'Virginia Woolf;' at Harper College

Edward Albee's "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" will be performed at Harper College in Palatine during select dates in July.

"It is set at a New England college, where an older couple has a young couple over for drinks. They explore both couples' marriages. Both marriages are reveled to have serious flaws, both sexual and emotional," said Tim Philbin, who plays the character of George.

Written in 1962, the award-winning play has a cast of four. Martha is played by Mary Luckritz of Mount Prospect, who heads up the fine and performing arts department at Rolling Meadows High School. Karah Janssen, also of Mount Prospect, plays Honey. While the actors play off each other, the demands of the roles are high.

"A realistic challenge is that the play is almost three hours long and with only four characters, there's a lot of dialogue to learn," Philbin said. "Being on stage for practically the full three hours is kind of an endurance test for an actor."

Philbin explained a longer rehearsal period helped the group overcome all obstacles and challenges. "We had more time for memorization," said Philbin. "It was almost like training people for an athletic event. We got our stamina up to do the show beginning to end. It is hard emotionally and vocally."

Yet, fellow cast mate Michael Bullaro, who plays the part of Nick, feels if anyone can do it with style, Philbin can.

"Philbin is a terrific actor who has the ability and willingness to say yes to everything happening on stage," said Bullaro. "He has taught me to try anything once."

Coincidently, Bullaro, 32, got his start in acting at Harper. When a class requirement calling for him to audition for a part in "Hamlet" led to a role, the Barrington resident said he was hooked on acting. Little did he know he would be back at the venue for "Woolf."

"It's a difficult role because he is thrown into the world of George and Martha. He is kind-of a pawn in their game," said Bullaro. "It's a challenging role because I'm not sure how he fits into Albee's story line."

Although the script is followed rather closely, Bullaro says he tries to find a more humanitarian way to deal with Honey than Albee did.

"Nick is sometimes short, quick, and sharp with Honey, and other times he's caring. That makes for an interesting level of love and hate," he said.

As far as sets, all the action in this production takes place in one room.

"This is performed in what is known as Black Box Theater, which allows the stage to be set up in several ways," said Philbin. "It can be made in the round, or have the audience on three sides, which is what we are doing for this."

For those wondering if they should take in the production, Bullaro had this to say.

"For Tim Philbin alone it's worth the money and time. As George, he gives a phenomenal performance rarely seen in community theater. The audience will appreciate being a part of it."

If you go

What: Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?

When: 7 p.m. Monday through Thursday

Where: Drama Lab, Room L109, Building L, Harper College, Palatine; park in Lot 2

Admission: $15

Call: (847) 925-6100 or visit harpercollege.edu