Love as interpreted through the absurdist eyes of playwrights Samuel Beckett, Eugene Ionesco and Christopher Durang is the subject of the three one-acts featured in “Oh, for the Love of Love!” presented by The Idiopathic Ridiculopathy Consortium, the Philadelphia-based theater company whose mission is to present classic absurdist theater to audiences in the Philadelphia region. “Oh!” opens Sunday, February 17 at 8:00 pm and runs through Thursday, February 28, 2008 at L’Etage Cabaret in Philadelphia.

An antidote to the traditional sentimentality often associated with the February 14th holiday, “Oh!” features lesser-known works from Beckett, Ionesco and Durang: Ohio Impromptu; Frenzy for Two, or More, and Wanda’s Visit. The 75-minute triple bill features local actors Corinna Burns, Gerre Garrett, Brian Adoff, Bob Schmidt, Michael Dura and Tomas Dura.

In Samuel Beckett’s Ohio Impromptu, a black-clad Reader and Listener, two halves of a single soul, ‘As alike in appearance as possible’, recall a story of solitude, loss, and vain attempts at comfort. Philadelphia actors and twin brothers Michael and Tomas Dura, play the Reader and Listener in the IRC production of Beckett’s 1981 short. The Philadelphia Premiere of Eugene Ionesco’s tragicomedy Frenzy for Two, or More features Corinna Burns and Brian Adoff in a one-act tour de force as the man and a woman trapped in their house as an indeterminate war rages outside. Gerre Garrett brings the title character of Christopher Durang’s comedy Wanda’s Visit to life in the stage version of the 1986 teleplay written for the PBS comedy series Trying Times about the chaos that ensues when a high school flame on the run from the mob visits a married couple played by Corinna Burns and Bob Schmidt whose relationship is in desperate need of resuscitation.

L’Étage Cabaret, the intimate 50-seat theater above Beau Monde Creperie at 6th and Bainbridge Streets in Philadelphia, will host “Oh!”. The distinctive setting of L’Étage evokes the rich artistic atmosphere in which Ionesco and Beckett created their work.

“Oh!” is the IRC’s sixth production since the company’s formation in 2006. In addition to Fringe productions in 2006 and 2007 featuring the works of Beckett, Ionesco, Durang and Edward Albee, the company presented Ionesco’s rarely seen full-length gem Victims of Duty in March 2007. The Philadelphia Inquirer wrote of Victims: “This new company’s name says it all: Ionesco’s absurdist drama isn’t for everybody, but if you like this kind of theater, you’ll like this solid production of a bizarre play about a man sent by a detective on a search for himself.”

“Oh!” is directed by Tina Brock, the IRC’s Artistic Director.

“Oh!” will have eight performances at L'Étage Cabaret: Sunday, February 17 at 8:00 pm; Tuesday, February 19 at 8:00 pm; Wednesday, February 20, at 8:00 pm; Thursday, February 21 at 8:00 pm; Saturday, February 23 at 6:00 pm; Sunday, February 24 at 8:00 pm; Wednesday, February 27 at 8:00 pm and Thursday, February 28 at 8:00 pm. Doors open 30 minutes before curtain. Tickets are $15.00. Seating is very limited; reservations are recommended: 215.285.0472 or on the website at www.idiopathicridiculopathyconsortium.com.

More for more information and photos on “Oh!” please contact Tina Brock at 215.285.0472. The IRC is a 501C3 non-profit organization, and a member of the Theatre Alliance of Greater Philadelphia and The Greater Philadelphia Cultural Alliance.