Holiday Tales at Riverside

Riverside - Riverside Theatre will host its 11th annual weekend of monologues, Walking the Wire: Holiday Tales November 19-22.

Walking the Wire: Holiday Tales is directed by Ron Clark and features twelve original monologues. As each piece is performed by a single actor who speaks directly to the audience, this element of Riverside’s 2009-2010 season represents theatre in one of its most ancient and stripped-down forms.

Though all of the monologues match the “holiday tale” theme, the calendar events in the spotlight range beyond those celebrated at the end of the year. The characters portrayed by the show’s performers include a determined young woman on the competitive eating circuit, a 1930s vagabond seeking shelter at a brothel, and a college student who ditches the traditional calendar in favor of one that commemorates events in his own life.

Riverside Theatre received monologues from all over the country in response to its call for submissions in summer 2009. The twelve playwrights whose work will be presented are: Ron Clark (Iowa City); Kent Forsberg (Middleton, WI); Megan Gogerty (Iowa City); Steven Hunt (Anchorage, AK); Barbara Lau (Mt. Vernon); Rebecca Leshin (New York City); Charles Monson (Iowa City); Carrie Lee O’Dell (Brooklyn, NY); Janet Schlapkohl (Iowa City); Brian Tanner (North Liberty); Amy Tofte (Los Angeles); and Amy White (Mt. Vernon.)

Among the performers, Riverside audiences will recognize Mary Bryant, Tim Budd, William Czerwionka, Kristy Hartsgrove, Saffron Henke, Janet Schlapkohl, Laura Tatar, and David Tull. Faces new to Riverside include Jessica Flood, Noah Wesley Parks, Becca Robinson, and Jessica Wilson.

Walking the Wire: Holiday Tales will run for four performances only Thursday, November 19-Sunday, November 22. Tickets range from $12-$26 with a $12 student rush 20 minutes before the performance. Tickets may be ordered through the Riverside Theatre Box Office at 213 N. Gilbert Street, by calling (319) 338-7672, or online.