FARMINGTON, ME (October 5 2018)—This fall, the University of Maine at Farmington brings to the campus stage the multi-award-winning Broadway play “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time.” It is a stage adaptation by Simon Stephens based on the best-selling book of the same name by Mark Haddon.
Performances for this 2015 Tony Award winner for Best Play are at 7:30 p.m., Thursday–Saturday, Oct. 18-20, and 2 p.m., Sunday, Oct. 21 in UMF Alumni Theater.
Theatre UMF, the on-campus student theatre organization, is one of the first theatre groups in Maine to produce this record-breaking play. During its premiere run in London, it tied the record for winning the most Olivier Awards. Recently on Broadway, it won the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Play and the Outer Critics Circle Award for Outstanding New Broadway Play in addition to the Tony Award for Best Play, among others.
Directed by Jayne Decker, UMF director of theatre, the story revolves around Christopher Boone, an extraordinary young man who discovers the body of his neighbor’s dog. A gifted mathematician, Boone is a bit of an outsider who sees the world in a different way. He is soon under suspicion and embarks on a journey to unravel the truth and in the process finds some answers for himself.
“I am always looking for a play that will challenge our students in a new way. This production does that on many levels,” said Decker. “In addition to learning a proper British dialect, many members of the all-student cast will be playing more than one role. It’s always a thrill to see them rise to the challenge.”
An award-winning playwright, Decker has directed numerous productions at UMF Alumni Theater. Her production, “Coyote on a Fence,” was awarded a Moss Hart Memorial Award by the New England Theatre Conference—New England’s oldest and largest regional theatre association. Her other directorial work includes Martin McDonagh’s “The Cripple of Inishmaan,” George Brant’s “Elephant’s Graveyard,” the musicals “Fiddler on the Roof” and “Oliver!” and productions of Shakespeare’s “The Tempest” and “A Midsummer Night’s Dream.”
She has also presented workshop productions of her original plays “Good Medicine;” “Stars Falling,” winner of the 2002 Maine Playwriting Award; “Jelly Moonshine;” and “Songbird,” a touring play about the Iraq War. “Cracked Shells,” an original play by Decker about domestic violence, was commissioned by Franklin County Network’s Peace in Our Families and was featured again at the 2009 Maine Women’s Studies Conference.
This Theatre UMF production is sponsored by the UMF Department of Sound, Performance and Visual Inquiry.
Tickets for the performance are $8 for adults, $6 for seniors and $5 for students with I.D. Tickets are available at the time of the performance and can be reserved by calling the Theatre UMF box office at 207-778-7465.
Cast and Crew
Note: student’s names include hometowns
Cast:
Siobhan – Sophie Hendrix (Gorham)
Christopher – Jonas Maines (Portland)
Ed – Ian Grima (Rockland)
Judy – Hailey Craig (Trenton)
Ensemble (playing multiple roles) – Chloe Hoecker (Boothbay Harbor), Eli Mowry (Kennebunk), Sophia Cardullo (Saco), Josh Grant (Livermore), Simoane Lowell (Clinton) and Brock Bubar (Etna)
Crew:
Director – Jayne Decker
Scenic and Lighting Designer – Stan Spilecki
Sound Design – Michael Diffin
Original Animation – Tonner Hann
Dialect Coach – Dan “Tree” Robbins
Stage Manager – Hope Lash (Waldoboro)
Assistant Stage Manager – Billie-Rose Newby (Machiasport)
Major Props Design – Jessica Leibowitz (Pittsfield)
Assistant to the Director – Steffon Gales (Roxbury, Mass.)
Costumes created by Declan Attaway-Murphy (Portland), Ben Hayes (Berwick) and Samantha Wood (Franklin, N.H.)
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Media Contact: Jayne Decker, UMF director of theatre, at jdecker@maine.edu or 207-778-7319
EDITOR’S NOTE:
Image: RP189-010
Photo Caption: Theatre UMF students in fall production of “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time.”
Photo Credit: UMF Image
Contact:
April Mulherin
UMF Associate Director for Media Relations
office: 207-778-7081
cell: 207-491-0064
april.mulherin@maine.edu