MEDIA RELEASE, January 31, 2007 In Co-production with the National Arts Centre (Ottawa)/Go Diva Production (Los Angeles) by Gloria Montero Directed by Peter Hinton Starring Allegra Fulton February 6 – 25, 2007 Rice Theatre at the Citadel
“Allegra Fulton plays Kahlo with hypnotic, impeccably calibrated intensity.”New York Magazine
“Fulton’s performance is mesmerizing and utterly convincing.”The New Yorker “Allegra Fulton ferociously inhabits Kahlo’s skin.”The Village Voice EDMONTON, AB – In honour of the centenary of artist Frida Kahlo’s birth, the Citadel Theatre, in co-production with the National Arts Centre in Ottawa, is pleased to welcome the sensational production Frida K. as part of the 2006-2007 Rice Theatre Series. Starring the incredible Allegra Fulton and directed by National Arts Centre, English Theatre, Artistic Director Peter Hinton, this tour-de-force performance and compelling true story should not be missed by anyone who enjoys art and theatre. Frida K. takes place on the eve of Frida Kahlo’s solo exhibition in Coyoacan, Mexico on April 13, 1953, a year before she dies. As Frida dresses in the traditional Tejuano style, adorning her hair with flowers, and her hands and neck with pre-Columbian jewelry, she recounts her life story: her tragic marriage to the great muralist Diego Rivera; her affair with Russian revolutionary Leon Trotsky; her surrealist friends Marcel Duchamps, Andre Breton and Salvador Dali; her relationship with Pablo Picasso; her bisexuality and addiction to morphine and alcohol due to the chronic pain she suffered as a result of contracting polio as a child and sustaining horrific injuries in a bus crash accident when she was 18. Frida K. was first staged by Metal Corset Company and Miranda de Pencier at the 1994 Toronto Fringe Festival, co-directed by Peter Hinton and Naomi Campbell. The Spanish version was performed with great success at Madrid's Autumn Festival in 1995 and subsequently at Barcelona's Teatro Artenbrut and the Sala Muntaner. It also had a successful run in Mexico City and New York. Frida K. was written by Gloria Montero as a birthday gift to her daughter, Allegra Fulton. Frida Kahlo was born in Mexico City in 1907. In 1913, at the age of six, she was stricken with polio, which left her with a limp. In 1922 she entered the Preparatoria (National Preparatory School), the most prestigious educational institution in Mexico. In 1925, Frida was traveling in a bus which collided with a tramcar, and suffered serious injuries to her right leg and pelvis. The accident made it impossible for her to have children. In 1926, during recovery, she painted her first self-portrait. In August, 1929, Frida married Diego Rivera, a communist and celebrated muralist. Diego’s reputation was growing in the United States and they both went to New York in 1931 for a retrospective on Diego’s work at the Museum of Modern Art. In 1932, Frida suffered a miscarriage and painted a self-portrait that began a style based on Mexican folk art and the small pious photos known as ‘retablos’ found in Mexican churches. In the early 1940s, Frida and Diego divorced and remarried while her health deteriorated and her reputation as an artist grew. In 1953 she held her first and only art show in Mexico City and in 1954 her right leg was amputated below the knee due to gangrene. She died later that year. Frida K. stars Allegra Fulton (Citadel Theatre debut) as Frida Kahlo and is directed by Peter Hinton (Citadel debut). Set and Costumes are designed by Ken Garnhum (Citadel debut); Lighting designed by Bonnie Beecher (Servant of Two Masters ); Assistant Directed by Diane D’Aquila (Citadel debut); Stage Managed by Brian Scott (Travels With My Aunt); Assistant Stage Managed by Helen Himsl (Citadel debut); Assistant Stage Manager Tracey Byrne (3 Mo’ Divas). Allegra Fulton’s theatre credits include TheMerry Wives of Windsor (DareDenTheatre- Toronto); The Play’s the Thing (SoulPepper Theatre-Toronto); Les Belles Soeurs ,The Trial of Judith K. and Comedy of Errors (CanStage- Toronto); Marcel Pursued by the Hounds, CounterService (Tarragon Theatre-Toronto); Death and the Maiden (Saidye Bronfman-Toronto); Nocturnal Emissions (Buddies in Bad Times Theatre, Toronto- Dora Nomination for Outstanding Performance); Nothing Sacred and The Crackwalker (Persephone Theatre, Toronto -Critics award for Best Actress); Two Noble Kinsmen (Acting Co.-Toronto); As you Like It and Pericles (Upstage Theatre-Toronto). She has over 30 credits on screen including Choke,in which she won the Genie for Best Actress; a double episode of Blue Murder (Gemini nomination for Best Actress) and The Hangman’s Bride, a two-hander indie short in which she stars with her husband Shawn Doyle, and which won the Genie for best short. Allegra is a Dora Award winner for her performance of Frida Kahlo in Frida K. Director, playwright and dramaturge Peter Hinton has been an integral part of the Canadian theatre landscape for over 20 years, working most recently as an Associate Artist of the Stratford Festival of Canada. In November 2005 he became Artistic Director of the National Arts Centre English Theatre in Ottawa. Frida K. will appear at the Citadel Theatre from February 6 to 25, 2007. Tickets can be purchased by phone, 780.425.1820, online at citadeltheatre.com or in person at the Box Office, 9828 101 A Avenue. Frida K. is produced with the generous support of: Season Sponsor Epcor;
Alberta Foundation for the Arts; The City of Edmonton; Edmonton Arts Council; Canada Council for the Arts The Edmonton Journal; Citytv; EZ Rock For Media Information please contact:
Joshua Semchuk Publicity and Promotions P: 780.428.2117 F: 780.428.7194 E: [email protected] (see below for ticket prices) Ticket Prices Call 780.425.1820 or purchase online at citadeltheatre.com Senior/Student Previews Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday Saturday/Sunday Saturday
GST will be added. Tickets subject to availability. Prices subject to change.
PREVIEWS:
Tuesday, February 6; Wednesday, February 7.
OPENING NIGHT: CLOSING NIGHT:
All shows are 8:00 p.m., nightly, with 2:00 p.m. matinees on Sundays.
There is a 4:00 p.m. matinee on Saturday, February 24. There is a 9:00 p.m. evening performance on Saturday, February 24. Call our Box Office at 425.1820, toll free 1.888.425.1820, or visit us online at citadeltheatre.com What the critics are saying about Frida K.: “Allegra Fulton plays Kahlo with hypnotic, impeccably calibrated intensity.” –New York Magazine “Fulton’s performance is mesmerizing and utterly convincing.” -The New Yorker “Frida K. is complex, haunted, nasty, grasping, hurting, passionate and above all, immensely alive. Fulton gives us a vital, glowing performance.” -Variety “Intimate and powerful, the production and Fulton’s performance burn with the white heat of artistic passion and passionate art.” -Theatre Week, USA “Allegra Fulton plays the almost mythic Kahlo with a bitter sweetness that makes her seem to be just about the strongest woman who ever lived.” -Time Out, New York “Allegra Fulton ferociously inhabits Kahlo’s skin.” -The Village Voice, New York Dora Award (Toronto) for Outstanding Performance by a Female. A Co-production with the National Arts Centre (Ottawa)/Go Diva Productions (Los Angeles).
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MEDIA RELEASE, January 31, 2007