PROVIDENCE, R.I.: Trinity Repertory Theatre has announced the lineup for its 2019-20 season, including a world premiere about Providence’s legendary mayor Vincent A. “Buddy” Cianci.
“I love that this season offers our audience the opportunity to experience
some of the most compelling stories imaginable,” artistic director Curt Columbus said in a statement. “Starting with our very own local giant, Buddy Cianci,
working our way through August Wilson and Charles Dickens, to the words of great contemporary writers like Saracho and Nottage, and ending with the Demon Barber of Fleet Street, this is going to be a season that no one will want to miss.”
The world premiere of The Prince of Providence (Sept. 12-Oct. 20), George Brant’s stage adaptation of the novel of the same name by Mike Stanton, will open the season. The play explores Providence’s deep and complicated relationship with long-time mayor Vincent A. “Buddy” Cianci, a charismatic visionary who was also a corrupt philanderer. Taibi Magar will direct.
A Christmas Carol (Nov. 7-Dec. 29) will return to Trinity Rep for its 42nd year, directed by Kate Bergstrom with original music by Richard Cumming.
Tanya Saracho’s Fade (Dec. 5-Jan. 5, 2020) will follow. The play, in which a Mexican-born novelist forms a bond with a Latino janitor on her first day at a new television writing job, is a witty dramatic comedy about class, integrity, and culture.
Next will be August Wilson’s Radio Golf (Jan. 30-March 1, 2020). In the culmination of Wilson’s ten-play American Century Cycle, an entrepreneur determined to be Pittsburgh’s first black mayor is forced to question how pursuing change could put his neighborhood’s history at risk. Jude Sandy will direct.
The season will continue with Charles Dickens’s A Tale of Two Cities (Feb. 20-March 22, 2020), adapted for the stage by Brian McEleney and directed by Tyler Dobrowsky.
Following will by Lynn Nottage’s Sweat (April 2-May 3), directed by Christie Vela. Set deep in the Rust Belt, the play focuses on blue collar factory workers who swear by longtime friendships that seem unbreakable. These friendships are tested when mistrust, pride, and the economic pressures from a changing America introduce fissures in the foundation of this chosen family.
The season will close with Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (April 23-May 24), the heart-pounding thriller from Stephen Sondheim and Hugh Wheeler. Curt Columbus will direct.
Founded in 1963, Trinity Repertory Company produces new and classic plays and musicals with its acting company.
