Theatre Nouveau opens The Bribe of Bread, a tragical comedy for serious people, October 2-11, at the Basil Burwell Community Theatre. The Bribe of Bread is a new play by Suzanne Ramczyk.

Three characters from three different centuries of dramatic literature – Lady Bracknell from Oscar Wilde’s The Importance of Being Earnest, Mother Courage from Bertolt Brecht’s Mother Courage, and Sir Fopling Flutter from Sir George Etherege’s Man of Mode or Sir Fopling Flutter – are locked in a room together to perform a task dictated by an unknown, unseen despot. When accomplished, the world will be devoid of centuries-old and modern classics of the theatre.

Wilde’s wit, Etherege’s social satire, and Brecht’s political critique collide as the characters engage in verbal volleys in order to confront their fate by appeasing the tyrant – or not.

“In current tempestuous times, it is easy to overlook what's happening with respect to censorship in our own country,” says Theatre Nouveau Artistic Director Suzanne Ramczyk, in a news release. “According to the American Library Association, 5,668 books were banned from public and school libraries across the U.S in 2025 alone.”

Directed by Ramczyk, The Bribe of Bread features Lisa Stathoplos and Cory Burns (both recently seen in Theatre Nouveau’s A Modicum of Guilt) and Sally Mills (the Belfast Maskers’ Below the Belt).

Performance Schedule

Friday, October 2 – Sunday, October 11
Friday and Saturday at 7:00 pm
Sunday at 2:00 pm

Basil Burwell Community Theatre
17 Court Street
Belfast, ME 04915

Tickets and information 

Tickets: $30 
www.theatrenouveau.org