The Happiness Lecture

May 16-June 15, $46-$58, Suzanne Roberts Theatre, 480 S. Broad St., 215-985-0420, philadelphiatheatrecompany.org.

by Deni Kasrel

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Published: May 13, 2008

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"It's a huge human question," says Bill Irwin on the subject of happiness, which serves as a springboard for his new work, The Happiness Lecture. "We're always wondering, what will make us happy? ... And I'm looking at it through kind of an insomniac's dream, because I am somebody who does not sleep very well."

Like in a dream, this piece hardly follows a straight line: "I am attempting to deliver the lecture with mixed results," says Irwin, who has been both a straight and comic actor on Broadway and in films, as well as portraying Mister Noodle on Sesame Street. Semi-autobiographical, Happiness is "a rumination on the theater, and clowning, which is part of my profession, and aging, and the view from an older performer seeing these really incredible young performers." The older artist is, of course, Irwin, while the young turks feature familiar faces on the local dance and theater scene including Nichole Canuso, Jennifer Childs, Melanie Cotton, Aaron Cromie and Lee Ann Etzold.

So, ya gotta ask, is this a happy play? "I hope people leave the theater having laughed a lot," Irwin says. "But happiness is a little more complicated. That's what's going on in the rumination."

May 16-June 15, $46-$58, Suzanne Roberts Theatre, 480 S. Broad St., 215-985-0420, philadelphiatheatrecompany.org.

 

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