Red Barn theatre’S 45th Anniversary season
RED BARN LANDMARK 45TH SEASON OPENS WITH THE HILARIOUS “THE FOREIGNER”
Key West’s venerable Red Barn Theatre opens its 45th season literally with a bang and a houseful of laughs when it presents a new production of Larry Shue’s hilarious, award-winning “The Foreigner”, opening Wednesday, December 18th and running through January 11 next year. All shows will be at the theater’s new curtain time of 7:30 pm.
The season also marks a milestone for the Red Barn’s Mimi and Gary McDonald and Joy Hawkins, who have guided the small but well-respected playhouse for all of its nearly half a century, an accomplishment rarely achieved in today’s theatrical landscape. Notables who have worked with them at the Barn through the years include Tennessee Williams, Shel Silverstein, Tony Roberts, Paul Cotton, Terri White, and a dozen other names that have made their larger marks in the entertainment industry.
“We’re really excited about this upcoming forty-fifth season,” said Joy Hawkins, the Barn’s artistic director. “It’s an eclectic and surprising season -- funny and deep and particularly right for these times. “
“The Foreigner”, winner of two Obie Awards and the Outer Critics Circle Award, uses the clever conceit of the audience knowing more than the characters on stage to create its fun, while also weaving in rich elements of suspense and a little mystery as the story plays out.
The scene is a fishing lodge in rural Georgia often visited by “Froggy” LeSueur, a British demolition expert who occasionally runs training sessions at a nearby army base. This time Froggy has brought along a friend, a pathologically shy man named Charlie who is overcome with fear at the thought of making conversation with strangers. So before departing, Froggy tells all assembled that Charlie is from an exotic foreign country and speaks no English. Once alone, the fun really begins, as Charlie overhears more than he should from those who feel secure he doesn’t understand a word being said. That he does fuels the nonstop hilarity of the play and sets up the wildly funny climax in which things go uproariously awry for the bad guys, and the good guys emerge triumphant.
“The Foreigner” stars David Black, Chase Naylor, Cassidy Timms, Thomas Masat, Brian Robinson, and Iain Wilcox. It will be directed by Joe Kinosian, who Key West theater buffs will remember as the writer and star of “Murder For Two”, the outrageous and very funny two-man show that played the Red Barn in 2017. Kinosian, invited by artistic director Joy Hawkins to return and direct this opening show, is thrilled to be back in Key West.
“It’s a hilarious and very funny play – probably one of the funniest ever written,” Kinosian said, “but it’s also one of the most moving stories I’ve seen. The audience will be surprised by how much they like the characters and are rooting for them against all odds. It’s one of a kind.”
The New Yorker said “The Foreigner is once comic surprise after another.” And The Village Voice said of the play, “It’s a constant invitation to laugh at the foolishness of life.”
Subscriptions and single show tickets are now on sale for “The Foreigner” and the Red Barn’s entire season at KeysTix.com, redbarntheatre.com, or by calling the box office at 302-296-9911.
Be aware that for this new season, the Red Barn has set curtain time at 7:30 pm for all shows.
Celebrating 45 years
In 1980, a spirited group of actors and technicians renovated the theatre, opening the doors of the Red Barn Theatre under the incorporated name of the Red Barn Actors Studio, Inc.
Mimi and Gary McDonald along with Joy Hawkins were a part of that original lively group, and their enthusiasm and love for the Red Barn Theatre is still an important part of what keeps the Red Barn growing!
Read Our Full History →
