American Repertory Theatre Slated To Tour Europe in 1982

The American Repertory Theatre (ART) will tour Europe in the summer of 1982, becoming the first American company to take more than one play on a European tour, Robert S. Brustein, artistic director of ART, announced yesterday.

Funded by a $250.000 grant from the American Express Foundation, a company of about 25 will present Andrei Serban's "Sganarelle: An Evening of Moliere Farces" and "Grownups," a new play by Jules Feiffer.

The tour will "demonstrate to European audiences the kind of advances being achieved these days by permanent American theater companies." Brustein said.

Cities under consideration for the four to six week tour include Paris, Lyons, London, Barcelona, Stockholm, and Rome. Brustein said the Theatre National Populaire de France may sponsor ART in Ivons.

Hello, My Name is...

Stephen S. Halsey, president of the American Express Foundation, said yesterday his company had not funded ART on the basis of past productions, but because of its "superlative administration." However, he added. "The secret reason we are supporting ART is that I want to meet Meryl Streep."

The American Express grant, the corporation's first to a theater company, will cover expenses for a tour of only four cities. Brustein said, adding that he hopes to receive additional support from other American firms.

Brustein defended an American company's taking Moliere to France, saying. "We are sufficiently far in approach from the traditional Comedie Francaise that they won't recognize their Moliere--it will be refreshing."

Noting that one of the segments of "Sganarelle" is written entirely in a gibberish he called "Neo-Siberian." Brustein said. "The play communicates itself easily anywhere." Brustein expects to play a role in "Sganarelle."

ART will perform "Grownups," which premieres this spring at the Loeb Drama Center, because "we felt obliged to bring a representation of American play writing at its best," Brustein said.

Plays in English have always attracted a wide audience in Europe, he added.

ART has not yet chosen the cast and staff for the European tour. Robert J. Orchard, managing director of the company, said yesterday, adding that Harvard undergraduates may be included.