‘An Ideal Husband’ at ASU

Oscar Wilde play opens Feb. 25

The Department of Theatre and Dance at Appalachian State University will present an evening of humor, romance and political intrigue with Oscar Wilde’s social comedy “An Ideal Husband” Feb. 25-28 at 7 p.m. and March 1 at 2 p.m. in Valborg Theatre.

Tickets are $10 and $6 and can be purchased at the Valborg Theatre Box office or by calling (828) 262-3063 or visiting www.theatre.appstate.edu.

“An Ideal Husband” premiered in London, England, in January 1895. It was the third of Wilde’s four comedic plays to be staged and was as successful as his previous two. Numerous choice “one-liners” and other pithy witticisms that Wilde’s dramatic characters deliver are still quoted today.

“An Ideal Husband” is often called a social comedy because it includes both a serious and a comedic plot line. The play deals with the blackmail of a prominent politician who is in danger of losing his reputation as a man of integrity. The storyline is counterpointed by witty dialogue. The play’s themes of moral hypocrisy, the foibles of marriage and the lure of money and power all resonate in today’s society.

Faculty member Derek Gagnier directs the production. Sue Williams is costume, make-up designer Neil Reda designs sets, and John Marty is lighting designer.

The student cast includes Justin Attkisson and Ashley Childers as Sir Robert and Lady Chiltern, Matt Delaney as Lord Goring, Hannah Fuller as Mabel Chiltern, Amanda McNeice as Lady Markby and Catherine Ledford as the conniving Mrs. Cheveley. Rounding out the cast are Rebekah Burrows, Ariel Nicastro, Blake Ervin, Hunter Boyette, Lauren Flynn, Allison Cauble, John Stewart and Seth Flagg.