Tina Packer Headlines 'WhoÂ's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?'

Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?                                                                

By Edward Albee

Director, Diego Arciniegas; Stage Management, Nerys Powell; Production Management & Sound Design, John Doerschuk; Costume Design, Susanne Nitter; Lighting Design, Kenneth Helvig; Set Design, Dahlia Al-Habieli                                  

CAST: Tina Packer, Martha; Nigel Gore, George; Angie Jepson, Honey; Kevin Kaine,Nick                                                                                                                         Performances through October 24 at Publick Theatre at the Plaza Theatre at the Boston Center for the Arts, 539 Tremont Street, Boston's South End                             

Box Office 617-933-8600 or www.bostontheatrescene.com

After all the drama of whether or not the show would go on, go on it did… and in grand style. Faced with last-minute licensing issues, the Publick Theatre Boston production of Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? received permission to open on schedule with the proviso that a program insert state that it was not approved by the playwright Edward Albee. However, within moments of the actors taking the stage, the caliber of their performances and the intensity of the play under the direction of Diego Arciniegas swept away The Remains of the nasty business beyond the fourth wall.

Speaking of nasty business, Albee posits that marriage is one, and he proceeds to make his point with crackling verbiage, more snide comments than heard on right wing talk radio, and near knockdown, drag out skirmishes that leave the characters and the audience spent. In three acts over the course of three hours, we observe the bilateral torment of George and Martha and their systematic dissection of each others' psyches, as well as their masterful gamesmanship in their ability to use their young guests Nick and Honey as both pawns and weapons. As the alcohol flows and the late night party devolves into a war of words and wits, defenses are destroyed and the marital secrets of both couples are painfully revealed.

From producing and starring in family holiday pageants as a child, to avid member of Broadway Across America and Show of the Month Club, Nancy has cultivated her love of the art and respect for the craft of theatre. She fulfilled a dream when she became an adult-onset tap dancer in the early 90's ("Gotta dance!"); she fulfills another by providing reviews for BroadwayWorld.com and evolving as a freelance writer. Nancy is an alumna of Syracuse University and a retired Probation Officer-in-Charge in the Massachusetts Trial Court system.

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