TORONTO - THEATRE VOCE UNVEILS NEXT PROJECT: FERDINAND BRUCKNER'S PAINS OF YOUTH
German expressionist classic to be Voce's second Canadian premiere
Toronto, September 22, 2000 - Seventy five years after its controversial world premiere in Hamburg, Ferdinand Bruckner's provocative coming of age story will debut in Canada, in a new production by Toronto-based Theatre Voce. Directed by multi-award-winner Edward Roy, and featuring seven of Toronto's finest young actors, the play runs from January 17th to February 4th, 2001 at the Canadian Stage Theatre on Berkeley Street.
Co-Artistic Producer Anne Page chose Daphne Moore's compelling translation of Pains of Youth from among hundreds of scripts she read over eighteen months. "I was amazed when I realized that this passionate and contemporary play was written in the twenties," she said, "and I couldn't believe that it had never been produced here. It's a real privilege to introduce a masterpiece like Pains of Youth to Canada." Ms. Page also announced that the production has been officially endorsed by both the Austrian Embassy in Ottawa, and the German Consulate General in Toronto, "which confirms my belief that the play owes its existence to the convergence of these two remarkable cultures."
Pains of Youth comes from a time and place struck dumb by the horror of the first World War, and the text itself still resonates with the shock. Set in Vienna in 1923, the play explores the lives and relationships of seven young men and women as they fumble through the transition to adulthood, without support from a society which no longer seems to care.
When Daphne Moore's translation of the play opened at the Gate Theatre in London, The Guardian called it the "discovery of the year," The London Daily News said that "the play is a remarkable find," and The Listener noted that "Pains of Youth speaks urgently for today."
"Pains of Youth really is the right piece for right now;" said Ms. Page, "the issues are so immediately recognizable. Like all great plays, it doesn't supply easy answers- it doesn't ask questions, for that matter- but it does demand that we examine our own complicity in a system which continues to threaten young people. And it features four strong roles for women, which has been a priority for us from the beginning."
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Born in Vienna, "Ferdinand Bruckner" was actually a pseudonym for theatre producer Theodor Tagger, who founded the Berlin Renaissance theatre in 1923 (remarkably, his theatre survived the Second World War, and still operates today). For decades, only three people knew the secret to Bruckner's identity: himself, his wife, and the great Max Reinhardt, who directed later productions of his work.
Theatre Voce would like to thank The Ontario Arts Council, The Toronto Arts Council, The George Cedric Metcalf Foundation, The Henry N. R. Jackman Foundation, The Austrian Embassy in Ottawa, The Royal Bank of Canada, The Toronto Star, Harris and Wright Chartered Accountants, Martin Obern and Associates, Sack Goldblatt Mitchell Barristers and Solicitors, Lawrence Audio Consulting, P.D. Bureau England, TaxZone Canada, and Human Resources Development Canada for their financial support of this production, and Eye Weekly for its media support.
Pains of Youth by Ferdinand Bruckner
Directed by Edward Roy
Set Design by David Wooton o Costume Design by Angela Thomas o Lighting by Michael Kruse
Fight Direction by Daniel Levinson o Composer/Musician Kevin Quain
Previews 17&18 January 2001 o Opens 19 January o Closes 3 February
Presented at The Canadian Stage Theatre o 26 Berkeley Street o Toronto
Box Office (416) 368-3110
Media Contact: Joel Hechter (416) 962-4337
http://www.theatrevoce.com o email: jh@theatrevoce.com