The Theatre Arts Program at the University of Pennsylvania presents: The Exception and the Rule

by Bertolt Brecht
Translated by Eric Bentley
Directed by James Noonan

In a race to find oil across a dangerous desert our characters challenge the theatrical form, taking Brechtian theatre into the virtual space! Check out a live, Zoom performance of The Exception and The Rule by Bertolt Brecht, translated by Eric Bentley, as part of James Noonan’s thesis project. 

Click here to register. 
(Tickets are free but in limited quantity.)

Friday, February 26 at 7pm EST*
Saturday, February 27 at 7pm EST

*Missing the chance to mingle at the stage door? Following the first performance, the audience is invited to remain in Zoom for a short post-show, cameras-optional call with the cast and crew.

 The Exception and the Rule (Bentley) is presented by arrangement with Concord Theatricals on behalf of Samuel French, Inc. www.concordtheatricals.com

THE EXCEPTION AND THE RULE Virtual Program

Please Note

The performance runs about 65 minutes.
Sound effects include a gunshot and physical violence.

Director’s Note

While Brecht may have written The Exception and the Rule over 90 years ago, his analysis and depiction of oppression and injustice within society remains strikingly relevant to this day. The play's interrogations of the dynamics between rich and poor and the role of the justice system in a fundamentally unjust society bears striking resemblance to the world of today. As an audience member, question the events you see before you: in what ways are they relevant to today's society? What isn't? What's missing from the picture before your eyes? Recognize the play's shortcomings in representing oppression, what dynamics of oppression aren't present? Why do these dynamics of oppression occur, who are they useful for? And finally, how can we create a society in which injustice doesn't occur. Because, to quote Brecht, we must change the world: it needs it.

-James Noonan

Cast

Merchant … Melissa Amilani
Porter/Porter’s Widow … Avery Breyne-Cartwright
Guide … Becca Smith
Judge/Innkeeper/Leader/Police Officer … Lisa Panzer

Creative Team

Director … James Noonan
Stage Manager/Music Director … Melannie Jay
Production Manager/Technical Director … Cat Johnson
Director Mentor … David O’Connor

Special Thanks

Cary Mazer
Tanya Davis
Jory Johnson
Noah Levine

Biographies

Melissa Amilani (Merchant); from Downingtown, PA; performing in Philadelphia PA.

Melissa Amilani is excited to be bringing Brecht to a COVID-safe and accessible platform! Working on a text with revolutionary ideas and a motivated ensemble has been a refreshing change in the wake of this “new normal.” An alum of Temple Theaters, they have previously performed with the Idiopathic Ridiculopathy Consortium, Irish Heritage Theatre, Philly Young Playwrights, and more! They’ve spent their pandemic learning how a kitchen works and pushing the resulting baked goods on their roommates so they don’t eat it all themself.

Avery Breyne-Cartwright (Porter/Porter’s Widow); from Philadelphia, PA; performing in Philadelphia, PA.

Avery is a recent graduate from Bristol Old Vic Theatre school, where they received their MFA in Acting. Some of their recent roles include Antigone in Burial at Thebes, Ophelia in Hamlet, Natasha in The Three Sisters, and Jelene in the new play Half. They were to appear in Our Lady of 121st Street last spring as Marcia, but the production was halted due to the pandemic. Avery is grateful to have the opportunity to work on a play so relevant to our current struggles. Although it will be a joy to do theatre in person again one day, it's exciting to explore a new performance medium!

Melannie Jay (Stage Manager/Music Director) Major: English and Neuroscience; Class of 2021; from Madison, WI; stage managing from Philadelphia, PA.

Melannie Jay ran the light board in seventh grade for what her grandmother called "Camp Runamok," and stuck with the technical side of theater ever since. After running crew and performing in the pit orchestra for productions such as The Sound of Music, Oklahoma!, The Drowsy Chaperone, and Fun Home, Melannie joined the Penn Theater Arts Program in January 2020 as the technical theatre assistant through the Federal Work-Study Program. She would like to thank her friends and family for their continued support, the Theater Arts program for their continued employment, her roommate for putting up with Zoom rehearsals, and her cat Sawyer for (mostly) behaving.

Cat Johnson (Production Manager/Technical Director).

Cat Johnson has been serving in the Theatre Arts Program at the University of Pennsylvania as Production Manager since the autumn of 2019, after nearly 20 years of scenic design and technical direction work in local and regional theatres across the country. She holds an MFA in Theatre Design from Temple University and a BA in Drama from Washington University in St. Louis. Johnson has taught theatrical design courses at Temple, Northern Kentucky University and here at Penn. She sends a big thanks to all who took the leap with us to virtual theatre performance!

James Noonan (Director) Major: Theatre Arts & English; Class of 2021; from Northport, NY; directing from Philadelphia, PA.

James is absolutely ecstatic to be finishing his time at Penn directing The Exception and the Rule! When James isn't in the director's chair he's usually found either working as a dramaturg, as he did for Frontrow Theatre Company's production of Manahatta and Quadramic's Production of 26 Pebbles, or as a stage manager, as he did for the Theatre Arts Program's Fall 2019 production of Everyman. He'd like to thank everyone at the Theatre Arts Program and in the show for making this such a wonderful experience for him, and to you, the audience, for coming to see everyone's hard work. Enjoy the show!

David O’Connor (Director Mentor); Philadelphia, PA.

David O'Connor is a guest lecturer for Theater Arts, where he teaches Acting and Directing. David has previously directed Iphigenia and Good Person of Setchuan for the program. David has also previously directed for the Arden, the Lantern, Philadelphia Shakespeare, Hedgerow, and was the Resident Director for Philadelphia Young Playwrights. Currently, David is an Agile Learning Facilitator at Philadelphia Agile Learning Community, a school for Self Directed Education.

Lisa Panzer (Judge/Innkeeper/Leader/Police Officer); from Media, PA; performing in Media, PA.

Lisa Panzer is very excited to participate in Bertolt Brecht's The Exception and the Rule, directed by James Noonan! Lisa has worked for many years in theater not only as an actor, but as a director, teaching artist, technical director, reviewer and roustabout. A few of her favorite past theatrical roles include: Liz Imbrie in The Philadelphia Story, Maria in Lend Me a Tenor, Mollie Ralston in Mousetrap, and Trinculo in The Tempest. Lisa also dabbles in film, and three short films she is involved in are featured in Manhattan Repertory Theatre's STORIES FILM FESTIVAL VIRTUAL EDITION 2021.

Becca Smith (The Guide); from Yardley, PA; performing in Yardley, PA.

Becca Smith is a Philly-based theater artist who does a little bit of everything. Since graduating from Temple University, she has worked all over the country, serving as the ASM on Theatre Exile's Babel, the props supervisor on the OKC Polar Express Experience, and a costumer in Disney's Magic Kingdom. She would like to thank the cast and creative team for making her first zoom production such a positive experience!