About the Play:

The Complete History of Theatre (abridged) is a full-length comedy by Matt Thompson. Theatrical greats William Shakespeare, Sarah Bernhardt and Constantin Stanislavsky take us on a wild and wacky journey through the history of theatre from Aristophanes to Emile Zola. You'll hear some of the most famous lines from the world's best-known and beloved plays performed at breakneck speed during a rollicking 90-minute ride.

In The Complete History of Theatre (abridged) a crazy cast of characters will transport you back in time as we relive the various elements of theatre from all parts of the globe. Explore the beginnings of Greek theatre, Aristotle's Poetics, the fine art of Kabuki, the history of mime, the gladiators of Rome and speculation on the real author of Shakespeare's plays. Along the way, the bumbling William Shakespeare misquotes himself, Sarah Bernhardt can't get over the sound of thunderous applause and Stanislavsky gets blown out of a cannon when someone says the name of "the Scottish play" in the theatre! Through a little perseverance and commedia dell'arte, the famous trifecta attempt to hold the show together, but when the producer appears onstage, things only get worse when the cast finds out they are trapped in a play within a play. With time running out on the theatre's rental agreement, the trifecta pays homage to the world's best-known and beloved plays and musicals by alluding to dialogue from Edward Albee, Bertolt Brecht, Samuel Beckett, Noël Coward, Anton Chekhov, Caryl Churchill, Henrik Ibsen, Arthur Miller, David Mamet, Harold Pinter, Sarah Ruhl, Sam Shepard, Neil Simon, August Strindberg, August Wilson, Thornton Wilder, Andrew Lloyd Weber, Oscar Wilde and many more all performed at breakneck speed. Near the play's end, the cast realizes that the playwright hasn't written an ending, wherein our iconic celebrities are forced to seek the audience's help in finding a creative conclusion to the show. Just when it appears that all the drama is behind them, the reviews come in, and what the critics say surprises them. This interactive farce will keep you in stitches at every turn on a rollicking ride!

The Complete History of Theatre (abridged) premiered in 2016 at Point Loma Playhouse in Point Loma, California.

Cast: 1 woman, 2 men (alternate casting up to 10 either gender.)

What people say:

"Madcap and pretty bonkers, yet strangely authoritative." — San Diego Union-Tribune

"Slapstick reminiscent of a Monty Python sketch. Will appeal to drama geeks and anyone in the mood for old-fashioned wacky entertainment." — TalkinBroadway.com

"Let legendary theatrical characters such as William Shakespeare and Constantin Stanislavsky entertain and inform you on your journey through the world's best-known lines and beloved plays performed at breakneck speed during a rollicking 90-minute ride." — TheatreinSanDiego.com

"A rapid-paced, well-coordinated, fast and furious, no-time-to-take-a-breath shout-out of all the works of Simon, Williams and Pinter. The amazing show of aptitude and agility is worth the price of the ticket." — San Diego Examiner

"Theater magic happens, as the troupe makes their lightning-fast way through thousands of years of playwrights, from Aeschylus to Albee, Ionesco to Woody Allen, Strindberg to Sondheim, Ibsen to August Wilson." — KNSD Radio

About the Playwright:

Matt Thompson is an American actor, director, and playwright. He received his bachelor's degree from San Diego State University, his master's in theatre from San Diego State University and his MFA in creative writing with a double emphasis in fiction and playwriting from the University of California, Riverside. He is the head of the Playwriting Program at San Diego City College.