Civic Players offer family drama; Wilde classic at Proctors

Amy M. Lane and Robin MacDuffie, seated, play a married couple dealing with a tragic loss in the Schenectady Civic Players production of "Rabbit Hole." Katherine Stephens, left, and Laurel Hayes are also in the cast. (Tom Killips)

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Jennifer Van Iderstyne’s theater resumé is about to get a bit more diversified.

One of the busiest actresses on area stages the last few years, Van Iderstyne is directing her first fully staged play in the Schenectady Civic Players’ production of David Lindsay-Abaire’s “Rabbit Hole,” opening Friday at the Schenectady Civic Playhouse.

“I directed some plays in college, but this is my first full-blown production around here,” said Van Iderstyne, a graduate of Mohonasen High School and SUNY-Potsdam. “I really hope they’ll let me do this again. I love my talented cast and I’m having a wonderful time.”

While “Rabbit Hole” will play for two weekends in the Stockade, in nearby downtown Schenectady the Classic Theater Guild and director Karen Christina Jones will be putting a slight twist on Oscar Wilde’s classic, “The Importance of Being Earnest.” The production will be held at Proctors’ Fenimore Gallery and also run over the next two weekends.

“Rabbit Hole,” a favorite in regional theaters around the country, had a limited Broadway run in 2006. But along with claiming five Tony Award nominations, including one for Best Play, it also earned Lindsay-Abaire the Pulitzer Prize for Drama.

The story is a tragic one, focusing on a young couple, Howie and Becca, dealing with the loss of their young child.

’Rabbit Hole’ and ‘The Importance of Being Earnest’

‘Rabbit Hole’

WHERE: Schenectady Civic Playhouse, 11 S. Church St., Schenectady

WHEN: Opens 8 p.m. Friday and runs through Feb. 8; performance times are 7:30 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday, 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday, and 2:30 p.m. Sunday

HOW MUCH: $17

MORE INFO: 346-6204, www.civicplayers.org

‘The Importance of Being Earnest’

WHERE: Fenimore Gallery, Proctors, 432 State St., Schenectady

WHEN: 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday, 10 a.m. Feb. 5, 7:30 p.m. Feb. 6-8

HOW MUCH: $18.50-$15.50

MORE INFO: 346-6204, www.classictheaterguild.com

Van Iderstyne said some people avoid the play because the story line is so sad. “They didn’t want to get kicked in the gut for two hours. But it’s really not that kind of a play. It’s about hope, not pain, and there are some really beautiful moments in the show,” she said. “When I read the script I realized it was a wonderful play. I jumped at the opportunity to direct it.”

Amy M. Lane plays Becca, a role that won a Tony for Cynthia Nixon in 2006, and Robin MacDuffie plays her husband, Howie.

“The play is about dealing with adversity and gaining strength working through the challenges that you face,” said Van Iderstyne. “There’s something transcendent about that, and I couldn’t wait to start working on the play.”

Van Iderstyne, who was recently in “The Liar” at Schenectady Civic and has also played Stella in “A Streetcar Named Desire” with Confetti Stage, and the mom in “A Christmas Story” with the Classic Theater Guild, said she hopes to continue to go back and forth between directing and performing.

“I think I can live in both worlds just fine, and I certainly hope I never have to give up acting,” said Van Iderstyne, who, along with directing staged readings, has participated in the Albany Civic Theater Director’s Showcase series.

Sharing the stage with Lane and MacDuffie are Ryan Glynn, Laurel Hayes and Katherine Stephens.

Wilde classic

While the Schenectady Civic Players offer up a contemporary piece, the Classic Theater Guild will present one of Wilde’s best plays, a work that premiered in London this same week 120 years ago. The CTG production, however, is set in West Harlem, not London.

“When I studied Wilde in college, particularly this play, it always reminded me of New York City during the Gilded Age, so I decided before I cast the show that we were going to set it in New York City,” said Jones, who is black and has added two black characters to the story.

“The play is in the public domain, and there have been other productions that used black actors, so we’re able to do few things creatively.”

“The Importance of Being Earnest” is a comedy of manners focusing on the exploits of two young men. In this version they are recent graduates from Howard University, enjoying the social life of New York City. Jason Tillery plays Jack Worthing and Freedom Stratton is Algernon Moncrieff, while also in the cast are Rachel Leah Pearlman and Richard Angher.

“Wilde had this amazing sense of humor about life and class and social standing, and I wanted to have a youthful cast to really show that,” said Jones.

“We feel we are really doing justice to the playwright. We’re keeping the text and the costumes, but we are expanding things in a non-traditional way.”

Reach Gazette reporter Bill Buell at 395-3190 or [email protected]