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‘The Bourgeois Gentleman’ at TES
Topics: the bourgeois gentleman, the empty space, TES, theater, theatre, Bakersfield, Bakotopia, Review, Preview, Julie Jordan Scott
Posted by JulieJordanScott Mon Apr 14, 2008 14:38:41 PDT
Viewed 262 times
0 responses 1 comment Location: 706 Oak St., Bakersfield, CA 93304

Theater Preview:
‘The Bourgeois Gentleman’ at TES
Be prepared to laugh, laugh, and laugh even more, warns local actor - running through May 2, 2008!



By Julie Jordan Scott, Bakotopia.com contributor

Sometimes I wish I had just kept my big mouth shut.

I admit it, we “theatre people” are known for being wildly dramatic but if you had asked me a few months ago I would have said the same thing. I thought I was pretty darn good at not laughing on stage no matter what…



“I have never broken on stage - that is so ‘unprofessional,’” I say. (“Breaking” on stage referring to falling out of character and laughing in response to something that takes place in a scene.)

Then along came rehearsals for “The Bourgeois Gentleman.”

Nearly every rehearsal I was laughing, laughing and then laughing some more. I kept remembering my indignant “I never break on stage” proclamation and prayed that once I got used to both the script and the choices my fellow actors were making, my natural laughter would begin to slow down.

Molière’s “The Bourgeois Gentleman” is a seventeenth-century farce about a self-made man who tries to buy his way into society.



This light-hearted play tells the story of the wealthy Monsieur Jourdain, who spends extravagantly in an attempt to appear cultured and genteel. He can afford the finest clothing, the most precious jewels, and the most cleverly intelligent tutors Paris has to offer.

Unfortunately, he is preposterously out of touch with reality.



As Jourdain hires various instructors to train him in the arts (succeeding only in making himself appear foolish to everybody but himself), his long-suffering wife tries vainly to beat some sense into him - and protect her family from the greedy Count Dorante - while finding her daughter Lucile a good, middle-class husband.

The Bourgeois Gentleman was a social satire in its time, exploring the themes of class and wealth, but modern audiences can sit back, appreciate the satire, and take in the wacky hilarity of it all!

“The Bourgeois Gentleman”
-Directed by Ron Warren and Ryan Watts
-Performance dates: April 18, 25, 26 and May 2 and 3 at 8 p.m. with -Sunday matinees on April 20 and 27 at 2 p.m.
-Admission is FREE with a suggested donation of $10 for adults and $5 for students and seniors. The Empty Space is located at 706 Oak Street in the Pizzaville shopping center. Seating can only be guaranteed by making a reservation. To make a reservation or for more information, visit: www.esonline.org or call The Empty Space at 327-PLAY (327-7529).

Article also printed in Bakotopia Magazine, issue 26, 4/17/08

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Comment From: matt

I love those pics! Theater people and musicians, we are a weird group of artsy fartsy's aren't we? But that's why people love us so much...hehe! THANKS JULIE!!!