Beijing Playhouse stages musical about marriage next month

Beijing Playhouse conducts a rehearsal of their new play I Do!I Do! at Goose and Duck restaurant. Photo provided by Beijing Playhouse

By Annie Wei

Beijing Playhouse’s spring offering this year is the Broadway musical I Do! I Do!, running from May 14 to 23 at Goose and Duck restaurant on East Fourth Ring Road.

I Do! I Do!, created in 1966 by Tom Jones ad Harvey Schmidt, focuses on the ups and downs experienced by Agnes and Michael Snow throughout their 50-year marriage that begins in the late 19th century. The set consists only of their bedroom, dominated by a large four-poster bed.

Beijing Playhouse invited journalists Monday to a rehearsal in which they presented three scenes: the couple’s wedding, their becoming parents and the quarrels they had.

The company designed the play to be interactive. During the wedding scene, for instance, the Snows walked up to the audience after leaving the church, encouraging them to throw flowers at the newlyweds.

The group chose to stage I Do! I Do! because its subject of marriage is universal, said Brandon Blackburn-Dwyer, an actor and singer from New York who plays Michael Snow.

To bring the musical closer to Chinese audiences, it is being promoted as akin to Jinhun, a popular Chinese TV series about a couple who has been married for 50 years.

I Do! I Do!’s simple set and small cast make it easier to tour small community theaters  and neighboring cities like Tianjin, said Chris Verrill, Beijing Playhouse’s executive director. ”Because it is a two-person cast with a small crew, we are able to transport the show to various venues throughout Beijing,” Verrill said.

One of Beijing Playhouse’s missions is to bring English theater in the local community. Its partnership with theaters like Star Theater and Mao Live House will help bring English theater to places where locals are already going, he said.

Beijing Playhouse was established in 2006 and is composed of expats who want an outlet for their passion for theater. All members have full-time jobs.

“We practice three times a week and three to four hours each time,” said Beth Kerzee, the company’s musical director and a teacher at an international school. I Do! I Do! will be staged Thursday to Sunday, from May 14 to 23, in English with Chinese subtitles. For more information, visit beijingplayhouse.com.