Decaffeinated Tragedy

Decaffeinated Tragedy is part memoir, part gallery display, part failed love story, and part coffee shop. It details the failure of memory and friendship and the expansiveness of mystery. The center of the storm is 21-year-old art student Jennifer Bonner. Her wit and spirit belie her physical frailty and failing heart. They don´t shield her from uncertainty and despair, but call on her to understand her own nature and that of the world she wrestles with. Bonner´s art is a key element to the theatrical monologue, as is the serving of several types of brewed coffee and cheesecake.

Decaffeinated Tragedy is written and performed by Kurt Hartwig. Hartwig has previously adapted and staged Lewis Carroll’s The Hunting of the Snark (2002), and created the dance-theater collaboration Cat’s Cradle with choreographer Luc Vanier (2005 and 2006). He also produced kinetic sculptures for ArtBikes (2005 and 2006), and produced and directed the puppet spectacle Who I Was Yesterday (2007). He worked for Divadlo Husa na Provázku in the 1992-93 season in Brno. He last lived in Prague in 2001, when he worked with Divadlo Archa, Divadlo Continuo (Kratochvílení), and again with Husa na Provázku.

Direction is by Michelle Lopez-Rios. Michelle is a native Texan and has worked around the U.S.A. as an actor, director, and voice coach. As a member of the Royal Mexican Players, she has created original productions like Nuestra Voz, Nuestra Historia (2007) and Mexicans in Milwaukee (2008) with her partner both on and off stage, Alvaro Saar Rios. She is a featured coach on accenthelp.com and is an Assistant Professor of Voice & Speech at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee where she most recently directed Arms and the Man (2008).

WHAT:
Decaffeinated Tragedy is part memoir, part gallery display, part failed love story, and part coffee shop. It explores the failure of memory and friendship, and the expansiveness of mystery. The center of the storm is 21-year-old art student Jennifer Bonner. Her wit and spirit belie her physical frailty and failing heart. They don´t shield her from uncertainty and despair, but enjoin her to understand her own nature and that of the world she wrestles with. Bonner´s art is a key element to the theatrical monologue, as is the serving of several types of brewed coffee and cheesecake.

Doing the fringe means being adventurous and taking a chance. The
world over, fringe festivals tempt with an array of shows from around
the globe; music, comedy, dance, spoken word, theatre are all there to
discover. The intrepid fringe explorer will come across the exotic, the
strange and the bizarre, be entertained, moved and amused, taking in
not just one but several shows a day in their big fringe adventure.
Fringe Festival Praha offers almost 40 shows and 200 performances in 7
fantastic venues across beautiful Malá Strana over 9 very special
nights in May we hope you are up for the challenge, pack your bags and
hop on board.