Around the World in 80 Days
A Comic Adventure
by Mark Brown
adapted from the novel by Jules Verne
February 7 – March 7, 2010
It's not the destination, it's the journey.
Jules Verne's classic tale springs to life in this clever, fast-paced comedy for the whole family. Proper gentleman Phileas Fogg strikes a wager and sets off on a race that puts his fortune and life at risk. With his faithful servant at his side, he has just 80 days to circle the globe–an inconceivable feat in the year 1872! Fierce natives, furious typhoons, runaway trains, a damsel in distress and a dogged detective threaten to delay him at every step in this delightful, whirlwind odyssey that will keep you on the edge of your seat from beginning to unexpected end.
Running time: Approximately 2 hours and 10 minutes (with one intermission)
Due to the running time, this production is not recommended for children under the age of 6.
“With this ambitious production, Lane once again proves that Triad Stage can tackle any genre in any era, and do it with the remarkable panache that has become Lane’s trademark...Around the World in 80 Days is Preston Lane on LSD: laughter, surprise, and delight. And it’s a trip you’ll want to make again and again.”
–Lynn Jessup, Classical Voice of North Carolina
Click here to read the full review.
“The Triad Stage production of Around the World in 80 Days is altogether wonderful. It’s one of those exhilarating shows that reminds me of what magic good theater can be…Seeing it once is just not enough.”
–Robert W. McDowell, Editor and Publisher, Triangle Theater Review
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But, you know, part of the romance of a journey is that a man keeps imagining that something might happen…”
–George Bernard Shaw, Overruled
I love to travel. Anywhere. Anytime. I keep a packed suitcase ready to grab at a moment’s notice. I can turn the two hour drive to Fayetteville into an overnight trip–you just got to stop in Liberty, Siler City, Bonlee, Sanford. I hate to be rushed and nothing is more frustrating than knowing I need to get to DC and am not going to have time to visit the Walton’s Mountain Museum along the way. I love the promise of something unexpected, a restaurant discovered, some classic roadside motel. And who knows? The next interstate exit might take me to the World’s Largest 10 Commandments (been there) or The House in the Horseshoe (still trying to make it before they close for the day.)
I’ve been around the world, across Russia on the Trans-Siberian, to the rooftop of Norway, along the Great Wall in China, to the jungles of Mexico, and centerfield on the Field of Dreams in Iowa. I’ve snuck into the closed down Holy Land USA in Connecticut and driven half way through the night to see James Dean’s grave, have breakfast, and be first in line at the James Dean/Garfield the Cat Museum in Indiana.
It’s the promise of discovery I love, so for me, Phileas Fogg’s 80 day journey strikes me as the worst kind of travel. Jumping from ship to train on set schedules with barely a moment to take a look at the landscape of the trip would bore me to death. With his timetables and calculations firmly in hand, Fogg sets out across the world with only one thought—getting home again.
But the joy of Verne’s story is that travel can’t be predictable. It can’t be planned. The minute you open yourself to the wonders of the world, the world has a way of changing you. And that promise of change is what fascinates me in this play. The unexpected can reach up and grab you and make you look out the window and see the world in a whole new way. It happens to Fogg as he traverses the globe. He discovers not just the world, but the self he never knew.
The minute I read this play, I knew I wanted to produce it at Triad Stage because it presented the challenge of staging an incredible journey of the imagination. I hope you’ll enjoy the trip.
 Preston Lane |
