All-female play satirizes show business

Three women in the seven-women cast of Anton in Show Business

Anything goes when a self-absorbed television actress, an off-off-Broadway thespian and a naive theater novice come together in a doomed run of a Chekhov play in Texas. Or so the storyline goes in the opening play of the Sacramento State theater season—Anton in Show Business—directed by graduate student Nick Avdienko and performed by an all-female cast. The play’s run starts at 8 p.m., Oct. 14 in the Playwrights' Theatre in Shasta Hall and continues through Oct. 23, with a special-priced performance on Oct. 19.

The play, written by the enigmatic Jane Martin, won the 2001 American Theatre Critics/Steinberg New Play Award. Martin has written works such as the Pulitzer-prize nominated Keely and Du, which addresses abortion rights, and Mr. Bundy, about a family that learns their neighbor is a convicted child molester.

Seven actresses play 14 different characters in Anton, which satirizes notorious characters in the world of theater, such as incompetent directors, surgically-enhanced actors and egotistical critics.

“It’s a giant love/hate letter to the theater, if you will,” says Avdienko. “The play is swift, audacious, and packed with insane energy.”

The special showing will be at 6:30 p.m., Oct. 19 with tickets $8 general and $5 for students and seniors. Tickets for all other performances are $15 general, $12 for students and Sacramento State staff, and $10 for seniors and high school students. They are available through the Sacramento State Ticket Office at (916) 278-4323 or Tickets.com.

For more information, contact the Department of Theatre and Dance at (916) 278-6368.