What does it mean to become invisible, to see and not be seen, to be the ultimate outsider, ignored, misunderstood and feared?
This month, the Aquila Theatre Company, one of the nation’s finest producers of touring classical drama, will investigate these questions and more with a new stage adaptation of H.G. Wells’ timeless morality tale The Invisible Man.
Performances, presented by the Edison Theatre OVATIONS! Series, will begin at 8 p.m. Oct. 29-30.
First published in 1897, The Invisible Man tells the story of Griffin, a talented young English scientist whose startling discovery drives him slowly, and murderously, mad. The new production, created by Aquila artistic director Peter Meineck, combines Wells’ original text with an original score by Anthony Cochrane and innovative approaches to theatrical narrative and movement.
The result is a visually and dramatically stunning exploration into issues of identity, isolation, community and the abuses of science.
Founded by Meineck in London in 1991, the Aquila Theatre Company comprises British and American players and has toured to critical and academic acclaim throughout Europe, the United States and Canada. The Invisible Man continues Aquila’s commitment to adapting works of classic fiction for the contemporary stage.
In 2002, the company made its St. Louis debut at Edison Theatre with The Wrath of Achilles, a resetting of Homer’s The Iliad, and Shakespeare’s The Tempest. In 2003, Aquila returned with a new production of Shakespeare’s Othello.
Other tours have included Agamemnon (1991); Ajax (1992); Coriolanus (1993); Julius Caesar (1997-98); The Odyssey/The Comedy of Errors (1998-99); King Lear/ The Iliad/Oedipus Tyrannus (1999-2000) and Much Ado About Nothing/Cyrano De Bergerac (2000-01).
Today, Aquila serves as professional company-in-residence at the Center for Ancient Studies at New York University. Its many honors include the prize for dramatic excellence from the Greek government and several prestigious British Council Touring awards.
The Aquila Education Program has been presented at more than 150 North American theaters and universities. The company’s original translations of Greek plays are published by Hackett Press.
Edison Theatre programs are supported by the Missouri Arts Council, a state agency, and the Regional Arts Commission, St. Louis.
Tickets for The Invisible Man — $28; $24 for seniors and WUSTL faculty and staff; and $18 for students and children — are available at the Edison Theatre Box Office and through all MetroTix outlets.
For more information, call 935-6543.