TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 9

Department of Art colloquium and lecture by Richard Gough.
5:40 – 6:30 PM, RM 1111 Mosse Humanities Building, 455 N. Park St. Free and open to the public; seating on a first-come basis.

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 3

Department of Theatre & Drama colloquium and lecture by Richard Gough. 1:00 PM, Hemsley Theatre, Vilas Hall, 821 University Avenue. Free and open to the public; seating on a first-come basis.

WEDNESDAY–SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 19–22

THE LAST SUPPER
Offering visions of food, eating, and social rituals that are comical, poignant, and sometimes haunting, the production was created by experimental theatre artist Richard Gough in collaboration with UW-Madison students, and is the latest installment in Gough's international "Last Supper" series, previously presented in Amsterdam, Florence, and Aberystwyth, Wales.

During "The Last Supper," groups of up to 25 people will be admitted every half hour for a personal tour through a labyrinth of different environments, witnessing performances ranging from portraits of desire to studies in hunger to restaurants where diners go for their last meal. Audience members will also be invited to partake of edible artwork - portrait cakes, an all-white meal, and perhaps even an edible body - while viewing large-scale sculptures and installations made with, and about, food.

Guaranteed to be a sensory experience like no other, "The Last Supper," delves into the cultural and personal significance of food, eating, and abstinence, offering a series of performative snapshots that will at once delight and disturb as it explores the idea of attending a "last supper."

Performances: Hemsley Theatre, Vilas Hall, 821 University Avenue, Madison. 7:00 – 10:00 PM plus Saturday 3:00–6:00 PM, timed entry on the half-hour, with final entry at 9:00 PM evenings, and 5:00 PM Saturday afternoon.

Tickets: On sale September 2: $8 general public, $6 UW-Madison students, University Theatre Vilas Hall box office: 608.262.1500.

ARTIST'S STATEMENT

"This is the fourth installment in an international series of "Last Supper" performances I have been making over the last five years. Previous versions have been made in Amsterdam (1999), Aberystwyth (2000) and Florence (2002). Each is unique to its place, the space and people who work with me to create it. Each is one-off, bespoke and never-to-be-repeated. This Madison edition is of and from here, containing images and flavours that none of the others had, and in particular this version playfully explores the idea of a 'Last Supper Club.'"

"As with all the best restaurants I use local ingredients, sourced and harvested from the immediate vicinity, but in this respect my staple food is the minds, bodies and imaginations of the people who have collaborated throughout the devising process. Devising describes the process of individual and collective improvisation that proposes-through action, through doing and making-fragments of performance and scenarios that may be woven into the final composition. I take full responsibility for the weave, structure and flow of this production, but the ideas, actions and images have risen from and been proposed by the participants of the two classes taught here in Madison. I am deeply indebted to the energy and enthusiasm of my students and all those who helped realise this production."

— Richard Gough

For more information, call the Arts Institute at 608.263.4086.