Being Earnest Opens With Thrifty Thursday

A release from our friends at the Greater Boston Stage Company in Stoneham:

Greater Boston Stage Company opens its 19th Season with Being Earnest, Paul Gordon and Jay Gruksa’s irrepressible musical interpretation of Oscar Wilde’s classic, The Importance of Being Earnest.

Directed and choreographed by Elliot Norton and IRNE Award-winner Ilyse Robbins, performances run Sept. 13 – Oct. 7.

Thrifty Thursday for Being Earnest is Thursday, Sept. 13. Rush tickets cost only $15 at the door and are available starting at 6:30 p.m., one hour prior to showtime. $15 tickets are limited to 4 per patron. Thrifty Thursday happens thanks to the generosity of Melrose Bank.

“Working on a brand-new musical is thrilling, challenging, and a whole lot of fun. There are no road maps but also no expectations. We get to play with developing our own creation. Paul and Jay have been incredibly gracious with their time and are extremely approachable. The cast is incredible and with the help of my brilliant Music Director, Steve Bass, I know this will be both a phenomenal experience and production,” shares Robbins.

Being Earnest is full of non-stop comedy and romance all wrapped up in mistaken identities. Gordon and Gruska set the scene in 1960’s London, matching Wilde’s wit with the energy and sound of the British Invasion.

“We stayed very true to the play. I’m always amused when someone adapts a great piece of literature that has withstood the test of time – and then the author ‘changes it’ to his or her whim. Wilde is a genius. We left the text alone as much as we could. Since this is a musical and not a play, we did make many cuts, but we left his dialogue nearly completely intact. The one element, besides music and lyrics, that we added was using various ‘quotes’ from other sources from Wilde. This allowed us to go even further in his madness in some areas,” reveals writers Paul Gordon and Jay Gruksa.

The Being Earnest cast features Ephie Aardema, Sara Coombs, Kerry A. Dowling, Beth Gotha, Dave Heard, Michael Jennings Mahoney and Will McGarahan.

The design team is comprised of Music Director Steve Bass, Scenic Designer Nick Oberstein, Lighting Designer Jeff Adelberg, Costume Designer Gail Astrid Buckley, Sound Designer John Stone, and Props Master Cesara Walters.

Single Tickets for Being Earnest: $50-60 Adults; $45-55 Seniors; $20 Students (with valid ID). Thrifty Thursday tickets cost $15 at the door and are available for the Thursday, Sept. 13, performance at 7:30 pm. Student Rush Tickets start one hour prior to each performance, and two Student tickets may be purchased for the price of one (subject to availability). For more information or to purchase tickets, call the Box Office at Greater Boston Stage Company at (781) 279-2200, or visit www.greaterbostonstage.org