Stupid Fucking Bird

Last updated

Stupid Fucking Bird is a contemporary adaptation of Anton Chekhov's 1896 play The Seagull , written by American playwright Aaron Posner, co-founder of the Arden Theatre Company in Philadelphia. Posner has written multiple adaptations of Chekhov and Shakespeare's works. In 2013, Stupid Fucking Bird premiered at the Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company in Washington, D.C. According to Howard Shalwitz, the play takes a satirical spin on a theatrical classic, but has the essence of Chekhov's original intent for the piece—what it means to create art. [1]

Contents

Writing process

Aaron Posner has a large collection of adaptations of classical works in his repertoire. While directing another production at the Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company, a friend of Posner remarked that the actors cast in the show would be ideal for a Chekhov play. This sparked the initial idea for Stupid Fucking Bird in Posner, who began work on the idea. His first draft loosely followed the plot of The Seagull— although he cut and combined the original group of characters to create a cast of seven. The draft was tested when Posner, the director, and the actors were invited to Lake George Theatre Lab in Upstate New York. There, Posner and his team worked on final edits. Throughout the week, they workshopped the script: the team held cold readings, blocked, rehearsed; and to close the week, performed in front of an audience. James Suggs supplied the musical score for the show, which—like the show itself—was influenced by contemporary music, but drew inspiration from Russian opera and dance. Finally, the show premiered at the Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company in Washington, D.C. on May 31, 2013. The show received positive reviews and is noted as a successful adaptation of Chekhov, containing the intensity, tragedy, humor, and thought-provoking content for which Chekhov is known. [1]

Synopsis

Act One

Stupid Fucking Bird follows the life of Con (Conrad), a struggling playwright who is desperately trying to write a new play. Act I begins shortly before a theatrical presentation that Con is putting on at his mother's country home, in which his flighty girlfriend Nina is playing the lead. Con's mother Emma, a famous actress and overbearing presence in Con's life, unhappily attends the performance with her new lover Trigorin, a successful novelist. Con's good friends Dev and Mash also attend the performance. Dev is desperately in love with Mash, while Mash is infatuated with Con, who is oblivious to Mash's love because of his unhealthy obsession with Nina. Nina wants to become a famous actress more than anything and begins to have feelings for Trigorin, who is a successful writer who could advance her acting career. Act One ends with Con attempting to kill himself after discovering Nina's feelings for Trigorin. [2]

Act Two

At the beginning of Act Two, we discover that Con has failed in his suicide attempt. While Nina is attempting to be a comforting presence in Con's life, we see her act upon her impulses to seduce Trigorin. Her seduction is soon thwarted by Emma. Nina leaves, flustered, while Trigorin begs Emma to release him from her clutches. She refuses, but Trigorin finds a way to wriggle free of her grip and runs away with Nina. [2]

Act Three

Act Three begins four years after the end of Act Two. The ensemble of the show is reuniting to celebrate the birthday of their dear friend Sorn. The first scene begins with Mash and Dev, who have married and have three children. It is discovered that Trigorin is back with Emma, after an unforeseen tragedy concerning the death of a baby he had had with Nina. Even after four years, Con is still in love with Nina and in denial about her absence. After hearing that she is back for Sorn's birthday, he attempts to visit her and she rejects him. Con believes all hope is lost until she unexpectedly knocks on his door. Her acting career has plummeted, as has her physical and mental health. She is in a somewhat hysteric state, demanding to know why Con shot a seagull to prove his love for her. After having a complete mental breakdown, Nina exits abruptly, leaving Con to wallow in his self-pity. Breaking the fourth wall, Con addresses the audience, informing them that, in the original adaptation of the script, this is where his character finally kills himself. He pulls out a gun (Chekhov's gun) and points it at his head. Nevertheless, Con somehow reaches a sort of catharsis while speaking to the audience. He drops the gun, turns towards the audience, and says, "Stop the fucking play" to conclude the show. [2]

Characters [2] [3]

Performance history

Stupid Fucking Bird has been produced several times:

Reviews and recognitions

The Economist published their review on August 9, 2014: "The script is new and crackling, at once incisive, poignant and darkly funny. Like the original, it affords plenty of opportunities to chuckle with recognition. And like the original, it delivers an ending that is destined to make its audience weep." The review also celebrates the fact that the play was able to be revamped for the present day, while still maintaining the essence of Chekhov's iconic story. [41]

Original cast and creative team

This is the original cast and creative team that performed the premiere of the show at the Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company in 2013. [42]

Cast

CharacterOriginal cast
ConBrad Koed
EmmaKate Eastwood Norris
TrigCody Nickell
NinaKatie deBuys
SornRick Foucheux
MashKimberly Gilbert
DevDarius Pierce

Creative Team

PositionCreative Team
DirectorHoward Shalwitz
Set designerMisha Kachman
Costume designerLaree Lentz
Lighting designerColin K. Bills
Sound designerJames Sugg
DramaturgMiriam Weisfeld
Production stage managerMaribeth Chaprnka

Related Research Articles

<i>The Seagull</i> 1896 play by Anton Chekhov

The Seagull is a play by Russian dramatist Anton Chekhov, written in 1895 and first produced in 1896. The Seagull is generally considered to be the first of his four major plays. It dramatizes the romantic and artistic conflicts between four characters: the famous middlebrow story writer Boris Trigorin, the ingenue Nina, the fading actress Irina Arkadina, and her son the symbolist playwright Konstantin Treplev.

<i>Three Sisters</i> (play) Play by Anton Chekhov

Three Sisters is a play by the Russian author and playwright Anton Chekhov. It was written in 1900 and first performed in 1901 at the Moscow Art Theatre. The play is often included on the shortlist of Chekhov's outstanding plays, along with The Cherry Orchard, The Seagull and Uncle Vanya.

<i>The Notebook of Trigorin</i>

The Notebook of Trigorin is a play by American playwright Tennessee Williams, adapted from Anton Chekhov's drama The Seagull (1895). Williams based his adaptation primarily on Ann Dunnigan's 1960 translation.

<i>Uncle Vanya</i> 1899 Play by Anton Chekhov

Uncle Vanya is a play by the Russian playwright Anton Chekhov. It was first published in 1897, and first produced in 1899 by the Moscow Art Theatre, directed by Konstantin Stanislavski.

Sarah Marshall is a stage actress working primarily in the Washington, D.C. region. She has been nominated for the Helen Hayes Award seventeen times and won the award in 1989.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michael Pennington</span> British actor (born 1943)

Michael Vivian Fyfe Pennington is an English actor, director and writer. Together with director Michael Bogdanov, he founded the English Shakespeare Company in 1986 and was its Joint Artistic Director until 1992. He has written ten books, directed in the UK, US, Romania and Japan, and is an Honorary Associate Artist of the Royal Shakespeare Company. He is best known for his role as Moff Jerjerrod in the original Star Wars trilogy film Return of the Jedi.

Craig Wright is a playwright, screenwriter and television producer. He is known for writing for shows including Six Feet Under and Lost and creating the television series Dirty Sexy Money and Greenleaf. He also was the screenwriter for the movie Mr. Peabody & Sherman, released March 7, 2014.

<i>Bug</i> (play)

Bug is a play by American playwright Tracy Letts. Exploring themes of paranoia and conspiracy theories, the play tells the story of a woman who, as she spends time with a newly acquainted man in her motel room, starts sharing more and more of his paranoias. It premiered in London 1996, and was also performed around the United States between 2000 and 2004.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Emily Mann (director)</span> American stage director and dramatist

Emily Betsy Mann is an American director, playwright and screenwriter. She served as the artistic director and resident playwright of the McCarter Theatre Center from 1990 to 2020.

<i>The Sea Gull</i> 1968 film by Sidney Lumet

The Sea Gull is a 1968 British-American drama film directed by Sidney Lumet. The screenplay by Moura Budberg is adapted and translated from Anton Chekhov's classic 1896 play The Seagull.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company</span> Non-profit theatre company in Washington, D.C.

Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company is a non-profit theatre company located at 641 D Street NW in the Penn Quarter neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded in 1980, it produces new plays which it believes to be edgy, challenging, and thought-provoking. Performances are in a 265-seat courtyard-style theater.

<i>Birds of Paradise</i> (musical) Musical

Birds of Paradise is a musical with music by David Evans, lyrics by Winnie Holzman, and the book by Evans and Holzman. It had a brief run Off-Broadway in 1987. The story involves a group of amateur actors involved in a musical adaptation of Anton Chekhov's 1896 play The Seagull.

Ann Dunnigan Kennard was an American actress and teacher who later became a translator of 19th-century Russian literature.

<i>Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike</i> 2012 comedy play by Christopher Durang

Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike is a comedy play written by Christopher Durang. The story revolves around the relationships of three middle-aged single siblings, two of whom live together, and takes place during a visit by the third, Masha, who supports them. They discuss their lives and loves, argue, and Masha threatens to sell the house. Some of the show's elements were derived from works of Anton Chekhov, including several character names and sibling relationships, the play's setting in a country house with a vestigial cherry orchard, the performance of an "avant-garde" play by one of the main characters, and the themes of old vs. new generations, real vs. assumed identities, the challenges of a woman growing older after successes in a career that seems to be ending, the hope and carelessness of youth, intrafamilial rivalries, and the possible loss of an ancestral home.

<i>Mr. Burns, a Post-Electric Play</i> Dark comedy play

Mr. Burns, a Post-Electric Play is an American black comedy play written by Anne Washburn with music by Michael Friedman. The play depicts the evolution of the story from the Simpsons episode "Cape Feare" in the decades after an apocalyptic event.

<i>The Seagull</i> (2018 film) 2018 American film

The Seagull is a 2018 American historical drama film directed by Michael Mayer with a screenplay by Stephen Karam, based on the 1896 play of the same name by Anton Chekhov. The film stars Annette Bening, Saoirse Ronan, Corey Stoll, Elisabeth Moss, Mare Winningham, Jon Tenney, Glenn Fleshler, Michael Zegen, Billy Howle and Brian Dennehy. Filming began in June 2015 in New York City, much of it shot in Monroe, New York, 50 miles north of New York City, and the world premiere took place at the Tribeca Film Festival on April 21, 2018, prior to general release on May 11, 2018, through Sony Pictures Classics.

Aaron Posner is an American playwright and theatre director. He was co-founder of the Arden Theatre Company in Philadelphia and was the artistic director of Two River Theater from 2006 to 2010. He has directed over 100 productions at major regional theater companies across the country. He has won six Helen Hayes Awards, two Barrymore Awards, the Outer Critics Circle Award, the John Gassner Prize, a Joseph Jefferson Award, a Bay Area Theatre Award, and an Eliot Norton Award.

The Seagull is a 1972 Soviet film adaptation of the 1896 play of the same name by Anton Chekhov. It was directed by Yuli Karasikand its music was written by Alfred Schnittke.

Jenny Rainsford is an English actress.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Daniel Maslany</span> Canadian actor

Daniel Joseph Maslany is a Canadian actor, producer and composer. He is known for playing Bondurant Smit in CBC's offbeat and absurd comedy series Four in the Morning, Llewellyn Watts in the series Murdoch Mysteries and Townes Linderman in the series Impulse on YouTube Premium.

References

  1. 1 2 Shalwitz, Howard (2013). "An Introduction To Aaron Posner's Stupid Fucking Bird". TheatreForum (44): 3–4.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Posner, Aaron (May 27, 2013). Stupid Fucking Bird. United States: TheatreForum. pp. 5–27. ISBN   978-0-8222-3250-6.
  3. Burris, Katherine Carton (June 2014). Directing Stupid Fucking Bird. California, United States. ISBN   9781321087062.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  4. " Stupid Fucking Bird, September 15 – October 16, 2016". Arden Theatre Company. Retrieved 26 January 2020.
  5. "Slideshow Theatre Company".
  6. "San Francisco Playhouse".
  7. "Slideshow Theatre Company".
  8. "Review: Stupid Fucking Bird by Keith Paul Medelis, Theatre Is Easy, March 30, 2016
  9. "Stupid F*#%ing Bird, an adventurous mix of literate smarts and irreverent vulgarities". LEO Weekly. 2016-04-20. Retrieved 2019-07-16.
  10. "Cygnet Theatre, Stupid F**king Bird". 7 December 2017.
  11. Brown, Alex. "Theater Review: Stupid F*#king Bird, UVM Department of Theatre". Seven Days. Retrieved 2021-04-20.
  12. "The Actors' Project".
  13. "Stupid Bird | Columbus State Community College".
  14. "2017 in review: best of the Bulletin's unpublished photos". The Gonzaga Bulletin. January 3, 2018. Retrieved 7 April 2020.
  15. "'Stupid F- Bird' flies into Piscataway-based Circle Players this weekend".
  16. "2018 – 2019 Season".
  17. "Stupid Fucking Bird | 12 Peers Theater". 12peers.org. Retrieved 2018-07-27.
  18. BWW News Desk. "12 Peers Theater Presents The Pittsburgh Premiere of Stupid Fucking Bird". BroadwayWorld.com. Retrieved 2018-07-27.
  19. "Adult comedy soars in Station's Bird" by Jeffrey Eric Jenkins, The News-Gazette, April 21, 2019
  20. Stupid Fucking Bird, Dobama Theatre http://www.dobama.org/stupidbird
  21. "Stupid F#@%ing Bird". 20 September 2019.
  22. "Events Archive".
  23. "Stupid Fucking Bird in Seattle at Central Washington University 2019".
  24. ""Stupid F*cking Bird": A Contemporary Adaptation of Chekhov's "The Seagull"". Wellesley College. Retrieved 2019-11-17.
  25. "Hubbard Hall".
  26. "Other Work".
  27. "Stupid Fucking Bird | CTX Live Theatre".
  28. "Stupid Fucking Bird – Harvard-Radcliffe Dramatic Club".
  29. "International Theatre Program : University of Rochester". www.sas.rochester.edu. Retrieved 2021-12-11.
  30. "Stupid Fucking Bird by Aaron Posner", March 2022
  31. https://www.facebook.com/#!/events/271377475115008 [ user-generated source ]
  32. "Other Work".
  33. https://www.facebook.com/100064933562465/posts/495805809260534 [ bare URL ]
  34. https://www.facebook.com/events/5345298835597724/ [ bare URL ]
  35. "Student Theater Productions WWU".
  36. "Stupid F**king Bird Program | Cal State LA".
  37. "Stupid F**king Bird Review 124; MIT".
  38. "Stupid F#@*ing Bird by Aaron Posner (2023)".
  39. "Theatre Department; QCC".
  40. "San Diego City College, Stupid F##king Bird".
  41. "A 21st-Century Seagull; New American Theatre". The Economist . No. 8899. August 9, 2014. ProQuest   1552461334.(subscription required)
  42. "Stupid Fucking Bird (review)" by Tim Treanor, June 4, 2013, DC Theatre Scene