Britain's Kneehigh Theatre Company, which has brought a couple of notable and pretty fantastic shows to the Bay Area in the last three years, will be bringing back their hit The Wild Bride to Berkeley Rep for a return engagement January 26 to February 17, 2013. The play, which is a wildly original mix of feminist fable, bluegrass music, and dance, previously played to sold-out audiences at the theater last December, and it's unusual for Berkeley Rep to bring a show back like this a year later. In a statement, artistic director Tony Taccone says, "Kneehigh creates magic ... and we are delighted to bring them back." But there's more: Kneehigh Theatre's Emma Rice hints that an ongoing partnership between her company and Berkeley Rep may be in the works.
She says, "We had such an amazing time on our previous visit and came away with Berkeley firmly etched in our hearts, minds, and souls. We made friends with the staff, crew, and audience alike and are counting the days until our return to the Bay Area. Who knows, we might even be plotting and dreaming for the future!"
A rep for Berkeley Rep confirms that this is a hint of a possible announcement to come, but would not explain any further. Will they be returning for some sort of annual residency? That would be exciting news for local theater fans, no doubt.
Kneehigh's previous production to come here, the wildly praised and equally inventive Brief Encounter, moved on to Broadway after wowing audiences at A.C.T. in 2009, and earned two Tony Award nominations in 2011. As their own tagline states, the company is known for "inventive, brave, anarchic, cheeky, funny, magical, and daring theater."
