Thursday, September 21, 7:30 p.m., Orcas Center
— from Susannah Weaver for Orcas Center —
The National Theatre production of Yerma, broadcast live to the Orcas Center screen on September 21, 7:30 .m.. The incredible Billie Piper (Penny Dreadful, Great Britain) plays a young woman who is driven to the unthinkable by her desperate desire to have a child, in Simon Stone’s radical production of Lorca’s achingly powerful masterpiece. Come see this powerful, emotional, and unforgettable modern drama.
Set in contemporary London, Piper’s portrayal of a woman in her thirties struggling to conceive builds with elemental force to a staggering, shocking climax. Simon Stone, Australian director and writer, offers a fresh vision on Yerma, Lorca’s 1934 play in a new staging for the English stage. The Guardian says, that Stone “has stripped it of washerwomen, shepherds, poetic effusions. He has transplanted the action from rural Spain to present-day London, and made its heroine a lifestyle journalist and blogger. He shows the yearning of the central figure, the pressure that builds up around her, and the desperation that engulfs her, as utterly contemporary.” Lizzie Clachan’s set design manoeuvres in and out of naturalism enclosing the stage in transparent walls.
The theatre phenomenon sold out at the Young Vic and critics call Billie Piper’s stunning performance, for which she won the 2017 Olivier Award for Best Actress ‘shatteringly powerful.’ The Evening Standard raves, “Piper’s performance is in raw, ferocious, spellbinding form.” Brendan Cowell plays the role of Yerma’s partner “with a mixture of innocent affection and casual incomprehension, said The Guardian. The Times declares that the overall production is “an extraordinary theatrical triumph.”
One of theatre’s hottest tickets at the moment – the only way for audiences to see the show now is in the cinema. Please note that this broadcast does not have an interval. Also, please note that the performance contains strobe lighting and that the subject matter of this play will be upsetting to some viewers.
Tickets for NT Live’s Yerma on September 21 are $20, $15 for students, $2 off for Orcas Center members, and may be purchased at www.orcascenter.org or by calling 376-2281 ext. 1 or visiting the Orcas Center Box Office open Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays from 12-3 pm. $5 subsidized tickets available at the Box Office. For more information about Orcas Center’s 2016-2017 season visit www.orcascenter.org.
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