Artistic director Michael Kahn will direct the production at the Lansburgh Theatre. Performances will play April 6-May 23. Opening night is April 12.
The French farce is newly imagined by Ives, the American playwright whose works include All in the Times, New Jerusalem, Polish Joke and the current Off-Broadway hit, Venus in Fur and more. He also adapted Mark Twain's Is He Dead? and has streamlined many vintage musicals into playable concert versions.
According to STC notes, Kahn fell in love with The Liar when it was first read as part of STC's ReDiscovery Series. Kahn stated, "It is a tremendously funny and clever play, and really in a way very touching. It's an absolutely amazing story of an incredible character that lies all the time. He's a wonderful storyteller in the spur of the moment."
When he arrives in Paris, pathological liar Dorante (played by Conn) tells outlandish tales that amaze and convince all who hear them, "but for each problem his clever lying solves, it creates two new ones," according to STC. "Will he manage to keep his stories straight, his dupes none the wiser and somehow still get the girl?"
Ives calls his version of The Liar "a translaptation, i.e., a translation with a heavy dose of adaptation." Ives said, "one must think as a playwright, not as a translator. One must ask: what is the play underneath the words, what is going on beneath speeches rather than on their surface, who are these characters and what drives them, and finally what is this play actually all about?" Read the earlier PlayBlog item about The Liar.
The Liar features Green as Cliton, Partin as Clarice, Silverman as Lurcrece, Roach as Alcippe, Deeker as Philiste, Delany as Isabelle/Sabine and Sabin as Geronte.
The creative team includes set designer Alexander Dodge, costume designer Murell Horton, composer Adam Wernick, sound designer Martin Desjardins, lighting designer Jeff Croiter, text coaching Ellen O'Brien, stage manager M. William Shiner and assistant stage manager Elizabeth Clewley.
For tickets and information, call (202) 547-1122 or visit ShakespeareTheatre.org.
