Click here to download a high-resolution photo from Caucasian Chalk Cirlce.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Profound questions about life and society will be
posed when the Theatre Department of Vanderbilt University presents
Bertolt Brecht’s The Caucasian Chalk Circle this month.
The production debuts at 8 p.m. Friday, Feb. 13. Performances will
follow at 8 p.m. Feb. 14, 18, 19 and 20, with a matinee at 2 p.m. on
Sunday, Feb. 15. Admission is $7 for the general public, $4 for
graduate students at Vanderbilt, and free for undergraduates.
"It’s one of the most experimental and technically demanding
productions we’ve mounted in years," said Jeffrey Ullom, assistant
professor of theatre and director of Vanderbilt’s production of The
Caucasian Chalk Circle. "Brecht created epic theatre, which aims to
affect social change."
In The Caucasian Chalk Circle, Brecht uses an ancient Chinese tale
about a conflict between two women over a baby to explore the notion
that owning something doesn’t mean one deserves it. That, in turn,
leads to questioning whether it’s right to base a society on capitalism.
"On a lighter note, we’re experimenting with performance conventions
as a means of achieving Brecht’s epic theatre," Ullom said. "So it
should be quite different from anything anyone has seen lately."
The show features a cast of 29, all of them on stage for the entire show.
Brecht, a German poet and playwright, wrote with the intention that
audiences be made to think, rather than identifying with the characters
and getting lost in the story. Two collaborations with composer Kurt
Weil are staples of popular music: "Mack the Knife" (from The
Threepenny Opera), and "Alabama Song" (from Rise and Fall of the
City of Mahogany), which was recorded by The Doors and David Bowie.
For reservations or ticket information, call Lisa Barksdale at (615) 322-2404 or
e-mail lisa.l.barksdale@vanderbilt.edu. Neely Auditorium is between the Sarratt Student Center and Kirkland Hall on the Vanderbilt campus.
For more information, visit http://sitemason.vanderbilt.edu/theatre/home, the Vanderbilt University Theatre Department website.
Media contact: Jim Patterson, (615) 322-NEWS
Jim.patterson@vanderbilt.edu