THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING EARNEST by Oscar Wilde

THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING EARNEST

By Oscar Wilde

DIRECTED BY TONYA BECKMAN

Produced by the Corcoran Program of Theatre & Dance

In Oscar Wilde’s THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING EARNEST, you’ll experience Wilde’s dazzling display of wit as Jack and Algy try to win the game of love – with mistaken identity, double-entendre, clever humor, and a healthy dose of lies. A masterclass in satirical farce, THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING EARNEST will leave you in stitches.

Tonya Beckman is an actor, director, and dialect coach, with a performance emphasis on Shakespeare (over 35 productions), classical comedy, as well as new play development.

She has appeared on stages all over the DC area, including Shakespeare Theatre Company, Kennedy Center, Folger Theatre, Arena Stage, Ford’s Theatre, Round House Theatre, Studio Theatre, Olney Theatre Center, Theater J, Mosaic Theatre, 1st Stage, and Solas Nua. Regional credits include the Cleveland Play House, Cincinnati Playhouse, Contemporary American Theatre Festival, Center Stage, Fulton Theatre, Totem Pole Playhouse, Public Theatre of Maine, CATCo, Human Race Theatre, and Purple Rose Theatre Company, among others. She is also a company member at Taffety Punk Theatre Company, where she also serves as the literary manager.

Dialect and vocal coaching credits include productions at Theater J, Round House Theatre, Woolly Mammoth, Rep Stage, Imagination Stage, Levine Music Theatre, Theatre Lab, Constellation Theatre, and Anacostia Playhouse. Here at GWU, she has coached the CTAD productions of Cabaret and The Wolves.

She has also taught at American University, Shepherd University, Baldwin-Wallace College, Shakespeare Theatre Company, Everyman Theatre, The Actors’ Center, and Duke Ellington School for the Arts. She has been a longtime instructor at The Theatre Lab School of the Dramatic Arts, where she is also the resident dialect coach.