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Fri, Sept 20, 2024, 7:30 pm
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Life staggers. Life confounds. Life is beautiful. And LIFE SUCKS.
A group of old friends, ex-lovers, estranged in-laws, and lifelong enemies gather to grapple with life’s thorniest questions—and each other. What could possibly go wrong? Incurably lustful and lonely, hapless and hopeful, these seven souls collide and stumble their way towards a new understanding that LIFE SUCKS! Or does it?
From the mind of Aaron Posner, writer of Stupid F*#king Bird (tKAPOW 2016 production), comes this brash and revelatory reworking of Chekhov’s Uncle Vanya. Never has unhappiness been so much fun.
Running Time: 2 hours.
ASL interpretation at the Sunday, September 22, 2 pm performance
*Content Transparency: Strong Language, Adult Situations, Gunshots. Recommended for ages 13+.
LIfe Sucks. by
Aaron Posner
Sort of adapted from Uncle Vanya by Anton Chekhov
Babs… Deirdre Bridge
Sonia… Emma Cahoon
Dr. Aster… Peter Josephson
Pickles… Rachael Longo
The Professor… Walter Maroney
Ella… Katie Proulx
Vanya… Glenn Provost
Directed by Matt Cahoon
Stage Managed by Carey Cahoon
Intimacy Choreography by Samantha Griffin
Fight Direction by Kyrie Ellison
Lighting Design by Tayva Young
Costume Design by Barbara Holbrook
Scenic Design by Matt Cahoon
Why this play, why now?
“As a theatre company we are always asking ‘Why this play? And, why now?’” says show Artistic Director Matt Cahoon. “I think that over the past several years we have all found moments to say ‘Life Sucks’ and it seems to me that in almost all cases, the way to make life suck just a little bit less is to make connections with other people. While far from being a perfect family, we do see in this play a group of people connected by a shared history, a desire for connection, and a hope that things can get better.”
Playing Posner again
This is the second time that tKAPOW has produced one of Posner’s adaptations of Chekhov’s plays. The company’s incredibly successful 2016 production of Stupid F-ing Bird was hailed by critics as “exquisite theatre, writ large by a company at the top of their game” (Caught in the Act Blog). Actress Deirdre Bridge was in that production in the role of Emma Arkadina, and is also performing in Life Sucks. “At its core, Stupid F%cking Bird reminded us that all of our actions have repercussions for others; whether our acts are brazen or subtle, loving or hurtful, our interconnectedness is inescapable,” she said. “Aaron Posner is just so good at writing what happens between people, in the negative spaces among us.”
Aaron Posner is an award-winning director, playwright, teacher, and former Artistic Director of Philadelphia’s Arden Theatre and New Jersey’s Two River Theatre. He has directed more than 150 productions at major regional theaters across the country including virtually every theatre in the DC area. As a playwright, his re-imaging of Chekhov’s The Seagull, entitled Stupid F**king Bird, was one of the ten most produced plays in the country in 2015 and has had more than 150 productions worldwide. Other plays include The Heal, JQA, Life Sucks, No Sisters, District Merchants, Who Am I This Time? & Other Conundrums of Love, The Chosen, My Name Is Asher Lev, The Gift of Nothing, Me…Jane: The Dreams & Adventures of Young Jane Goodall, and many more.