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Cecily and Gwendolyn’s Fantastical Balloon Ride

The Latvian Society – 531 N. 7th Street
January 13th-31st, 2010
Tickets $10-$25

Presented by The Philadelphia Joke Initiative with support from Freefall Productions.
Created and performed by Karen Getz and Kelly Jennings.

What exactly is in those cups, Ladies?

About the Show

Meet Cecily and Gwendolyn, two slightly mad Victorian time travelers and self-proclaimed social anthropologists. Imagine their surprise when, upon return from their latest hot air balloon excursion through time, they discover… you! In this completely improvised, two-person, audience-interactive extravaganza, Cec and Gwen discover new civilizations and boldly go where no self-respecting Victorian woman would ever dare!

The Latvian Society, 531 North 7th Street, Philadelphia, PA
January 13th-31st, 2010.
Thursdays – Saturdays 8pm; Sundays 7pm. See Events Calendar for specific dates/times.
Tickets $10-$20. Buy tickets now!

Cecily and Gwendolyn’s Fantastical Balloon Ride is made possible with generous support from:

Jane and Steve Heumann

Anonymous
Andy Holman
Mike Carson
Kate Miller

What people are saying:

I’ve never been quite so excited to see how audiences will react to a show…The entire show is an evening that we’re all invited to take part in. Everything from the set to the seating, the costumes to the conversation, all welcome the audience member in, begging to be engaged, hoping to engross… Getz and Jennings do a remarkable job of captivating with ease.”  Matt Nelson, PhillyImprov.com

About the Performers

Karen Getz is a three-time Barrymore Award winning, Philadelphia-based theater artist, choreographer, actor, and producer.  She was recently spotted in Flashpoint Theatre’s production of The Little Dog Laughed. Getz has choreographed over 50 productions in The Philadelphia Theater Community, including Hair at The Prince Music Theater and. choreographed the world premiere of Cherry Bomb (1812 Productions),  Naked Cocktail (Brat Productions), The Rocky Horror Show (Arcadia University), Cabaret (Temple University). he’s been a choreographer, assistant choreographer, actor or dancer on over 20 major films and television shows, including her work as dancer and dance captain on the movie Dirty Dancing.

Getz  is a 2005/2006 recipient of a Philadelphia Theatre Initiative Grant and a 2006 Independence Fellowship in support of the acclaimed comic-actor’s ballet Suburban Love Songs. The spandex-clad sequel, Disco Descending, opened last year’s Philadelphia Live Arts Festival.   Karen has also garnered Barrymore nominations for her work on Romeo and Juliet at The Philadelphia Shakespeare Festival, The Big Bang with Act II Playhouse and Box Office of The Damned at 1812.

She is a proud member of the thriving Philadelphia Improv scene and has been a company member of Comedysportz Philly for the past 14 years.   She has been a member of Philadelphia’s oldest and most revered long-form company, Lunchlady Doris, for the past 12.  She teaches improv, dance and acting in Philadelphia and was a resident artist in The Lower Merion School District this past winter, teaching Geometry Through Choreography, a program she designed for children ages 5-13. She most recently received a 2009/2010 Philadelphia Theatre Initiative Grant in support of her upcoming work exploring the beauty of human imperfection through the behaviors of artificially intelligent robots.

Kelly Jennings received her BFA cum laude in Theater from Syracuse University and is a proud member of Actors Equity.  She has been working as an actor, improviser, director, and teaching artist in Philadelphia since 1992.  Credits include: The Philadelphia Shakespeare Festival (Dionyza in Pericles), the premiere production of Suburban Love Songs at the Philadelphia Live Arts Festival (maid), Pay Up! with Pig Iron Theater (Box Artist Patron; Barrymore nomination Best Ensemble) Grease and Desist with Brat Productions and Tapestry Theater, Chesapeake by Lee Blessing for Tapestry Theatre (Best Female Performer nomination Dublin Fringe Festival Dublin Ireland) Lantern Theater, Philadelphia Area Repertory, Red Heel Theater, Hedgerow Theater among others.

Kelly has been an active member of Philadelphia Comedy Sportz since 1992 where, in addition to performing, teaching improvisation for adults and high school students, she served as Business Manager and Artistic Director. She is a founding member of the longform improv company Lunchlady Doris, currently in its 12th year of continuous performance.

Kelly has taught improvisation and theatre for C.W. Post Long Island University, University of the Arts Continuing Education, Philly Improv Theater, The National School Community Corps and several Philadelphia based schools including Friends Central, Akiba Hebrew Academy, and The Agnes Irwin School. Kelly has served as a teaching artist for several of Philadelphia’s well known outreach programs including Philadelphia Shakespeare Festival, 1812 Productions (Barrymore Award for Excellence in Theater Education), Philadelphia Young Playwrights, InterAct Theater, and Theatre Ariel.

Did You Know? In addition to co-creating  Cecily and Gwendolyn’s’ Fantastical Balloon Ride, Karen and Kelly are co-creators of Killer Pussy and are former Co-Producing Artistic Director of Tapestry Theater, a company dedicated to creating and supporting the work of female theater artists. As Tapestry Theater, the pair co-produced The Annual Female Funnyfest, a national festival dedicating to presenting pioneering work by funny women.

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