A Head of Different Colors
By Emma F. Caro

Lies, infidelity, revenge, love and betrayal take center stage in the Playhouse’s performance of The Blonde, the Brunette and the Vengeful Redhead by Australian playwright Robert Hewett.

Rhonda Russell (the redhead of the title) is a typical 40-something housewife. Married for nearly 18 years, she spends her days juggling the needs of her young son, trying to avoid parking tickets as she picks up the dry cleaning or stops at the vet on the way home to buy de-worming tablets for the cat. However, her stereotypical life comes to an abrupt halt the day her husband, Graham, calls home from work to tell her that he’s moved out of their house … and she is forced to take on the ups and downs of life — alone.

The mystery takes a more desperate turn two months later when her best friend and next door neighbor, Lynette (the brunette), sees Rhonda’s husband outside the local McDonald’s with a younger blonde. When the incensed Rhonda rushes to the mall to confront the other woman, what results is a crime of passion that forever changes her life and the lives of everyone around her.

Renowned regional actress Annalee Jefferies will make her debut at the Playhouse as she transforms into multiple characters in this intriguing and poignant play. Each new voice unravels ever-more revealing twists to the story. The facts behind the case are not nearly as clear and simple as they at first seem. The result is an intriguing examination of how one person can affect so many others, for better or for worse.
As the pieces of the puzzle fall into place, a story that seems to begin as the stuff of tabloid sensationalism evolves into a deeply moving journey toward understanding and acceptance.

The Blonde, the Brunette and the Vengeful Redhead premiered at The Stables Theatre in Sydney, Australia, in February 2004. In January 2005, it launched the Melbourne Theatre Company season at the Fairfax Theatre, Victorian Arts Centre, Australia, playing to capacity and extending its run, before touring Victoria and New South Wales. It was also presented at the regional Hothouse Theatre in Albury, Australia, in March 2005, and in January 2006, a French-language translation premiered at Theatre Claque in Lausanne, Switzerland.

The play was also produced in 2006 at the Court Theatre in Christchurch, New Zealand, by the State Theatre Company of South Australia and by the Auckland Theatre Company in New Zealand. The first North American production opened at the Grand Theatre’s McManus Studio in London, Ontario, in November 2005. It was a runaway hit at Canada’s renowned Stratford Festival two seasons in a row.

The creative team for the Playhouse production includes director Mark Lamos, set designer Andrew Jackness, costume designer Candice Donnelly, lighting designer Thomas C. Hase, sound designer David Stephen Baker and composer John Gromada.

Whatever your hair color, you’ll enjoy seeing this moving — but devastatingly funny show in one of its first U.S. productions.