170205_Enchanted_0276

The Enchanted

by Jean Giraudoux, translated by Maurice Valency

The Walnut Street Theatre Studio 5
February 7 – March 5, 2017
Directed by Tina Brock

Act I: A clearing in the woods outside a small
provincial town in France. Late afternoon.
Act II: The same. A few weeks later.
Act III: Isabel’s room in the town

 

Running time is approximately 105 minutes without an intermission.

IRC_The Enchanted Postcard (1)
The Mayor
Melissa Amilani
The Doctor
Jane Moore*
Isabel
Anna Lou Hearn
Gilberte/The Ghost
Daniel Barland
Daisy/Viola/Papa Tellier
Margaret McKiven
Lucy/Denise/Monsieur Adrian
Candra Kennedy
The Inspector
David Stanger
The Supervisor
John D’Alonzo
Armande Mangebois/First Executioner
Bob Schmidt
Leonide Mangebois/Second Executioner
Tomas Dura

Puppet Direction

Robert Ian Cutler

Costume and Set Design

Erica Hoelscher

Lighting Design

Peter Whinnery

Sound Design

Tina Brock

Puppet Design and Execution

Mark Williams

Technical Director

Scott Cassidy

Stage Manager

Chris Kubat

Assistant Costume Designer

Jessica Barksdale

Scenic Painter

Kate Coots

Ways and Means Coordinator

Bob Schmidt

Photoshop Magic

Bill Brock

Photography

Johanna Austin / AustinArt.org

Cover Art

“I Will Give You This Magic Herb” by John Bauer (1913)

Reviews

The Enchanted (2017)

The Enchanted
“...Tina Brock directs with a keen eye also for Giraudoux’s preposterous humor and playful irreality...she ingeniously enhances the absurdities of his story…Jane Moore is a force of nature...thoroughly amusing ensemble, laugh-out-loud...magical and meaningful, offering a provocative look at nature and the supernatural...”
--by Debra Miller, DC Metro Theater Arts
The Enchanted (2017)

The Enchanted: Into the Woods
“...I'm always excited to see an Idiopathic Ridiculopathy Consortium (IRC) production, because Tina Brock's company -- dedicated to absurdist theater -- guarantees I'll experience a play I've never seen before, or one freshly staged in their inspired style...balance locks in this play's success, and IRC's as well...The Enchanted is often funny, (though) Brock never lets the laughs overwhelm the story and its existential issues, or vice versa. Instead of choosing one over the other, IRC embraces both; together, they're greater than the sum of their parts…”
--by Mark Cofta, The Broad Street Review
The Enchanted (2017)

THE ENCHANTED (IRC): a great revival speaks to our times
“...Tina Brock’s direction is faithful to the original, and her use of Muppet-like puppets cast as the little girls is a refreshing, burlesque expedient. The play was scheduled well before the nation awoke to see a foul-mouthed casino man in the Oval Office, but the choice of the play is eerily prophetic in hindsight…”
--by Lev Feigin, Phindie
The Enchanted (2017)

THEATER REVIEW: In The Enchanted, Life and Death in Wonderland
Idiopathic Ridiculopathy’s little gem of a show has something profound to offer.
“...Idiopathic Ridiculopathy’s little gem of a show has something profound to offer...Luckily for Philadelphia, we have the perfect tour guide in director Tina Brock—she and her company, the Idiopathic Ridiculopathy Consortium, have made something of a specialty of his work. Her delightful realization of The Enchanted—a tricky play even by Giraudoux standards—may be the surprise hit of the Philly theater season...I can’t imagine a production that makes it more enjoyable and accessible. This little gem of a show has something profound to offer…”
--by David Fox, Philadelphia Magazine
The Enchanted (2017)

Mark Cofta’s February Theater Picks: Lightning Rod Special returns; Chekhov never left
“...Shows by Tina Brock's Idiopathic Ridiculopathy Consortium are always must-sees, because the absurdist specialists consistently present fascinating rarities. The Enchanted (February 7 - March 5) — a regional premiere, though written in 1933 — is Jean Giraudoux's magical meditation on life and death…”
--Broad Street Review
The Enchanted (2017)

Director's Notes

 

One of the joys of directing the plays of Eugene Ionesco is the challenge he puts forward to the director, captured through this favorite quote: “I personally would like to bring a tortoise onto the stage, turn it into a racehorse, then into a hat, a song, a dragoon and a fountain of water. One can dare anything in the theatre and it is the place where one dares the least.”

When we began rehearsal for the reimagined 2020 Bald Soprano, the cast read-through quickly revealed the necessity of drastically rethinking the 2017 production. Our relationship to language – how we use, interpret and value it, has changed more dramatically in the last 3 years than in any other point in time I can remember. The words “truth” and “absurd” once appeared to carry a value that ten people could come close to agreeing on. These same words take on a whole new life as we worked with them in rehearsal. We mulled over how, despite having learned these lines in 2017, the experience was so different for each of us internally, as if we were learning an entirely different new play.

One stage direction in The Bald Soprano captures the existential state of being, not only for Mrs. Smith, but for this director and for many people I know: “… she falls on her knees sobbing or else she does not do this.” I alternate these responses multiple times in any given day.

We are hugely thankful to Victor Keen and Jeanne Ruddy for allowing the IRC to rehearse and perform in this inspiring space and for their generous hospitality. The outsider art within these walls radiates electricity, passion and pain, great inspiration to be surrounded by when creating. I believe Ionesco would approve of his work unfolding within the Gallery as the stage setting. This is our nod to “bringing the tortoise on stage.”

As well, many thanks to these funny, lovely, constantly surprising cast members, who I have the pleasure of working alongside. They directed this show. If laughter is a remedy for turbulent times, we certainly enjoyed heavy doses of this medicine in rehearsal, working through The Bald Soprano, which Ionesco wrote, believing it was a tragedy.

Tina Brock
Producing Artistic Director
The Idiopathic Ridiculopathy
Tina Brock, Producing Artistic Director