THE RESISTIBLE RISE OF ARTURO UI, IU Theatre

(Photo credit: Amy Osajima)

THE RESISTIBLE RISE OF ARTURO UI by Bertolt Brecht, in a translation by George Tabori revised by Alistair Beaton, IU Theatre Mainstage

Scenic & projection design: Jennie Fischer
Costume design: Elizabeth Davis
Lighting design: Qi’er Luo
Sound Design: Sheumais McHenry
Dramaturg: Kathryn de la Rosa (see her dramaturgy website HERE)

Cast: Glynnis Marcelle, Ellise Chase, Nathaniel Kohlmeier, Eleanor Sobczyk, Alexa Lively, Katie Swaney, Larkin Reilly, Carina Lastimosa, Athena Kopulos, Maya McQueen, Courtney Reid Harris, Dominic Pagliaro, Brantley Goodrich, Brynn Jones, Mia Siffin

(Photo credit: Kevin O. Mooney)

REVIEWS:

     "a production that packs a heavy right hook."
     "An electric ensemble of women performers (and two very talented men) skillfully navigate the play's alternations in tone from comedic farce, to social critique to gangster origin story."
     "...director Liam Castellan seeks to push audiences past cursory readings of Brecht's work, and he does so by pointing to the ways in which contemporary uses of the phrase "NAZI Germany" often serve as a means of deflecting attention from our own inaction in the face of authoritarianism."
     "Castellan's take complicates our reading of Brecht's play, allowing it to critique authoritarianism, corporate greed, business monopolies and dehumanization, all of which are rooted in a system that prioritizes the acquisition of capital over the well-being of people."
     "Not only is the direction superb, its cast breathes fresh life into what could easily have become a play with a markedly masculinist bent.  The choice to cast mostly women actors in the play is a bold one [...]  In this manner, Castellan also undermines the masculinism inherent in the rhetoric which authoritarian, racist and patricarchal institutions use to incite the public to "abandon femininity" for the sake of the fatherland.  [...] the performances given by many of these young actors are truly sublime."

          ~Anne Kneller for 7th & Jordan Blog

     "both stark and at times very funny"
     "Director Liam Castellan has gathered a fine cast to tell Brecht's story."
     "...before the second scene, I had completely adjusted to feminine forms with flowing hair depicting testosterone-drenched hyper-males."
     "So, we applaud and go home, and over the years we read, and watch, and say, 'How could this or that have happened?'  This is how."
          ~IU actors rise to the occasion in Brecht allegory by Connie Shakalis for The Herald Times

     "Director Liam Castellan with a thoughtfully chosen and skilled cast have embraced the fable of Arturo Ui's rise"
     "...the casting and the language did work to keep us at a distance, to keep us from Brecht's dreaded empathy..."
          ~George Walker for Indiana Public Media and WFIU

PRESS:

Student director brings Hitler allegory to life, a Herald Times Feature by Madeline Dippel

Student director chooses gender-blind cast for 'Arturo Ui', a Herald Times Preview by Joel Pierson H-T Theater columnist

'The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui' strives for political awareness, by Clark Gudas for the Indiana Daily Student