FARMINGTON — The University of Maine at Farmington brings Eugene Ionesco’s “The Bald Soprano” to the stage as its spring theatrical production.

Performances will take place at 7:30 p.m. Thursday through Saturday, March 16-18; and at 2 p.m. Sunday, March 19, in the UMF Alumni Theater.

Directed by Melissa Thompson, UMF assistant professor of performing arts, “The Bald Soprano” is an important example of the Theatre of the Absurd. In it, Ionesco takes on an upper-middle class dinner party in which four guests engage in the social rituals of “good society.” 

They try to follow the rules, only to discover in increasingly ridiculous ways that their language does not have the power they think it does. Fast-paced, highly physical absurdity results as the characters try harder and harder to maintain control and their composure.

The leading figure of Absurdist Theater and an internationally renowned master of modern drama, Ionesco is one of the great innovators of the modern stage. He went on to become famous for the comic proportions and bizarre effects that allow his work to be simultaneously hilarious, tragic and profound. 

This Theatre UMF production is sponsored by the UMF Department of Visual and Performing Arts. 

Tickets are $7 for adults and $5 for students with ID. 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
Director: Melissa C. Thompson
Assistant Director: Devin Gilman, Farmington
Stage Manager: Alyssa Higbie, Clinton
Assistant Stage Manager: Bridgett Keith, Scarborough
Scenic and lighting design: Stan Spilecki
Costumes: Madison Uliano, Bar Harbor
Technical support: students in Space Lab THE 202A

Mrs. Smith: Morgan Steward, Anson
Mr. Smith: Keith J. Clark, Presque Isle
Mrs. Martin: Julia Allen, Cromwell, Conn.
Mr. Martin: Nate Red, Portland
Mary: Summer McCullough, Rumford
Fire Chief: Jonas Maines, Portland