MINNEAPOLIS: The Jungle Theater has announced its 2016 season, its first under the leadership of new artistic director Sarah Rasmussen. The production lineup includes a world premiere by Philip Dawkins , a National New Play Network (NNPN) rolling world premiere by Idris Goodwin, and all-female Shakespeare.
“Our 2016 Season embraces a dazzling collection of stories. While each play is wildly different, they all build on the Jungle’s legacy of powerful acting and exquisite design,” Rasmussen said in a statement. “These are epic journeys with human heart, and I’m so thrilled to share them in the Jungle’s intimate setting.”
The season will open with Shakespeare’s The Gentlemen of Verona, directed by Rasmussen (Feb. 12–March 27, 2016). In an inversion of Elizabethan tradition, the play will be performed with an all-female cast. .
Next will be Constellations by Nick Payne, staged by Gary Gisselman (April 15–May 29, 2016). The two-character romance plays out against the backdrop of quantum physics.
The world premiere of Le Switch by Philip Dawkins will follow, helmed by Jeremy Cohen (June 17–July 31, 2016). The play takes place in a post-marriage-equality America, where a commitment-phobe falls in love and must decide what it means to be committed, married, and queer.
The second world premiere, courtesy of NNPN, will be Idris Goodwin’s Bars and Measures, directed by Marion McClinton and featuring music by Justin Ellington (Aug. 26–Oct. 9, 2016). The play is about two wildly different brothers who are both musicians.
Rasmussen’s production of Sarah Ruhl’s The Oldest Boy will close the season (Nov. 4–Dec. 18, 2016). The family tale follows a mother whose son is believed to be the reincarnation of a high Buddhist lama.
