LUNGS by Duncan Macmillan
/In a world filled with news of climate change, wildfires, political unrest, and environmental degradation a young couple start a dialogue between themselves about having a baby. Should they bring a new life into this world, already burdened by overpopulation? Macmillan brings the angst of an entire generation to the stage in this funny, edgy, fast conversation between two people who deeply care and love each other, as they grapple with questions of family, change, hope, and betrayal. The uncertainty of this generation is expressed so well through the lines of these two flawed, but very well-meaning and lovable characters, revealing their anxieties about negotiating life in today’s world.
Lungs opens at the Story Mansion in Bozeman on May 14, and continues May 15, 16, 20, 21, 22, and 23, 2021.
Timeout magazine had this to say: “Ultimately, Lungs is about guilt: yes, that slightly wanky motivator known as ‘middle-class guilt’. But something deeper than that: guilt at having failed a partner, guilt at having failed a child, guilt at having failed your younger self… guilt at having failed the planet…Lungs is funny throughout.”
LondonTheatre1 review writes about a Lungs production in the Old Vic Theatre in London in 2019, “There’s a lot to consider in this production. The duo affirm they are “good people”. What does that actually mean? Are they the best people to judge themselves to be good? Or are they just affirming and encouraging one another? Amongst the weighing up of the imponderables of modern living is some laugh-out-loud humour.”
A NOTE ABOUT THE PLAY
Duncan Macmillan’s 2011 play Lungs brings a unique perspective to the challenges facing young people who worry about what it means to bring another human being into a world that is already over-burdened by population and environmental crisis. Burdened (or imbued, depending on how you see the situation) with a keen sense of ethical concern for others, today’s young couples negotiate a host of issues that their parents couldn’t have imagined as being important. This play is a voyeur’s look inside the life-discussions, arguments, joys and traumas that one couple experiences.
Cast and Crew Bios
Katherine Fried (“Woman” and Co-director)
This is Katherine’s second show with Bozeman Actors Theatre, after performing Narcissus in Polaroid Stories in March 2021. She has performed in A Streetcar Named Desire, The Snow Queen, Once (Arden Theatre Company); Wait Until Dark, Once (The Fulton Theatre); Henry IV Part I, The Merry Wives of Windsor (Montana Shakespeare in the Parks); Once (Virginia Repertory Theatre); Shakespeare in Love, Henry V, The Merry Wives of Windsor (Illinois Shakespeare Festival); A Christmas Carol, King Lear, The Parchman Hour (Guthrie Theater); When I Nod My Head You Hit it with the Hammer (WLDRNSS); The Mousetrap, Sherlock’s Last Case (Kansas Repertory Theatre). Katherine received her training at the University of Minnesota, Guthrie Theater B.F.A. Actor Training Program.
Andrew Rathgeber (“Man” and Co-director)
Andrew is thrilled to be working with Bozeman Actors Theatre for the second time. March 2021, he performed in the role of Zeus in Polaroid Stories. Other Bozeman Credits include several productions with Montana Shakespeare in the Parks (Henry IV: Part 1, The Merry Wives of Windsor, Cyrano de Bergerac, The Taming of the Shrew, As You Like It, as well as two productions of Romeo and Juliet). Chicago Credits: Chicago Shakespeare Theatre, Raven Theatre Co., Commission Theatre, Oracle Productions, side project theatre, Remy Bumppo Theatre, Haven Theatre, and more. Regional Credits: American Players Theatre, The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, Reduxion Theatre Company, and Oklahoma Shakespeare in the Park. Training: The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and the University of Oklahoma. Andrew is an Advanced Actor Combatant within the Society of American Fight Directors and is on the Pathway to Certification within the Intimacy Directors and Coordinators.
Kevin Brustuen (Producer)
Kevin has been a producer of a number of BAT plays. He currently serves as President of the Board of Bozeman Actors Theatre.
Gretchen Minton (Assistant Director)
Gretchen is a dramaturg for Bozeman Actors Theatre and Montana Shakespeare in the Parks, as well as a professor of English at MSU. Gretchen’s directing credits include A Doll’s House, Timon of Anaconda, Timon of Anaconda, Oguta Island, and Shakespeare’s Walking Story.
Acknowledgements and Thank You
Special Thanks : Mike and Jenna, Gretchen Minton, Cameron Lothspeich, City of Bozeman
“Things With Strings” (preshow music trio): Florentine Kunze, Cello; Valentine Kunze, Violin; Luke Minton, Violin