From January 3 through 20, 2013.
How do you get a cat to stop spraying while simultaneously using theater to end existential loneliness and racism? This frequently asked question is tackled by Kristina Wong in her hilarious play Cat Lady, directed by Paul Tei, which will open Mad Cat Theatre Company’s 13th season. Cat Lady explores the parallel worlds of two polar opposite archetypes living at the margins of the dating world – musty cat ladies and the fast-talking male pick-up artists who hunt among them.
Wong, a multi-talented performance artist whose diverse body of work ranges from stand-up comedy to commentary on American Public Media’s “Marketplace” to film documentary and articles in Playgirl magazine, has been called “sassy” and “original” (LA Times), “raucous and irreverent” (AP) and an “Asian American Lily Tomlin” (American Theatre Magazine). Cat Lady is her fifth full-length show, and her first full-length ensemble piece.
A theme uniting Wong’s various performances is her offbeat curiosity and social conscience. Whether it’s exploring the high incidence of depression and suicide among Asian American women (Wong Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest) or the contradictions of the bio-fuel movement (Going Green the Wong Way), Wong consistently displays a subversive intelligence and a knack for interpreting the strangeness of our times. Cat Lady, which will be directed this time around by Paul Tei, is no exception.
Wong’s cat, Oliver, and his rash spraying problems was the inspiration of Cat Lady, which premiered as a work-in-progress at the REDCAT NOW Festival in Los Angeles followed by runs in Houston at Diverseworks and at the ODC Theater in San Francisco. In Cat Lady, Wong delves into the psychology behind hoarding – of both animals and humans. Unmarried women who live alone with cats (“cat ladies”) and aggressive pick-up artists commingle in Wong’s pop culture universe which manages simultaneously to draw on VH1 and Martha Graham.
In addition to featuring Wong, Mad Cat company member Ken Clement will be playing Oliver the Cat, along with the pick-up artists who wish to remain anonymous… for now.
With Designs by: Matt Corey (Sound), Melissa Santiago Keenan (Lights), Leslye Menshouse (Costumes) and the scenic team of Paul Tei & Joe Kimble.
Tickets are on sale now! Preview Night January 3rd – $15, Opening Night January 4th – $45 (with food & drink); thereafter General Admission Tickets $30 and Student $15 (with valid ID). Applicable service charges apply. Tickets may be purchased online at www.madcattheatre.org or web.ovationtix.com or by calling OvationTix at 866.811.4111.
Mad Cat Theatre Company
The Light Box at Goldman Warehouse
404 NW 26th Street
866.811.4111
www.madcattheatre.org
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