We Are Nothing Without Story
At Verge this month, we are celebrating the idea of STORY. What are we without the stories we tell ourselves, and each other? If it seems a ponderous question, then perhaps you need a reminder. Come out to Verge Theater in March to get some help with the answer.
We will open March with a biannual favorite, Tales From The Verge . Twice a season, we feature a collection of Bozemanites recounting true stories from their lives, in front of an audience. We choose the theme and the storytellers fill in the details from their lived experiences; touching, funny, embarrassing, exciting, thought provoking and entirely true. This time around, we have selected “SPRING BREAK” as our subject. Host Ryan Cassavaugh and guests will explore the evening’s theme in a series of short stories they never intended to tell in public! “I Know What You Did Last Spring” runs for three nights only, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, Mar. 1 - Mar. 3 at 8PM. Tickets are $7 in advance (online at vergetheater.com, or in person at Cactus Records) or $9 at the door. Recommended for ages17+.
March also finds us producing A Thousand Winds: Survival Stories, a new play written by the ever- engaging Greg Owens, in conjunction with Cancer Support Community Montana. With additional material by Maureen Kozicki, Donna Garber, Ray Curtis, Jeannie Gracey, Steve Johnson and Bill McLaughlin, A Thousand Winds explores the stories of cancer survivors and loved ones lost to cancer.
With a mission statement that reads “To ensure that all people impacted by cancer are empowered by knowledge, strengthened by action, and sustained by community,” Cancer Support Community is a National non-profit organization with 41 chapters, and is represented in Bozeman in a thoughtful andwelcomingenvironmentat102S.11t h Ave.Their collaboration with accomplished playwright, teacher, and mentor Greg Owens is a gift that we at Verge are so excited to support. Greg Owens has written and produced original plays...with cutting-edge theatre companies around the United States and in London. We are lucky to have him currently settled in Bozeman and penning an original play for our stage!
With grace and poignancy, Bozeman’s own Stephanie Campbell directs Greg Owens’ script, which incorporates true stories from participants in a writing workshop, like the one depicted in the play, as they gather to share stories of loss and hope with humor and spirit, in this world premiere play commissioned by Cancer Support Community.
A Thousand Winds: Survival Stories runs Fridays and Saturdays at 8PM and Sundays at 3PM, from March 23 - April 1. Tickets are $14 in advance (online at vergetheater.com, or in person at Cactus Records) or $16 at the door.
The Bozeman Improverts are back in march with Improv On The Verge Monday nights. The Improverts give the biggest laughs for the fewest bucks! Guaranteed to be a hilarious start to your week. Popular Improv games are played, in the style of the TV show “Whose Line is it Anyway?,” as well as long-form Improv. Everything is created on the spot and based on audience suggestions. Come enjoy Cheap Thrills for your Laugh Hole! Upcoming shows are March 5 & 26 at 7PM. Tickets for Improv are $7 in advance (online at vergetheater.com, or in person at Cactus Records) or $9 at the door. Check the Verge website for more Monday Night Improv throughout the regular Season! Recommended for ages17+.
Also in March, on our Family Stage, we will be producing Judith Viorst’s Stage Musical adaptation of her own book: Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day! With fun and funny music by Shelly Markham, and directed by Verge’s incomparable Gabe Gilbertson, this will be a ride you don’t want to miss!
Alexander is having a bad day. A terrible day. A horrible day! To be quite honest, it’s a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day. But then, everybody has bad days, sometimes. In this delightful adaptation of her popular book, Judith Viorst sets Alexander’s rather trying life to music and brings to the stage one of America’s feistiest characters. Not only does Alexander wake up with gum in his hair, but his mother forgets to pack him dessert, and his best friend decides he’s not his best friend anymore. And if that’s not bad enough, Alexander’s brothers don’t have any cavities but—he does. And just when it can’t get any worse, there are lima beans for supper and —yuck!—kissing on TV. It is enough to make anyone want to go to Australia. Alexander’s struggles with life’s daily dramas will not only entertain but educate young audiences as they identify with Alexander and the obstacles he encounters, encouraging them to share their feelings and to realize that bad days happen—even in Australia.
Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day runs on Saturdays at 3PM from March 24 - April 28. Tickets are $7 in advance (vergetheater.com or in person at Cactus Records) or $9 at the door. Children 2 and under are FREE!
Visit vergetheater.com for reservations and more info about our entire 2017-2018 Season. We hope to see you at The Little Black Box On The Edge (of Bozeman)!