Steve Martin's Comedic Play to Close UW Performance Season

April 10, 2007 -- "Picasso at the Lapin Agile," funnyman Steve Martin's smart, razor-sharp comedy, runs April 17-22 on the Fine Arts Center main stage, concluding the University of Wyoming Department of Theatre and Dance 2006-07 performance season.

Shows begin at 7:30 nightly. Sunday also features a 2 p.m. matinee. Tickets cost $7 for students, $11 for seniors (60 and older) and $14 for others. To purchase tickets visit the Fine Arts Center box office, call (307) 766-6666, or go online at www.uwyo.edu/finearts.

Steve Martin, best known for his standup comedy, zany screenplays and leading film roles, turns playwright in this tribute to the dawn of the 20th century.

Winner of the Outer Critics Circle Award for Best Off-Broadway Play and Best Playwright, "Picasso at the Lapin Agile" revolves around an imaginary 1904 meeting between Pablo Picasso and Albert Einstein in the legendary Paris bistro Lapin Agile. A dashing Picasso is on the cusp of revolutionizing the world of art through Cubism with "Les Demoiselles D'Avignon," while a fiery Einstein is about to revolutionize physics with his theory of relativity.

Perched on the edge of greatness, the two young geniuses spend the evening vying for the attentions of a lady and each other's respect while engaging in a hilarious battle of ideas.

"The play is just a short 90 minutes in length, but Martin has crafted a piece that not only makes you laugh, but also begs the questions: Are following your destiny and following your heart two separate things," says Leigh Selting, the play's director and professor in the Department of Theatre and Dance.

The two come to realize their aspirations transcend time and space. They also discover how science and art will impact the human condition and shape their own rapidly-changing society.

Photo
Final Play --  Ken Stellingwerf of Sheridan and Mary Higgins of Santa Rosa, Calif., rehearse a scene from Steve Martin's "Picasso at the Lapin Agile," showing April 17-22 on the University of Wyoming Fine Arts Center main stage. Performances begin at 7:30 nightly and 2 p.m. Sunday. Tickets cost $7 for students, $11 for seniors (60 and older) and $14 for others. To purchase tickets visit the Fine Arts Center box office, call (307) 766-6666, or go online at www.uwyo.edu/finearts. (UW Photo)

Posted on Tuesday, April 10, 2007