“The funniest thing to be seen in London!” –Times Literary Supplement

“A delicious surprise ... brilliant!” –the Sydney Morning Herald

THE IMPORTANCE OF
BEING EARNEST
a trivial comedy performed by two serious people

by Oscar Wilde
created by Ridiculusmus
devised and edited by David Woods, Jon Haynes, and Jude Kelly
performed by David Woods and Jon Haynes

You've never seen an Earnest like this! Oscar Wilde's classic comedy of identity fraud receives a riotous new treatment from Ridiculusmus, the comedy duo, who play all the parts – from Earnest to Lady Bracknell – themselves, just the two of them. This virtuosic interpretation of Wilde's irrepressible caper has been received with wild acclaim around the world, and we're delighted to welcome it to the States for the first time.

directed by Jude Kelly		music and sound design by David Woods, Jon Haynes, Jude Kelly, and Lawrence English
set and costume design by Zoe Atkinson		choreography (Galliard) by Marcelle Davis
lighting design by Jo Currey		Presented in association with the Loeb Drama Center.

PHOTOS - click any image for slide show

SYNOPSIS

Jack and Algernon, two wealthy young Englishmen, shirk responsibility whenever possible. Algernon avoids obligations by fleeing to the country; Jack evades responsibility by escaping to the city. Cecily, Jack’s ward in the country, believes that Jack is looking after his younger, profligate (and fabricated) brother Ernest — the name he uses while in London. Jack wishes to marry Gwendolen, Algernon’s cousin, but is dismayed to learn that she could only love a man named Ernest. Additionally, Lady Bracknell, Gwendolen’s mother, refuses to give her consent when she learns that Jack is an orphan.

Algernon, intrigued by Cecily, travels to the countryside pretending to be “Ernest,” Jack’s wastrel of a brother. Cecily is delighted to meet the man she has only heard about for years. When Jack returns to the country estate, however, to announce that his brother has tragically died, chaos ensues. As Cecily and Gwendolen discover they are both engaged to “Ernest,” the characters become entangled in a series of uproarious mistaken identities.

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