Spring is upon us, and the staff is practically jumping out of its shoes at Verge Theater! So in honor of the uncanny energy that explodes this time of year, they’re ramping up the unconventional, the odd, the strange, the queer.
For nine years running, for one weekend only, Verge has celebrated the quirk and the camp, the kinked and the warped, with its live stage production of The Rocky Horror Show, by Richard O’Brien. It’s an annual tradition and experience not to be missed with call-outs, audience participation, costume prizes, and a great musical performance by a one of a kind cast, is a loving homage to the classic B sci-fi and horror film genres. With an irresistible rock n’ roll score, The Rocky Horror Show is a hilarious, wild ride that no audience will soon forget. There will be four showings, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, April 12th–14th at 8pm each night, followed by a special midnight show as Saturday turns into a very sinful Sunday. Head down and do the Time Warp AGAIN with Verge! Tickets are $16 in advance, or $18 at the door. These performances are recommended for ages 17+.
And to celebrate April being the cruelest month, Verge brings to the stage the hilarious and irreverent Barbeque Apocalypse, by Mark Lyle. Three couples gather on the back deck of a very modest suburban home for a mid-summer barbecue where the hosts, Mike and Deb, struggle with feelings of inadequacy about their home decor, their clothes, their careers, their culinary skills, and pretty much everything else. Throughout the first act, feelings are hurt over petty gossip, inconsequential concerns, physical slights, and pop cultural deficiencies. The superficial, neuroses-laden interpersonal squabbles bubble over to a flash of inept violence when one of the guests makes what we learn is just one in a series of passes at Deb. As the act closes, the group discovers the rest of the world has been literally falling apart during their little, terrible barbecue.
Act Two takes place on the same deck for another barbecue to celebrate their one-year post-apocalypsiversary. In a year where the only way to measure success is survival, roles have reversed, and we explore how each character’s basic nature has allowed them to adapt and thrive or has pushed them to the brink of extinction. Barbeque Apocalypse runs Fridays and Saturdays at 8pm, April 27th–May 12th. Tickets are $14 in advance, or $16 at the door.
The Bozeman Improverts are at it again with Improv on the Verge Monday nights, i.e. the biggest laughs for the fewest bucks! Guaranteed to be a hilarious start to your week, popular improv games are played in the style of Whose Line is it Anyway?, as well as long-form improv. Everything is created on the spot and based on audience suggestions. Come enjoy cheap thrills for your laugh hole! Upcoming shows are April 9th and 23rd at 7pm each evening. Tickets for Improv are $7 in advance, or $9 at the door. Keep an eye out for more Monday Night Improv throughout the regular season! These shows are recommended for ages 17+.
And on the family stage, Judith Viorst’s musical adaptation of her own book: Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day heads to the theater. With fun and funny music by Shelly Markham, and co-directed by Teen Theater alumni Gabe and Isaac Gilbertson, this will be a ride you don’t want to miss!
Alexander is having a bad day. A terrible day. A horrible day! To be quite honest, it’s a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day. But then, everybody has bad days sometimes. In this delightful adaptation, Viorst sets Alexander’s rather trying life to music and brings to the stage one of America’s feistiest characters. Not only does Alexander wake up with gum in his hair, but his mother forgets to pack him dessert, and his best friend decides he’s not his best friend anymore. And if that’s not bad enough, Alexander’s brothers don’t have any cavities but — he does. And just when it can’t get any worse, there are lima beans for supper and — yuck! — kissing on TV. It is enough to make anyone want to go to Australia.
Alexander’s struggles with life’s daily dramas will not only entertain but educate young audiences as they identify with Alexander and the obstacles he encounters, encouraging them to share their feelings and to realize that bad days happen — even in Australia.
Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day runs Saturdays at 3pm through April 28th. Tickets are $7 in advance or $9 at the door. Children 2 and under are admitted FREE!
And last, but certainly not least, the Verge Theater education wing is offering up its Teen Theater Middle School Production of I Hate Shakespeare, by Steph DeFerie. This educational and theatrical experience is available to teens in 6th–8th grades. Director Jaelyn Silvey will guide the cast through the rehearsal and production process for 6 weeks, beginning on April 10th, and then the cast and crew will perform the show on Friday and Saturday, May 18th–19th. Everyone who participates will be given a part, but auditions for specific roles will take place at the first rehearsal. Rehearsals are Tuesday through Friday from 4–6pm. Verge understand that teens are busy and are happy to work around conflicts.
I Hate Shakespeare is a hilarious theatrical debate on the merit of Shakespeare. It is a whirlwind of Shakespearean soliloquies, unconventional staging, witty banter, and talking cows. Not only will it give teens an introduction to Shakespeare, it will challenge their comedic skills and give them experience breaking the fourth wall.
Visit www.vergetheater.com for reservations and further information about these and other upcoming productions. Advance tickets are also available in store at Cactus Records. See you at “The Little Black Box on the Edge (of Bozeman)!” •
