OPPOSITES COLLIDE IN NEIL SIMON’s THE ODD COUPLE AT TRINITY REP
McEleney and Sullivan star in the classic American comedy onstage April 9 – May 9

PROVIDENCE – Trinity Rep is proud to present Neil Simon’s crowd The Odd Couple, dubbed “the most famous American comedy of the last 50 years” by the New York Times. Newly divorced Oscar Madison has been left alone in his big apartment on Riverside Drive and his slovenly bachelor ways have run amok. When neat-freak Felix Ungar’s wife kicks him out, Oscar takes him in and the two become unlikely roommates. Under the direction of artistic director Curt Columbus (Blithe Spirit, Cabaret) hilarity ensues in the godfather of all “buddy” comedies. The Odd Couple opens in previews on April 9 and runs through May 9 in Trinity Rep’s Chace Theater. Tickets are on sale now at the Trinity Rep box office at 201 Washington Street; by phone at (401)-351-4242; and online at www.trinityrep.com.

Longtime resident acting company members and friends Brian McEleney (Felix) and Fred Sullivan, Jr. (Oscar) are delighted to be working together as the mismatched pair. McEleney says with a laugh, “I was in his dressing room the other night, and I actually started to clean up.” Sullivan adds, “He wasn’t even thinking. It just came naturally.” When asked about the pair’s undeniable chemistry Sullivan explains, “The Odd Couple is the fiftieth show we’ve done together. We practically finish each other’s sentences at this point.”

Joining McEleney and Sullivan in the cast are resident company members Stephen Berenson, Mauro Hantman, Stephen Thorne and Joe Wilson, Jr. playing their weekly poker buddies. Phyllis Kay and Nance Williamson star as the Pigeon sisters, Oscar and Felix's upstairs neighbors.

Neil Simon’s The Odd Couple premiered on Broadway in 1965, under the direction of Mike Nichols, and became an instant classic, winning five Tony awards, including Best Play. The story was adapted for film in 1968 and became a long running television series in 1970. “The Odd Couple clearly sparked something in America’s popular imagination” observes director Curt Columbus. “He has an unparalleled comic voice, on par with Molière and Chekhov, but inflected with a unique American twang.”

Resident designer and Tony award-winner Eugene Lee and Columbus have set The Odd Couple in a 1960s television studio. Columbus said that the idea came to him when thinking about how TV played an important part in Neil Simon’s life, “We’re reaching back to Playhouse 90, and the smoky, male dominated clubhouse that was the writers’ room.” Lee adds, “I’ve been designing for television for 35 years at NBC, and there’s a certain tradition about television scenery. I sketched the design out like a like a Saturday Night Live set — ten foot wings, those terrible wide angles we never have in real life. . .designing this was fun.” The production team also includes period costumes by resident designer William Lane, and sound design by Peter Sasha Hurowitz.

Curt Columbus joined Trinity Rep as artistic director in January 2006. He has directed his own translation of Cherry Orchard for Trinity, as well as productions of The Receptionist, A Christmas Carol, Memory House, Blithe Spirit, and Cabaret. Trinity Rep was home to the world premieres of two of his plays, Paris by Night and The Dreams of Antigone. Curt was associate artistic director of Chicago’s Steppenwolf Theater Company from 2000-2005. His adaptation of Dostoevsky’s Crime and Punishment (with Marilyn Campbell) is published by Dramatists’ Play Service. Curt’s translations of Chekhov’s plays have been published by Ivan R. Dee, including Chekhov: The Four Major Plays. The Dreams of Antigone will be published by Broadway Play Publishing in June of 2010.

The first Friday performance on April 9 at 7:30PM is Pay What You Can (PWYC). PWYC tickets go on sale at 6:30 pm, limit one per person. This season Trinity Rep has responded to these economic times by continuing to offer $20 discounted seating, and $10 seats are also available on the Chace Theater’s 12th row bench. Group rates and other discounted ticket options are available by calling the box office at (401) 351-4242.

Continuing this season is a unified curtain time of 7:30 PM for all evening performances. Regular performances start at 7:30 pm on Tuesday through Sundays with selected Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday Matinees at 2pm. Talkbacks will be held after every performance of The Odd Couple. Audiences are invited to share their response to the play’s production and themes for approximately twenty minutes. Trinity Rep’s 46th season is sponsored by NBC 10, with supporting sponsors Cox Media, Rhode Island Monthly and RISCA.