Albright Theatre presents 'Mauritius' June 12-27
BATAVIA, Ill. (May 19, 2015) — The Albright Theatre Company is proud to present Theresa Rebeck's “Mauritius,” a suspenseful, roller coaster ride of con artists, danger and intrigue that has been compared to David Mamet's classic, “American Buffalo.”
After their mother dies, two estranged half-sisters come together to settle their mother's small estate. Mary, the eldest of the two, has also come back to retrieve something she had left behind many years ago — her grandfather's stamp collection. Mary's younger sister, Jackie, tries to keep the stamp collection for her own gain and to collect on the potential windfall. In the process, she meets up with some shady, high-stake characters who try to con the sisters out of the collection that may contain two very rare stamps.
This darkly funny and tightly plotted thriller crackles with razor-sharp dialogue, corkscrew twists and turns, and colorful characters reminiscent of television dramas “NYPD Blue” and “Law and Order: Criminal Intent,” for which Rebeck was a writer.
“When I read 'Mauritius,' I knew I wanted to direct it before I had even gotten to the end of the script,” said director and Batavia resident Jennifer Ring. “This show is a fast-paced, buckle your seats, knockout kind of show.”
The cast includes Tiffany Jasinski of Glendale Heights as Jackie, Shelly Rolf of Geneva as Mary, Richard Holloman of Hoffman Estates as Dennis, Jon Witt of Naperville as Phillip, and Jeff Pripusich of North Aurora as Sterling. The play is supported by producer Jana Blumberg of Aurora, stage manager Amy Setencich of Batavia and fight choreographer Veronica Krystal of Bloomingdale.
“The rehearsal process has been so interesting exploring the different ways these characters relate to one another, all the little nuances that go into closing a high stakes deal like this, and all for two little slips of paper with an error on them,” Ring said. “There are several references in 'Mauritius' about how it's the errors that make them valuable. I think that's a wonderful outlook on life, that it's the mistakes that are important.”
“Mauritius” will run weekends June 12-27. It is rated MA for mature audiences.
Performances are 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, and 2 p.m. Sundays.
The Albright Theatre Company is located on the third floor of the Batavia Government Center, 100 N. Island Ave., Batavia. Tickets are $15 or $12 for students or seniors. Reservations are highly recommended; call (630) 406-8838. For more information, visit the Albright Theatre website at www.albrighttheatre.com.