Editor: Keith Davis Writers: Dave Maley, Mike Warwick Publisher: Office of Public Information Volume 22, No. 7   November 15, 1999

Ithaca College Theatre Presents ‘The House of Blue Leaves’ Ithaca College Theatre continues its 1999–2000 season with John Guare’s The House of Blue Leaves. This dark comedy will be previewed on Wednesday, November 17, with regular performances on Thursday, November 18, and Tuesday, November 30, through Saturday, December 4. Curtain time in Clark Theatre is 8:00 p.m.; there is an additional 2:00 matinee on December 4. Tickets go on sale Monday, November 15, with prices ranging from $3.50 to $9.00. The box office is open from noon to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, in Dillingham Center. For ticket reservations and information call 274-3224; for information regarding group sales call 274-3796. Set in Queens in 1965, The House of Blue Leaves centers on the failure of the American dream through the depiction of the dysfunctional lives of Artie Shaughnessy, a zookeeper; his mad and depressed wife, Bananas; and Bunny Flingus, his mistress from the apartment below. Artie, whose musical ambitions far exceed his talents (even though he can bang out a tune on any subject and rhyme "comical" with "yarmulke"), wants to be a Hollywood songwriter. Bunny has grandiose dreams of sharing Artie’s fame and fortune. The only problem is Bananas, who’s never been quite the same after her nervous breakdown, and Artie struggles with the idea of putting Bananas in a home so he can elope with Bunny. (A key selling point of the institution is its trees with beautiful blue leaves.) Everything comes to a head on the day the pope visits Yankee Stadium. Artie’s son, Ronnie, has gone AWOL from Fort Dix so he can blow up the pope and get the world to pay attention to him, and the events of that fateful day force the characters to come to terms with who they really are and what they really want. The House of Blue Leaves won Guare both the New York and the Los Angeles Drama Critics Awards and the Obie Award for best American play. It was originally produced in 1971 at the Truck and Warehouse Theater, off-Broadway, and ran for 337 performances. The cast of The House of Blue Leaves includes Kevin Rockower ’02 as Artie, Jared Zeus ’00 as Ronnie, Jennifer Herzog ’00 as Bunny, and Crystal Walker ’00 as Bananas. The artistic team includes Earl McCarroll, director; Bonnie Brumbaugh ’01, stage manager; Kevin Wolfgang, costume designer; Alice Golden ’00, scenic designer; John Bracewell, sound designer; and Nicole Coppinger ’01, lighting designer.

Created by Andrejs Ozolins. Updated 12. Nov. 1999