We're "falling" into preparations for our Fall show, "12 Chairs"

My apologies, I've just never met a pun I didn't like. But it's TRUE! Carly, Erin and I have been hard at work these last few weeks starting preparations for our Fall show, 12 Chairs by Philadelphia playwright John O'Hara, co-produced by Plays & Players Theatre, and we couldn't be more excited!

12 Chairs follows the relationship between Louise and her mother, Ann, over the course of roughly forty years, charting the ways they grow and change as individuals and as mother and daughter, with two actors playing multiple roles. It's a bittersweet look at a complex relationship most of us can relate to, so be sure to bring your tissues!

When considering how we wanted to present this piece, we realized that while it's great to provide the opportunity to two female or female-identifying actors, as well as a female or female-identifying director, we wanted to create even more opportunities for the talented women in and around Philadelphia. Enter "Idea Generator Extraordinaire Carly Bodnar," with this simple but brilliant concept:

12 Chairs
12 performances
12 actors

Instead of just having one director and one cast perform the show twelve times during our two-week run, Carly's idea was to have six DIFFERENT casts, with each cast performing the piece twice. Not only would this create TWELVE opportunities for female or female-identifying actors, but it would mean we would need six directors as well (hmm, maybe the government should talk to us about job creation!). It also means that the audience gets to see six different interpretations of the same piece, a rarity in the theater world. We're encouraging our directors to let their imaginations run wild with their interpretations and staging (no one likes a micro-manager), so who knows what they'll pull out of their hats!

We're still working on scheduling the individual casts for their performances, but we CAN tell you that 12 Chairs will run November 9-19 at the Skinner Studio at Plays & Players Theatre, 1714 Delancey Street. All evening performances will be at 8 pm, and we will be doing 3 pm matinees on Sunday, November 13 and Saturday, November 19. There is no show on Saturday, November 12. We hope that you come to see multiple performances, and we'll be offering some sweet deals to encourage you!

Check back in the following weeks as we announce our directors and actors, and we hope to see you at 12 Chairs in November! 

​-Kristen