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Steve Martin Comedy to Play at Connecticut College's Tansill Theatre

NEW LONDON, CT: In a legendary bar in 1904 Paris, a chance encounter between the young Einstein and Picasso sets sparks and stars flying. What does the world look like to a genius on the verge of transforming it? Their views on sex, fame and the future collide amidst an eccentric constellation of characters. In Steve Martin’s first comedy for the stage, the popular actor and screenwriter plays fast and loose with fact, fame and fortune as two of the 20th Century’s legendary geniuses muse on humanity’s achievements and prospects. Aaron Arbiter directs the Emerson Theatre Collaborative’s production, which runs July 17-26 at the Tansill Theatre at Connecticut College in New London.

Picasso at the Lapin Agile offers up a fictitious meeting in 1904 between Albert Einstein (age 25) and Pablo Picasso (age 23) in the Lapin Agile, a cabaret/bar and haven for artists, musicians, poets and philosophers in the Montmartre section of Paris. This encounter occurs just one year before Einstein presents the special theory of relativity in 1905 and three years before Picasso revolutionizes art in 1907 with his new aesthetic reflected in “Les Demoiselles d’Avignon.”

Picasso at the Lapin Agile offers a compelling examination of science and art and their impact on a rapidly changing society. The play moves with ease between the breezy and the profound, as the two men engage in a battle of ideas about probability, lust, artistic integrity and the future. Dancing a line between comedic and serious, the play’s exploration of art, physics, philosophy, time, space and relationships of all kinds excites a lively combustion of colorful characters and propels the observer to consider our desires for innovation, love and beauty.

Bystanders, including Picasso's agent, his amorous fan, the bartender and his mistress, an elderly philosopher and an idiot inventor introduce additional flourishes of humor. The final surprise patron to join the merriment at the Lapin Agile is a charismatic dark haired singer time warped in from a later era.

The cast: James Patrick Flynn's (Gaston) credits in New York include appearances as Marchbanks in Candida, de la Tremoille in Saint Joan, Prof. van Helsing in Dracula, the world premiere of Edmund Wilson’s This Room and This Gin and These Sandwiches, and, most recently, as Al in the premiere of David Patrick Stearns’ comedy, Addicted to Christmas. Regional appearances include Theatre-in-the-Round in Minneapolis and Miami’s Coconut Grove Playhouse.

Stephen Sherman (Picasso) returns to ETC, where he played Father Flynn in Doubt last summer. Off Broadway appearances include Claymont (Emerging Artists) and Tony N' Tina's Wedding (Corcoran Prods). Other credits include Chicken Bone Beach, The Who's Tommy, Aladdin, Glaxo Mystery Theatre, and Cheap Sunglasses.

Christopher Bell (Freddy) has been seen on stage in Connecticut from Putnam to Stratford to Ivoryton to Mystic. Favorite roles include Pap Finn (Big River), George Willowby (I’ll Be Back Before Midnight), Roger Chillingworth (The Scarlet Letter), and Fredrick (Smokey Joe’s Café).

Diane Foster (Germaine) has been performing for years both as an amateur and a professional, in the U.S. and abroad. A resident of Waterford, CT, she teaches math at the ISAAC School in New London. Favorite roles include Guinevere in Camelot, Sally in Me and My Girl, Charity in Sweet Charity, and Mistress in Evita. Picasso at the Lapin Agile is her ETC debut.

Mark Foster (Schmendiman) lives and works in Waterford, CT, where he is both a French teacher and student. He is currently writing his thesis to complete a doctorate in Medieval French literature. Mark has been involved in theater for years. He's directed eight shows and has performed in more than 40, including The Odd Couple, The Fantasticks, Anything Goes, Sweeney Todd, and Me and My Girl. This is his ETC debut.

John Heath (Einstein) is making his Emerson Theatre Collaborative debut. He is a New York-based actor and has spent three summers studying with and working at the Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey. He recently played Adam Trainsmith in the Hudson Theatre Ensembles production of Comic Potential, and was seen in the Drilling Company's Shakespeare in the Parking Lot.

Sarah Kronisch (Suzanne, Countess) has her BFA in acting from The University of Connecticut and graduated from the Greater Hartford Academy of the Arts’ theater program. Sarah was last seen in the Connecticut Repertory Theater’s productions of Thin Air: Tales of a Revolution and Shakespeare in Hollywood. This is her ECT debut.

Paul Lang (The Visitor) is making his debut with ETC in Picasso at the Lapin Agile. He is currently a sophomore at the Boston Conservatory, majoring in musical theater. Paul’s previous credits include Dickon in The Secret Garden, Joseph in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Lun Tha in The King and I, Danny in Grease, and Schroeder in You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown.
Brian Smith (Sagot) Picasso at the Lapin Agile marks Brian’s return to the stage after a ten-year hiatus. Prior to that, over a twenty year period, he appeared in dinner theatre, summer stock and local theatre venues in a variety of acting, directing, and technical positions. Previous roles include the Stage Manager in Our Town, George Spelvin in The Actor’s Nightmare and Sparky in Sergeant Musgrave’s Dance.

Aleandra Wittenski (The Female Admirer) has been involved in theatre since she was in the third grade. She participated in school productions before she played Lynn McCarthy in the Chelsea Players production of Red Herring, which was her introduction to Southern CT theatre. She attends NFA and will be a senior in the upcoming year.

Picasso at the Lapin Agile is directed by Aaron Arbiter. Arbiter is the 2009-2010 Artistic Director of Brandeis University’s award-winning Free Play Theatre Cooperative. His directing credits at Brandeis include City of Angels and John Patrick Shanley's Savage in Limbo. Arbiter directed the recent ETC production of Harriet2. He is a graduate of the National Theater Institute and the Advanced Directing Semester at the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center in New London.

Emerson Theater Collaborative serves youth, underrepresented communities, and artists with an emphasis on diversity by producing innovative and exhilarating theater in southeastern Connecticut. ETC explores timely themes and issues through original works and modern theatrical classics, develops and nurtures emerging and professional artists, and collaborates with the Emerson College network of alumni and students.