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The Importance of Being Earnest

October 7, 2022 7:30 pm - 10:00 pm $5 – $15

Location

W. E. Singleton Center for the Performing Arts
922 Park Avenue
Richmond, VA, 23284
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Organizer

Theatre

The Importance of Being Earnest
By Oscar Wilde
Directed by Sharon Ott

Performances October 6th – 9th at the W.E. Singleton Center for the Performing Arts, 922 Park Ave.

Showtimes:
TH 10/6 – 7:30pm
FRI 10/7 – 7:30pm
SAT 10/8- 2:00pm & 7:30pm
SUN 10/9 – 3:00pm

ABOUT:

VCUarts Theatre presents The Importance of Being Earnest, Oscar Wilde’s madcap farce about mistaken identities, secret engagements, and entangled lovers. This wildly entertaining comedy still delights readers more than a century after its 1895 publication and premiere with its rapid-fire wit and eccentric characters, and has been called “the most perfect comedy in the English language” by the London Telegraph.

Subtitled, “A trivial comedy for serious people”, The Importance of Being Earnest is full of dazzling wordplay and hilariously unlikely situations. The story follows a group of people in high society London in the late nineteenth century. Two bachelors, John ‘Jack’ Worthing and Algernon Moncrieff both create alter egos under the name of Ernest, and each attempts to win the heart of a woman (who conveniently claim to only love men called Ernest). They struggle to keep their stories straight, and as chaos ensues, they find themselves tangled in a tale of deception, disguise, and misadventure. The audience is forced to ask – will these men ever find out the vital importance of being earnest?

PERFORMANCE INFO:

Tickets: General Admission – $15. Discounts available for students, alumni, seniors and VCU community.  vcutheatre.showclix.comtheatretix@vcu.edu,  804-828-6026. Box office opens one hour before performances, and doors typically open 30 minutes before performances.

The Importance of Being Earnest has an expected runtime of two hours and twenty minutes with one fifteen minute intermission, and is recommended for high school ages and up.

To stay up to date on the production, please visit arts.vcu.edu/theatre or follow us on social media for behind the scenes content instagram.com/vcuarts_theatre.

UPCOMING:

Make sure to come back to VCUarts Theatre in December to see Gross Indecency: The Three Trials of Oscar Wilde by Moisés Kaufmanwhich takes a modern look at The Importance of Being Earnest playwright himself, Oscar Wilde. Both glorified and shunned during his lifetime in the 19th century, The play recounts the 1895 arrest and trials that resulted in Wilde eventually being convicted and imprisoned for the crime of homosexuality. Kaufmandraws from the original court transcripts as well as newspaper articles, letters, telegrams, and the works of Wilde and his contemporaries to bring the characters to life. Performances are December 1st – 4th at the Singleton Center.

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