Theatre Arts + Dance Events
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The Loyola University Department of Theatre Arts and Dance presents an invigorating season that challenges us through laughter and personal reflection. It is with excitement and anticipation that we bring to the 2009-2010 Loyola University stage a season that will provoke, intrigue, and entertain audiences.
Theatre Events | Dance Events |
Jihad Jones and the Kalashnikov Babes, | Loyola Ballet Fall Concert, |
A Christmas Carol, | Loyola Ballet Celebrates |
Heart of A Dog, |
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Theatre Arts and Dance Event Tickets:
$12 general admission; $8 all students, children, Loyola faculty/staff, and seniors, group rates available. Call (504) 865-2074
Jihad Jones and the Kalashnikov Babes
by Yussef El Guindi
Heritage or Hollywood? Star or Stereotype? Millions or Morals? What would you choose?
The Loyola University Department of Theatre Arts and Dance and director Laura Hope kicks off the 2009-2010 season with Yussef El Guindi’s award-winning comedy, Jihad Jones and the Kalashnikov Babes. Like the hit HBO series Entourage, Jihad Jones and the Kalashnikov Babes skewers business as usual in Hollywood, and asks how much it costs for one actor to betray his values and sell his soul for fame and fortune in Tinseltown.
Ashraf is an Arab-American actor who just received rave reviews for his performance of Hamlet at an L.A. theatre, but the $200 a week he earns from that means he has trouble paying the bills. He needs his big break: a starring role in a Hollywood blockbuster. Enter his high-powered Hollywood agent, who tempts him with a lead role in a feature film paying big money, playing opposite his favorite sexy female starlet, and directed by his favorite director of all time. There's just one problem – he'll have to play the most stereotypically evil, fanatical Islamic terrorist ever to grace the silver screen, something he's vowed never to do .
Jihad Jones follows Ashraf as he negotiates a Faustian deal for his soul. Will he sell out his values and morals for the siren's call of Hollywood fortune and fame? Watch as Ashraf battles his own inner demons (and one demonically funny, soulless Hollywood agent), while hilariously balancing his personal ethics and cultural pride against his professional ambition.
“Jihad is a remarkably fresh and entertaining new take on the much-overworked theme of Tinseltown corruption." - Robert Hurwitt, The San Francisco Chronicle.
Jihad Jones and the Kalashnikov Babes will run in the Lower Depths Theatre at Loyola University, 6363 St. Charles Avenue (Corner of St. Charles St. and Calhoun St.), on October 7, 8, 9, 10, 14, 15, at 8 p.m. and October 11 at 2 p.m.
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A Christmas Carol
from the novel by Charles Dickens, adapted for the stage by Neil Bartlett
To kick off the holiday season, the Loyola University New Orleans Department of Theatre Arts and Dance will present a modern version of the Victorian gothic production of “A Christmas Carol,” adapted by Neil Bartlett, which honors Dickens’ original language. Loyola Theatre will also collaborate with Second Harvest Food Bank of Greater New Orleans and Acadiana during select performances to fight hunger.
“A Christmas Carol” will run Nov. 6, 7, 12, 13, and 14, at 7 p.m., and Nov. 8, at 2 p.m., in Marquette Theatre, located on the second floor and accessible from the outdoor stairway of Loyola’s Marquette Hall. The performances on Sunday, Nov. 8 and Thursday, Nov. 12, will be Loyola Theatre’s Second Harvest Donation Days.
For walk-up ticket sales only, any Loyola student, faculty or staff member who brings an approved canned good will receive a $2 discount on the original ticket price, and Loyola will donate an additional $2 per sale to Second Harvest. This offer is redeemable for one canned good per ticket, no additional discounts will be given to those who bring more than one canned good.
Tickets are $12 for general admission and $8 for students, seniors, children and Loyola faculty and staff. Tickets can be purchased online at www.montage.loyno.edu or by calling the Loyola Box Office at 504-865-2074. Tickets will also be available at the door 30 minutes prior to the performance while quantities last.
In this production, director Artemis Preeshl examines how societal addiction to technology can render one isolated from direct human contact.
“This fast-paced production features a vivacious and chameleon-like cast that cleverly morphs from one character to another,” said Preeshl. “The cast animates not only the characters, but also the environment and objects.”
Bartlett’s adaptation of “A Christmas Carol” is the only published version of the play to exclusively use Dickens’ original language. In the play’s introduction, Bartlett explains why this adaptation is unique.
“The first decision I took when making this piece was to do this great story without the sentimental upholstery that drags our ideas of the Dickensian down into theatrical cliché,” said Bartlett. “I wanted to do it using Dickens’ words and nothing but.”
“It is full of the warmth of families together cultivating divine virtues of faith, hope and charity,” said Preeshl. “Yes, it is a classic Christmas story, but it is also a ghost story. It is, more than ever, about the value of love and human connection.”
Loyola Ballet Fall Concert – Classical, Character, Contemporary
The Loyola Ballet, directed by Laura Zambrano, will present a full length evening of dance of classical, character, and contemporary works. The program will open with a ballet from the repertoire of the 19th century followed by character dances and original works by local choreographers.
The Loyola Ballet Fall Concert will run in Roussel Hall, located on the corner of St. Charles Ave. and Calhoun St., 6363 St. Charles Avenue, on November 20 and 21 at 8 p.m.
Purchase tickets Nov. 20 >>
Purchase tickets Nov. 21 >>
Heart of A Dog
by Mikhail Bulgakov, adapted by Frank Galati
Come see what humanity lies in the heart of a dog. More fun than a town hall meeting!
Long banned in the Soviet Union the stage version became, some sixty years later, the "hottest ticket in town".
In Bulgakov's Heart of a Dog, an up-to-date, highly theatrical and very funny adaptation of Bulgakov's classic by Frank Galati, professor Preobrajensky is a ''rejuvenation'' specialist who has made a successful career of restoring sexual prowess to an aging bourgeoisie with only minor side effects – such as the patients' hair turning green. Director Benjamin Clement brings this wonderfully witty and amusing 1920’s Russian comedy to the Loyola stage.
Heart of a Dog is simply hilarious. One evening the professor lures a stray dog home with a sausage, names him Sharik and lets him have the run of his seven-room apartment. The dog, like the proletariat, will put up with anything as long as his stomach is full. Then one day, the professor transplants human testes and a pituitary gland into Sharik and the dog becomes Polygraf Polygrafovich Sharikov. In short time he loses his hair and tail and develops a consuming taste for vodka, chasing women, and politics.
Bulgakov was well on his way to being a best selling author and playwright but his criticisms of the Soviet regime banned his works from publication. Heart of a Dog, denied publication in Russia for 60 years, takes issue with a housing crisis, healthcare reform and what it means to be human.
“The story will feel amazingly current as the American landscape continues to discuss the new political climate, socialized medicine and the incredible advances in genetic engineering that have led to a 2009 Louisiana law enacted to ban animal/human hybrids” commented Clement. “The production will up the amperage on physical comedy while honoring the question ‘what makes a man-nature vs. nurture’.”
Heart of a Dog will run in the Marquette Theatre at Loyola University, 6363 St. Charles Avenue, on March 12, 13, 18, 19, 20 at 8 p.m. and March 14 at 2 p.m.
Loyola Ballet Spring Concert – Loyola Ballet celebrates National Dance Week
In celebration of National Dance Week, the Loyola Ballet, directed by Laura Zambrano, will present a ballet from the classical repertoire followed by character dances and contemporary works.
The Loyola Ballet Spring Concert will run in Roussel Hall at Loyola University, 6363 St. Charles Avenue, on April 23 and 24 at 8 p.m.
Senior Project One-Act Festival
Senior One-Act Festival will round out the season April 11, 12, 16, and 17 at 7 p.m. Produced and directed by the senior class, a rich variety of entertainment is offered for free in the Lower Depths Theatre.
Theatre at Loyola originated with the Thespian Troupe in 1849. Continuing a long tradition of dedication to the training of the future theatre artist and audiences of tomorrow, Loyola University Theatre focuses on the training of the undergraduate student while offering diverse and exceptional theatre entertainment to the New Orleans community.
