Kennedy Theatre Media Release Department of Theatre and Dance University of Hawai'i at Manoa 1770 East-West Road Honolulu, HI 96822 Contact: Kristy Miller, Publicity Director Phone: (808) 956-2598 Fax: (808) 956-4234 Box Office: (808) 956-7655 (v/t) email: theatre-pr@hawaii.edu February 14, 2003 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE “TONGUES AND SAVAGE/LOVE” THIRD LATE NIGHT OFFERING AT UHM’S KENNEDY THEATRE The University of Hawai‘i at Manoa’s Department of Theatre and Dance presents the Hawai'i premiere “Tongues” and “Savage/Love,” written by Sam Shepard and Joseph Chaikin and directed by MFA Directing candidate Allyson Paris. These pieces will include puppetry, masks and drumming in its presentation. “Tongues and Savage/Love” will play February 15, 21, and 22 at 11pm and February 16at 8pm in a special “matin-eve” performance. The plays were developed separately but often are played as companion pieces. In this interpretation of the script, “Tongues” follows the story of an average, everyday person who has come to realize her own death and begins a journey through the land of the living. “Savage/Love” deals with another intangible feeling of all human experiences: Love. It follows couples in the various stages of their relationships. The two stories will be told though movement in space much like a modern dance piece, while using both masks and puppets. “Tongues” calls for complicated drum accompaniment in which the actors produce on an array of percussive instruments. These pieces combine poetry, dance and rhythm for a performance art experience. Shepard has written 45 plays, eleven of which have won Obie Awards, and has appeared as an actor in sixteen films. In 1979 he was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Drama for “Buried Child,” and in 1984 he gained an Oscar nomination for his performance in “The Right Stuff.” Chaikin, a director and a six time Obie award recipient, met Shepard in the early seventies and the two began to inspire one another. Two dramatic compositions quickly followed, “Tongues” in 1978 and “Savage/Love” in 1979. Though developed separately, the pieces were produced together at The New York Public Theatre in November 1979, and they are now generally regarded as complementary works. Director Allyson Paris has directed for the stage at Bradley University, Flat River Players and Hans Christian Andersen Theatre in Michigan. In 1998 Paris wrote and directed a version of Kipling’s “The Jungle Book.” This also included masks, puppets, music and dancing. She is also a recognized actress having been awarded three Kennedy Center’s American College Theatre Festival’s Irene Ryan Nominations. Her most notable acting appearances were Cinderella in the play “Into the Woods” and Maria in “The Sound of Music.” A Post-Show Rap in which the audience is invited to discuss the play and rehearsal process with the director and performers is scheduled to immediately follow the Friday, February 21st performance. Tickets for “Tongues and Savage/Love” will go on sale one hour before curtain each night of the production at the door of the Earle Ernst Lab Theatre. Ticket prices are $7 Regular, $6 Discount for students, seniors, military, and UH faculty/staff, and $3 for UHM students with validated Spring 2003 Student ID. Latecomers will not be admitted once the performance has begun. For more information or disability access, call the Kennedy Theatre Box Office at 956-7655 (v/t.) - 30 - “Tongues and Savage Love” Saturday February 15 11pm Sunday February 16 8pm Friday February 21 11pm* Saturday February 22 11pm $7 Regular $6 Non-UHM Student, Senior, Military, UH Faculty and Staff $3 UHM Student with Valid Spring 2003 ID *Post Show Rap	See also: Back to Release Index PHONE NUMBERS Box Office (808) 956-7655 Publicity Office (808) 956-2598 Department Office (808) 956-7677 Fax (808) 956-4234