Tis the premiere of Laboratory Theatre Co.’s first production, Exit the King!
See here, see here, all royalty of the land; Exit the King is finally here! Tis an abstract play by Eugène Ionesco and directed by Molly Beshore about a kingdom and its king- King Berenger- to be exact. “King Berenger, who is 400 years old, dying rapidly, and taking his kingdom down with him. Over the course of one evening, his two queens, a guard, a nurse, and a doctor use different methods of persuasion to convince Berenger to accept death in hopes of saving what little is left of their kingdom.”
What an exciting adventure that is sure to unfold!
Let us take a look and see who is behind this absurdity and how they brought it to life…
First, we have the Hope Thomas, Consulting Artistic Director of Laboratory Theatre Co. and Exit and King. “As the Consulting A.D., I have been overseeing the production process as a whole. I have been in charge of finding a venue, reserving rehearsal spaces, creating the marketing and promotional content for Exit the King, and overall have tried to create a safe space for our actors and production team to create and manufacture the show. It’s been a lot of work, but the team we have has been super supportive and helpful, especially with this being our first ever production.”
And just how has this process been so far, you might ask?
“It’s been absolutely amazing. Students, especially right now, are looking for different outlets to create art and I am so proud of the team we have put together for this show. We have received so much help and support from faculty and other students, and I am overall pleased with the response people are having to this new company.
Next, we have the Director of this play, Molly Beshore. She stated that this process of directing a premiere production for a new company “has been nothing short of exciting. Everyday has been a challenge that teaches me more about myself and the process. My favorite part is always looking at this show, no matter the day, and saying ‘this is going to turn out amazing.’ I’ve known that since the end of the first week.”
Why should an audience attend thou spectacle?
“People should come to the show because it’s so insanely fun and crazy. It’s dark comedy so we’ve gotten the chance to have so much fun with how much we can mess with the show while still putting on a top notch performance. This show is everything this company stands for, which is collaboration and I know that it’s so important to everyone involved in this production and it shows.”
And, finally, we have King Berenger himself, Elias T. Kraft. He declared that his royalty has been, “An exhilarating experience. Being able to see everyone in person and working on a show that you know will be performed live in-person after such a long time of not being able to go out and experience the world for the past year feels like, truly, a breath of fresh air.”
Watch royalty at its highest and lowest this Friday and Saturday, April 30th and May 1st at 7:30pm. Performances will be housed at The Judith Enyeart Reynolds School of Performing Arts, and are free for all to bear witness.
Head to their Exit the King Facebook Event Page for more information, and make sure to reserve your tickets.
Will the King do what is right to save the lovers of the land? Yee must attend to find out!