By JOSEPHINE NORRIS, Photo Editor.
Saginaw’s Pit and Balcony brings Bruce Norris’ “Clybourne Park” to the local stage. It is “a comedy where you laugh and leave thinking ‘How do I feel about that?’ They are jokes that will spark thoughts,” according to director Tommy Wedge.
“Clybourne Park” has won not only a Tony, but also a Pulitzer and a Laurence Olivier award. Wedge says the show is a “way to introduce patrons to something familiar and give them a chance to see new theater.”
This hilarious yet razor edged satire explores themes of prejudice and territoriality through the story of a neighborhood, Clybourne Park, over the course of 60 years. The acts are set 60 years apart in 1959 and 2009. Act I, set in 1959, is centered on the integration of this white community and then Act II travels 60 years into the future to 2009 and the gentrification of this now black community.
Wedge’s excitement for “Clybourne Park” is easily seen, since it a familiar story for Saginaw residents. The major theme of the play is change in communities, “this show is about change in a neighborhood in Chicago- but many neighborhoods have changed in similar ways in Saginaw and across Michigan,” said Wedge.
This show contains mature language and is suitable for high school and above.
Performances are Feb. 6, 7, 13, and 14 at 8 p.m. and Feb. 8 and 15 at 3 p.m. Tickets are available online at pitandbalconytheatre.com or via phone at (989)-754-6587.
