The Idiopathic Ridiculopathy Consortium, whose mission is to present classic absurdist plays to the Philadelphia region, will transform Society Hill Playhouse’s Red Room into “a lighthouse at the edge of a watery nighttime universe” for Ionesco’s classic meditation on life, The Chairs, opening Friday, September 4 and running for 12 performances through Wednesday, September 16 during Philadelphia’s Live Arts and Fringe Festival 2009.

The Chairs is the second work in the IRC’s 100th anniversary celebration of the Romanian-born Ionesco’s birth. Considered by many to be the “father” of the loosely-defined absurdist movement, Ionesco spent much of his childhood in Paris, where The Chairs was first performed on April 22, 1952. At the time he was still a struggling playwright, and as the idea of a theater of the absurd—a literary form that explores the futility of human existence—evolved, The Chairs came to be regarded as a seminal example of the genre. The Chairs was Ionesco’s third play to be produced.

The 80 minute one-act, described by Ionesco as a “tragic farce,” is the IRC’s tenth production since the company’s formation in 2006. The IRC presented The Lesson at L’Etage in February 2009 in a production the Philadelphia Inquirer’s Toby Zinman called, "...a sparkling revival…performed to perfection ...”. Last year’s Fringe offering, A Streetcar Named Durang: Two Burlesques and a Nightmare enjoyed a sold-out run, and was described by The Philadelphia Inquirer as “hilarious” and “eye-moppingly funny” and the Philadelphia City Paper as “magic.” The Chairs will conclude the IRC’s third season and continue their track record of tackling difficult and rarely-produced works by Samuel Beckett, Harold Pinter and Edward Albee, including Ionesco’s rarely-seen full-length gem Victims of Duty in 2007 and Samuel Beckett’s Ohio Impromptu and Come & Go in 2008.

The Chairs cast features IRC founders Bob Schmidt as the Old Man, Tina Brock as the Old Woman, and Lee Pucklis as The Orator. The Chairs production/design team also includes Lisi Stoessel (set), Leigh Mumford (lighting) and Brian Strachan (costumes). Artistic Director Tina Brock will direct The Chairs.

Leigh A. Mumford (Lighting Design) Leigh is a lighting designer for dance and theatre, and holds a Bachelor of the Arts in Theatre with a concentration in Lighting Design from The University of Massachusetts at Amherst. Design credits include: Virus By Jaamil Kosoko Performance Group, Geo Dance Series, choreographer Jennifer Conley, A Christmas Carol and The Trial by Curio Theatre Company, Bee Luther Hatchee for Allen’s Lane Theater, Jeffrey for Represented Theatre Co, Bombitty of Errors for 11th Hour Theatre Co, Zoo Story for Deaf West Theatre Co. Live Arts and Philly Fringe 2008: Stitch by Ricochet, choreographer Cohdi Harrell and Getting There by Annex Dance Company, choreographer Kristin Fiesler. ME and SM work with Scrap Performance Group for 3 Sisters and a Lighthouse - Fringe 2007. Assisted in Lighting Design for Pilobolus, David Dorfman, and King Lear for The Actors Shakespeare of Boston performed at La MaMa, NYC. Coming up: Fringe 2009-Annex Dance, Vale, and IllStyle at the Performance Garage, and Curio Theatre Company’s 2009 season. Please visit: web.mac.com/leighart11.com.

Lisi Stoessel (Set Design) is a Philadelphia-based scenic artist/ set designer, and holds her MFA in Scene Design from the University of Virginia. Other local design projects include Owning Up to the Corn for Sarah McCarron; The Laramie Project and Loves Labours Lost for Albright College; and Isabella for Pig Iron Theatre Company (Makeup Design/Associate Set Design). Look for these designs at the 2009 Philly Fringe: The Annihilation Point (The Time Menders) and Johnny Showcase's Purple Rain. Lisi is an Artistic Associate of Chicago's Sideshow Theatre Company.

Brian Strachan (Costume Design) is the director of costume for the University of the Arts Dance Department in Philadelphia, PA. He is responsible for all aspects of costume within the department where he also teaches costume design. Brian has designed costumes for The Philadelphia Shakespeare Theater, Lantern Theater, Enchantment Theater Company, The Upper Darby Performing Arts Center, Ursinus College, Temple University, and Burlington County Community College, as well as many other dance companies and theaters in the country. Brian holds a B.A. in Dance from Point Park College in Pittsburgh, PA and a B.A. in Art from the University of Maine in Orono, Maine. He also has a MFA in costume design from Temple University, Philadelphia, PA.

The Chairs will have 12 performances at The Red Room at the historic Society Hill Playhouse, which is celebrating 50 years of operation in 2009. The curtain for all shows is 7:30 pm. The Chairs will have a preview on Friday, September 4 and will open Saturday, September 5, with performances continuing Sunday, September 6; Tuesday, September 8; Wednesday, September 9; Thursday, September 10; Friday, September 11; Saturday, September 12; Sunday, September 13; Tuesday, September 15 and Wednesday, September 16. Doors open 30 minutes before curtain. Tickets are $20.00. Seating is very limited, advance reservations are recommended. Reservations may be made by calling the Fringe Box Office at 215.413.1318.

More information and photos for The Chairs and The Idiopathic Ridiculopathy Consortium can be found at www.idiopathicridiculopathyconsortium.org. For more on the many companies participating in this year’s Philadelphia Live Arts and Philly Fringe Festival, visit www.livearts-fringe.org. This year's festival runs September 4 through September 19.

The IRC is a 501C3 non-profit organization, and a member of the Theatre Alliance of Greater Philadelphia and The Greater Philadelphia Cultural Alliance; the IRC proudly participates in the Barrymore Awards for Excellence in Theatre, a program of the Theatre Alliance of Greater Philadelphia.

The Chairs is funded in part by a generous grant from The Philadelphia Cultural Fund.