1/21/10
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1/21/10 |
Lincoln, Ill. – Fuddy Meers, a raucous comedy being staged by the LC Fine Arts division, is a sure way to shake off the winter blues. The production runs for two weekends only, January 22-24 and January 29-31. Show times are 7:30 p.m. for the Friday and Saturday performances and a 2 p.m. matinee on Sundays. Reservations are recommended and can be made by calling 217.732.3155.280. Ticket prices are just $7 for adults and $5 for seniors and students (with valid I.D.).
Audiences are in for a delight as hilarity ensues as an amnesic woman; with the help of a blind, deaf, and limping man; and a gibberish-speaking stroke victim; and a man toting a puppet; try to work their way out of one mess after another. This enjoyable farce was described as “… [a] dark, sweet and thoroughly engaging comedy" by The N.Y. Times.
Fuddy Meers tells the story of Claire who suffers from a rare form of psychogenic amnesia that erases her memory whenever she goes to sleep. The story unfolds when this morning, like every other morning, her memory is a blank slate. Her chipper husband comes in with a cup of coffee, explains her condition, hands her a book filled with all sorts of essential information, and then disappears into the shower. A limping, lisping, half-blind/half-deaf man wearing a ski mask, pops out from under her bed claiming to be her brother, and that he’s come to save her.
Claire's daily lifeline – the info book - is quickly discarded, and she's hustled off to the country home of her mother, a recent stroke victim whose speech has been reduced to utter gibberish. Claire's journey gets even more complicated when a dimwitted thug with a foul-mouthed hand puppet pops up at a window and her driven husband and perpetually stoned son show up with a claustrophobic lady-cop that they've kidnapped. Every twist and turn in this funhouse plot bring Claire closer to revealing her past life and everything she thought she'd forgotten.
Its one harrowing and hilarious turn after another on this roller coaster ride of a day when an amnesiac tries to decipher her fractured life. This poignant and brutal comedy traces one woman's attempt to regain her memory while surrounded by a curio cabinet of alarmingly-bizarre characters.
Fuddy Meers was written by David Lindsay-Abairs and is directed by Chris Gray, Fine Arts division chair, and designed by Martin Holden, assistant professor of Theatre. Student designers include Mikel Frost (sound), Aimee Henderson (lights), and Tinesheia Howard (props). The talented cast includes performances by:
Claire: Alex Williams of Lincoln, Illinois and Alexanderia Reed of Chicago.
The Limping Man: Craig Noort of Lansing, Ill.
Millet & Hinky-Binky, his Puppet: Zach Williams of Danvers.
Richard: Kenneth James of Decatur and Neiko Boyd of Chicago.
Heidi: Morgan Walton-McNeal of Calumet City.
Kenny: Cody Follis of Lincoln, Ill.
Gertie: Cassie Ellwing of Mundelein, Ill.
Additional Information about the Fuddy Meers and the Fine Arts Division:
This production and cast will compete in the American College Theatre Festival competition. An ACTF respondent will adjudicate the production and the acting and provide feedback to the cast and crew. Student actors will then be eligible for nomination to the Irene Ryan Acting Competition, which is held annually at the prestigious Lincoln Center for Performing Arts in Washington D.C. More information and a "Sneak Peek" can be found on the Fine Arts division at Lincoln College.
Lincoln College was founded in 1865 as Lincoln University, the only institution of higher education named for Abraham Lincoln during his lifetime. It is a selective, two-year, private, liberal arts college located in Lincoln, Illinois. Lincoln College is designed to prepare a student for university study through a structured, supportive approach to learning. Approximately 89% of Lincoln College graduates transfer immediately to a four-year school where they succeed as well as or better than the native student. Student-teacher ratio at Lincoln College is 13:1 and the average class size is 16 students.