Riverside Theatre presents “Sonnets for an Old Century" -- April 16 through 25.
Friday, April 16, through Sunday, April 25
Presented by Riverside Theatre
With its playwright José Rivera lauded by TheatreMania.com for the “expansive, ecstatic, poetic tone in his work that few stage writers dare to attempt,” the riveting quiltwork drama Sonnets for an Old Century will be available for April 16 through 25 viewing in a virtual presentation by Iowa City's Riverside Theatre, treating online audiences to a kaleidoscopic work that inspired Chicago Stage Review to rave, “Rivera’s script is staggering and lovely.”
An anthology styled play published in 2000, Sonnets for an Old Century contains a series of 28 different sonnets in which the characters express what appears to be their last words and thoughts that will go out to the universe. Rivera has stated that “the many people who appear in the space are from various parts of the United States. There are Latinos, blacks, Asians, whites. There are gays and straights, children and old people. All strangers to each other." The play's setting is similarly open to interpretation, with Rivera saying, “The space could be a tunnel, a cave, a warehouse, an airplane hangar, catacombs, or a seedy office building with ugly fluorescent lighting – but it’s a large space.” Sonnets for an Old Century consequently asks: In a land of unimaginable distance, can a stories forge connection? And can a life be encompassed in the space of a sonnet? Rivera gives voice to the meaning of his characters' existences in this fascinating, enthralling theatrical work, an inescapably modern piece with echoes of the Edgar Lee Masters classic Spoon River Anthology.
Adam Knight serves as director for Riverside Theatre's Sonnets for an Old Century, and its cast is composed of 23 Midwestern talents: Mary Jane Claassen, Kristin DeGrazia, Patrick Du Laney, Kristy Hartsgrove Mooers, Sarah Hinzman, Britny Horton, Rachel Howell, Diviin Huff, Mia Fryvecind Jiminez, Octavius Lanier, Rachael Lindhart, Karlē Meyers, Chris Okiishi, Tad Paulson, Tierra Plowden, Art Roche, Crystal Marie Stewart, Luli Gomez Teruel, Noel VanDenBosch, Barrington Vaxter, Deven Vera, John William Watkins, and Aaron Weiner. And featured among the show's behind-the-scenes team are associate director Crystal Marie Stewart, set and lighting designer S. Benjamin Farrar, costume designer Zamora Simmons, sound designer Gabriel Clausen, film editor Rob Merritt, stage manager Olivia Leslie, and technical director Chris Rich.
Songs for an Old Century will be available for streaming from 7:30 p.m. on April 16 until 11:59 p.m. on April 25, virtual-admission tickets are $15, and more information is available by calling (319)887-1360 or visiting RiversideTheatre.org.
