Mercury Players Theatre: "Scenes from an Execution"

‘Wonderful. Howard Barker’s play is a marvel - a philosophical, funny and wise tight-rope act. It blew me away.' – The Times (U.K.)

Commissioned to paint a vast canvas celebrating the triumphant Battle of Lepanto, the free-spirited Galactia creates instead a breathtaking scene of war-torn carnage. In her fierce determination to stay true to herself, she alienates the authorities and faces incarceration. Her younger lover Carpeta is approached to take over and seizes the assignment for himself.

Howard Barker’s Scenes from an Execution makes sixteenth-century Venice the setting for a fearless exploration of sexual politics and the timeless tension between personal ambition and moral responsibility, between the patron’s demands and the artist’s autonomy.

Performances: July 17-25th

Friday, July 17th and Saturday, July 18th at 7:00pm

Friday, July 24th and Saturday, July 25th at 7:00pm

Produced by Mercury Players Theatre in the MercLab, 930 North Fair Oaks Avenue, Madison, WI 53714  

About the Director: Christopher William Wolter is a playwright and director and a new member of the Madison theater scene. Recently he directed Death of a Salesman for Strollers Theatre Company at the Bartell. Previously his plays have been produced and he has worked in the theatre in Colorado, Wyoming and the United Kingdom.