Barefoot in the Park

By: Neil Simon

Director: Richard Elichuk

Genre: Comedy

Running: July 12 – 30, 2016

Matinee: July 24

Neil Simon at his comedic best!

He’s a straight-as-an-arrow lawyer and she’s a free spirit always looking for the latest adventure. Newly married and installed in their top floor walk-up, which he sees as impractical and she sees as a charming fixer-upper, they’re starting to realize that love may not be enough to overcome all. Then there’s her morose mother, the eccentric neighbour, and the broken skylight.

“A bubbling rib-tickling comedy”  – New York Times

CAST

Corie Bratter……………………Katherine Norland
Telephone Repair Man……..Bill Milner
Paul Bratter…………………….Jesse Lalonde
Ethel Banks…………………….Christine Drew
Victor Velasco………………….Barry Caiger

Neil Simon is one of America’s most prominent playwrights to grace the pages and illustrate the stage. Simon was born on July 4^th, 1927. Simon grew up in Washington Heights during the Great Depression, graduating from Dewitt High School at the age of 16. Such great prospects from an early age did not render Simon obsolete from the heavy hardships of the sociological state of the world. His father often abandoned the family for months at a time, causing them further financial and emotional hardship. As a result, Simon and his brother Danny were sometimes forced to live with different relatives, or else their parents took in tenants for some income. To escape the trials and tribulations at home, he often took refuge in movie theatres. After graduating high school Simon signed up with the Army Air Force Reserve. It was during those years in the Reserve that Simon began writing as a sports editor. Following his time in the Air Force, Simon spent two years as a mailroom clerk in the Warner Brothers offices before he quit to write radio and television scripts. Simon found success in this stream, but soon moved to playwriting. His first Broadway play was Come Blow Your Horn in 1961. Barefoot in the Park and The Odd Couple soon followed with a Tony Award, turning Simon into a national celebrity. He soon went on to procure four Academy Award nominations for his screenwriting. Known for telling the stories and autobiographies of everyday Americans, Neil Simon’s insight and honest portrayal of his characters have established him as an American staple in the arts.