New York Times

“A CROWD PLEASER! Michael Urie is ultra-charming.” —The New Yorker

Michael Urie in Buyer & Cellar.photo by sandra coudert

This show will go down like butta’!”

an unForGeTTaBLe neW DraMa Sep 10 – oct 19, 2014 CenterTheatreGroup.org/Taper

what if it weRe Possible to bRing youR deaRly dePaRted back in the form of a computer-generated simulation that you had to “program” by sharing your memories of the person you lost? What would you say? What would you leave out?

This profound new drama moves into uncharted theatrical territory when Marjorie is visited by her daughter, son-in-law and the prime.

Tony award® winner pam MacKinnon (Clybourne Park, Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf ) directs, as momentum continues to build for award-winning playwright Jordan harrison, making his CTG debut with this exquisitely crafted and compelling story of memory, loss and love that transcends the passing of life.

“I KNOW. Let’s all pretend we live forever.”

—Marjorie in Marjorie Prime

6 show pack agestarts at$136

Lois Smith

an unForGeTTaBLe neW DraMa Sep 10 – oct 19, 2014 CenterTheatreGroup.org/Taper

by Jordan Harrisondirected by Pam macKinnon

World Premierewith lois smitH

“never ask

questions.

WHAT

BUTLERTHE

SAW don’t you love faRce? It’s your typical boy-meets-girl story. only the boy is a wily psychoanalyst married to a nymphomaniac. and the girl is his secretary…or will be once she passes a not-so-routine physical. Mix in a little blackmail, a lot of sexual innuendo, a government inspector, a lusty bellboy and voilà!

This classic comic masterpiece has all the ingredients of a thoroughly enjoyable romp: manic action, twisting plotlines, mistaken identities, slamming doors, disappearing clothes, and, above all, orton’s subversive wit, breakneck dialogue and outrageous lack of appropriateness.

Decried as scandalous in 1969 for its characters’ raging libidos and its rampant mockery of morality, What the Butler Saw is a timeless tale of sex and repression in a culture gone mad (it takes place in a mental hospital, after all), never slowing down long enough to let you catch your breath from laughter.

By Joe OrtonDirected by

John TillingerWith

Paxton Whitehead

“A COMIC MASTERPIECE!”—London Daily Telegraph

6 show pack agestarts at$136

“never ask

questions.

ThAT is the first lesson a secretary

must learn.

—Dr. Prentice

And kindly

remove your

stockings.”

MaDCap BrITISh FarCe! nov 12 – Dec 21, 2014 CenterTheatreGroup.org/Taper

in What The Butler Saw

“this bRief inteRlude of mine could be described as a personal stroll through literature that has stirred my imagination since youth, and that I cannot let go. The poetry and prose I have chosen is both silly and sad, sacred and profane. They range from Winnie the pooh to the old Testament, from nash and Leacock to Shaw and Wilde, from auden and Frost to Shakespeare and Jonson. They are intended to illuminate along the way the several phases of my particular moon.” —Christopher plummer

Spend an extraordinary evening rich with wisdom, warmth and whimsy in a once-in-a-lifetime master class in living, literature and the dramatic arts. Directed by two-time Tony award® winner Des Mcanuff ( Jersey Boys). A Word Or Two premiered in 2012 at the Stratford Festival of Canada in Stratford, ontario.

Written, Arranged and Performed by Christopher

PlummerDirected by

Des McAnuff

Presented in association with the Stratford Festival of Canada.

a SpeCIaLeVenTat the

ahmanson

a LeGenDary perForManCe. Jan 19 – Feb 9, 2014 CenterTheatreGroup.org/Taper

Chr

isto

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Plu

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er in

A W

ord

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by

and

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Tony aWarD® WInner aCaDeMy aWarD® WInner

“One of the GREATEST LIVING ACTORS. The show is both strikingly intimate and dignified.”

—Chris Jones, Chicago Tribune

“Director Des McAnuff remains a master of this art form.”

—Variety

“To hear Mr. Plummer reciting verse is to be reminded that the greatest classical actors are those most deeply attuned to the disparate rhythms and texturesof language.” —Charles Isherwood, The New York Times

christopher plummer

A word or two

“✭✭✭✭ Buy TICKeTS aS rapIDLy aS poSSIBLe.”—Toronto Star

Bonus option at the Ahmanson Theatre

More prIorITy TICKeT opporTunITIeS.Season Ticket Members can also buy advance tickets for friends AND get first pick of season to added special events at the Ahmanson, Taper and Douglas BEFORE tickets go on sale to the general public.

priority seating is available now for Christopher plummer in A Word or Two and Matthew Bourne’s Sleeping Beauty.

STAGE

premium orchestra/ Mezzanine

preferred orchestra/ Mezzanine

Mid orchestra

orch rows X–Z

rear Mezzanine

Balcony

rear Balcony

ahmanson Theatre

Include this show at the ahmanson with your Season Tickets to the Taper!

he set the dance woRld on fiRe and attracted new audiences to the theatre with his daring new spins on Nutcracker! and Swan Lake. now, the two-time Tony award® and five-time olivier award-winning choreographer sets his sights on the third and final Tchaikovsky masterwork.

Matthew Bourne (Edward Scissorhands, The Car Man) returns to the ahmanson, re-imagining Sleeping Beauty as a mesmerizing gothic romance complete with fairies and vampires, enchanting and arresting scenery and costumes: all in a fully immersive surround sound experience.

Bourne knows how to engage and enthrall an audience, making ardent fans of his unique stories in dance. There won’t be any sleeping during this Beauty. only rapturous applause.

“extraordinary. Fantastic. Dazzling. Masterful.”—Sunday Express, London

november 21 – December 1, 2013

SLeepInG BeauTynovember 21–December 1, 2013

Tue–Fri eve & Fri Mats Premium Orch/Mezz $ 101.00Preferred Orch $ 91.00Preferred Mezz $ 76.00Mid Orch $ 56.00Orch x-Z/Balcony $ 28.00

Sat & Sun MatSat & Sun eve Premium Orch/Mezz $ 126.00Preferred Orch $ 105.00Preferred Mezz $ 91.00Mid Orch $ 64.00 Orch x-Z/Balcony $ 36.00

a WorD or TWoJanuary 19–Feb 9, 2014

all performances Premium Orch/Mezz $ 96.00Preferred Orch $ 86.00Preferred Mezz $ 46.00Mid Orch $ 61.00Orch x-Z $ 31.00

noVeMBer Sun Mon Tue Wed Thurs Fri Sat

21 22 23 2pm 8pm 8pm 8pm

24 25 26 27 28 29 301pm 2pm 2pm6:30pm 8pm 8pm 8pm 8pm

DeCeMBer Sun Mon Tue Wed Thurs Fri Sat

1 1pm 6:30pm

January Sun Mon Tue Wed Thurs Fri Sat

19 20 21 22 23 24 253pm 8pm 8pm 8pm 3pm

26 27 28 29 30 31 13pm 8pm 8pm 8pm 3pm

2 3 4 5 6 7 81pm 8pm 8pm 8pm 3pm

9 3pm

FeB

BonuS opTIon SpeCIaL eVenT

CheCK ouT LoWer prICeS for our 6-show season packages in Section A and B+. Section B seating starts at just $136. Some seating sections will sell out, including Section A+. Call Audience Services for current updates. Six-Show Prices for the Mark Taper Forum include Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike, The Tallest Tree in the Forest, The Last Confession (Ahmanson), Buyer & Cellar, Marjorie Prime and What the Butler Saw.

Lock in great seats, prices and savings!Season Tickets. your Way.

SeaSon TICKeTS. your Way. CenterTheatreGroup.org/Taper 213.972.4444

Season ticket prices everyone can afford.

GuaranTeeD LoW prICeS.When shows get hot (as they often do at the Taper) and ticket prices go up, you’ll be enjoying cool guaranteed prices locked in with your season ticket purchase. Even if you buy now and exchange for a different performance date later, you are guaranteed your original price (unless, of course, you upgrade to a higher-priced section).

prIorITy SerVICe.When you call our award-winning Audience Services, you’re speaking to a theatre lover like yourself, ready to give you exactly what you need: from info on all the shows to insider advice on the best seats.

prIorITy SeaTInG.Season ticket holders are assigned seats first and enjoy the same location for every performance. Donors who make a tax-deductible contribution are put on the fast track for future seating upgrades.

prIorITy upDaTeS.Before each show, we’ll email you a ticket reminder along with special online links to interviews with the creative team, podcasts, behind-the-scenes videos and a copy of the program: so you learn more about the show you’re about to experience.

prIorITy pLuS FLeXIBILITy.Lost your tickets or need to change for a different date? We’ll handle it for FREE at our box office, by phone, or through our Online Ticket Exchange. Miss a performance? We’ll put you on priority standby for future performances (subject to availability and FREE, unless you choose a higher-priced ticket).

PLEASE NOTE: Theatrical devices such as smoking (herbal non-tobacco only), stage fog, strobe lights, gun shots, rough language and nudity may occur in some productions. If you need to be warned in advance of these occurrences, please contact Audience Services. Productions, casting, performance dates and times are subject to change, due to unforeseen changes after the printing of this material. All ticket prices include applicable handling fees.

neW LoWerSeaSon prICeS Section a Section B+ Section B

Full your Full your Full your price prICe price prICe price prICe Previews* $366 $226- $291 $226- $231 $136- $302 $262 $172

Tue-Fri Eve at 8pm $416 $336 $316 $266 $281 $206

Sat at 2:30pm & 8pm, $475 $425 $400 $325 $364 $234 Sun Mat at 1pm, Sun Eve at 6:30pm

Students (Weeknights, Sec B Only) $118

D.A.T.E./Audio Description $156(Sec B, T6 Sat Mat — ONLy for patrons requiring Sign Language Interpretation or Audio Description)

STAGE

a+

a

B+

B

Mark Taper Forum

SoLD ouT

SoLD ouT

Save up to 41% off single ticket prices!

Call 213.972.4444. LoCK In your SeaTS ToDay

before sales begin for the general public.

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* For specific Day of Week Preview pricing please call 213.972.4444

photo by © ryan miller/capture imaging

Share What you Love. Make a Difference Today!

CenTer TheaTre Group neeDS you. each year we rely on your passion for the arts to support our education and community outreach efforts that make an impact in the Los angeles community. Whether providing access to those with special needs or bringing thousands of underserved students to a matinee, your support helps CTG welcome diverse audiences to the theatre.Call us today at 213.972.7327 to learn more.

CenterTheatreGroup.org/Giving

MaJor SupporT For CenTer TheaTre Group IS proVIDeD By The Ahmanson Foundation, Center Theatre Group Affiliates, Center Theatre Group Artists & Educators Forum, Elisabeth Katte Harris Trust,

The William Randolph Hearst Foundation, The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, The Music Center Fund for the Performing Arts, The Ralph M. Parsons Foundation, The Shubert Foundation Inc., The Dream Fund at UCLA Donor Advised Fund and Wells Fargo Foundation.

aDDITIonaL MaJor SupporT aLSo CoMeS FroM MeMBerS oF The arTISTIC DIreCTor’S CIrCLe InCLuDInG Anonymous, Judith & Thomas Beckmen, Debra & Norris Bishton, Margaret M. Bloomfield, Diana Buckhantz & Vladimir & Araxia Buckhantz Foundation,

Kirk & Anne Douglas, Louise & Brad Edgerton, Ruth Flinkman-Marandy & Ben Marandy, Kiki & David Gindler, Brindell Roberts Gottlieb, In Memory of Morris A. Hazan, Ann & Stephen F. Hinchliffe, Jr., June & Gareth Hughes, Eileen & Ken Kaplan, Donna McKenna, Dale S. & Shideh Miller, Nancy & Jack Mishkin, Timothy A. Regler,

Lloyd E. Rigler – Lawrence E. Deutsch Foundation, Laura & James Rosenwald & Orinocco Foundation, Jeanette Shammas, Maggy & Jack Simon, Judie Stein and Stein Family Foundation, Eva & Marc Stern, Sue Tsao, Sheila & Wally Weisman and Misty Widelitz.

front cover: Daniel Beaty. original photo by nathan yungerberg.