UW News

November 2, 2006

‘Anton in Show Business’ plays at Meany Studio Theatre

The UW School of Drama is currently presenting Anton in Show Business, written by Jane Martin and directed by R. Hamilton Wright, in the Meany Studio Theatre.


Anton in Show Business is an uproarious comedy about a self-centered television actress, a jaded New Yorker and an enthusiastic ingénue brought together for an ill-fated production of Anton Chekhov’s The Three Sisters in San Antonio, Texas. An all-female cast from the UW School of Drama performs multiple roles (including men) in this wild and crazy romp that takes you backstage for a fast-paced and remorseless look into the world of theater.


Although a thorough understanding of Anton Chekhov’s play The Three Sisters is not necessary to enjoy Anton in Show Business, knowledge of the Russian play’s key characters and situations adds to the insider’s view of theater intended by the playwright.


Anton in Show Business was a smash hit in its debut at the 24th Humana Festival of New American Play at the Actors’ Theatre of Louisville and is the winner of the 2000 American Theatre Critics/Steinberg New Play Award. Variety calls this play “A smart, acerbic crowd-pleaser. Simultaneously a love letter and a poison pen letter to the American theatre.” It manages to skewer practically every category of theater person — incompetent producers, idiot directors, surgically beautified actors, crass sponsors, self-important critics, and even such sacred topics as multiculturalism.


Tickets and information are available at the Arts Ticket Office, 206-543-4880, and online at http://depts.washington.edu/uwdrama. Tickets are $15 for adults; $12 for seniors, $13 for UW employees, and $10 for students. Evening performances begin at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday matinees are at 2 p.m. The play runs through Nov. 12.