Barry Otto Forced to Withdraw from The Kreutzer Sonata

Barry Otto Forced to Withdraw from The Kreutzer Sonata

State Theatre Company of SA announced today Barry Otto has regrettably been forced to withdraw from its production of The Kreutzer Sonata due to exhaustion. Mr Otto, 72, gave the first two preview performances of the production, directed by State Theatre Company SA Artistic Director Geordie Brookman, to a rapturous reception last Friday and Saturday but is in such a state of physical exhaustion that he has been advised against attempting to continue.

State Theatre Company Chief Executive Officer/Producer Rob Brookman paid tribute to Mr Otto’s efforts in tackling the work: “The Kreutzer Sonata is an incredibly demanding work for the solo actor who must shoulder the entire burden of the performance and deliver eighty minutes of text, much of it requiring extraordinary emotional intensity. Barry has worked unbelievably hard in preparation for the role and has dedicated himself to it for three months. It is devastating for him not to be able to continue.”

Barry Otto’s wife Sue Hill said: “Barry is deeply distressed to withdraw from the production. He has huge admiration for the text by Sue Smith and was enormously excited by Geordie’s production concepts and rehearsal process. He knew this was a mountain to climb and is shattered not to stand on the summit on Opening Night.”

Respected local actor Renato Musolino, well-known to State Theatre Company audiences for his appearances in In The Next Room or the vibrator play, Three Sisters and The Misanthrope, will step into the role but, given the size of the part, will perform with script-in-hand through the season. The other elements of the production including live music, innovative set and lighting designs and large-scale projections will be unchanged. 

State Theatre Company Artistic Director and director of the production Geordie Brookman said: “We had a brief glimpse of a great performance last week and I am naturally gutted not to be able to share it with our audience. I am, however, hugely grateful to Renato for showing the courage to tackle this role at extremely short notice and know that he will do a wonderful job in honouring Tolstoy’s exquisite novella and Sue Smith’s brilliant adaptation.”

State Theatre Company subscribers and all patrons who have bought single tickets to the production will be contacted by State Theatre Company or BASS. Patrons can also contact BASS directly on 131 246.

The Kreutzer Sonata runs until 17 March in the State Theatre Company Workshop.

Image: Barry Otto. Photographer: Shane Reid.

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