Lyric Stage is proud to bring Boston-area favorites Remo Airaldi*, Michael Kaye*, and John Kuntz* together in Yasmina Reza’s exploration of the complexities and fragility of male friendships in the critically acclaimed play ART.
Serge has purchased a modern painting for an outrageous sum. Marc hates it. Yvan is stuck in the middle. When superficial ideals and values that they once joked about appear to be at the core of Serge’s intentions, comradery is quickly replaced by a sense of betrayal. This sophisticated comedy of manners forces three best friends to examine just how well they really know each other. With sleek repartee and mounting friction, their evening together intensifies to the point of no return where loneliness could be the cost of their inability to save their friendship instead of their egos.
Director Courtney O’Connor° says. “Art of all kinds—good and bad—allows us to explore and sometimes explode what is deep within us. In this ART, a single piece of art allows (or perhaps even forces?) to a boil the negative issues in the friendship between Marc, Serge, and Yvan. How many relationships in our own lives are simmering, just passively waiting for the “art” that will incite our own boiling? Who will we be at that moment? And who will we be after?”
Performances begin Friday, February 21 and run through Sunday, March 16.
Featuring Remo Airaldi*, Michael Kaye*, and John Kuntz*.
Scenic Design by Shelley Barish**, Costume Design by Chelsea Kerl**, Lighting Design by Elmer Martinez, and Sound Design by Adam Howarth.
Remo Airaldi* (Yvan) – Lyric Stage: Urinetown: The Musical, Ken Ludwig’s The Game’s Afoot, Agatha Christie’s Murder on the Orient Express, Little Shop of Horrors, The Little Foxes, My Fair Lady, and Sweeney Todd. Over sixty productions at the American Repertory Theater, including Night of the Iguana, Oliver Twist (also at Theatre for a New Audience and Berkeley Repertory Theatre), and Island of Slaves (IRNE Award for Outstanding Actor). Commonwealth Shakespeare Company: Much Ado About Nothing, The Tempest, Cymbeline, Richard III, Love’s Labour’s Lost, Twelfth Night. SpeakEasy Stage Company: Shakespeare in Love. Boston Playwrights’ Theater: Exposed. Central Square Theater: Frankenstein and The Hound of the Baskervilles. New Repertory Theatre: The King of Second Avenue. Productions at Hartford Stage, La Jolla Playhouse, Geffen Playhouse, Cirque du Soleil, American Conservatory Theater, Actors’ Theatre of Louisville. Acting teacher at Harvard University.
Founded in 1974 and in residence at 140 Clarendon Street since 1991, Lyric Stage Company is Boston’s longest-serving resident theater company. Its mission is to produce and present live theater in Greater Boston with an intimate approach that promotes inclusivity and connection. The Lyric Stage leads an effort to integrate live theater and theater education into the lives of all residents of greater Boston.
Lyric Stage and Beacon Communities, LLC, the owners of 140 Clarendon Street, have agreed that the building will be Lyric Stage’s “forever” home, ensuring that the theater will remain a vital and essential part of the cultural fabric of the city.