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August 31, 2006
VISIBLE THEATRE
VISIBLE THEATRE
presents
“TRUE STORY PROJECT: SEX”
AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL STORIES BY THE ENSEMBLE
Conceived and Directed by Krista Smith
Co-Directed by Laura Silence
Performances will begin October 4
at the Dorothy Strelsin Theatre in the Abingdon Theatre Arts Complex
(New York) August 18, 2006—Visible Theatre (Krista Smith, Artistic Director) will present its third bi-annual True Story Project, “True Story Project: SEX,” conceived and directed by Krista Smith, co-directed by Laura Silence, and written by the ensemble at the Dorothy Strelsin Theatre, part of the Abingdon Theatre Arts Complex, 312 West 36th Street (between 8th and 9th Avenues). The official opening performance will be Wednesday, October 4 at 8:00 p.m. Performances will run through Saturday, November 4.
“True Story Project: SEX” features a profoundly diverse ensemble of nine actors, including actors with disabilities, who take turns revealing true life stories that explore sex and sexuality in a wide range of styles. The stories shift in subject matter and treatment from outrageously funny to grievously stark and engrossingly matter-of-fact. Previous True Story Projects have been performed at many New York City colleges, hospitals, shelters and residential centers. They have appeared as part of the Imagine Festival in 2004 (Chashama), at the HERE Arts Center, and at City Hall, to commemorate the Americans with Disabilities Act. The True Story Project seeks to advance the mission of the company by “celebrating alternative perspectives, challenging perceptions and providing unique insight into the human condition.”—Visible Theatre mission statement.
The ensemble of Visible Lab members includes Rebecca Bateman, Angela D'Arezzo, Eugenia Francis, Gregg Mozgala, Chris Reed, Esra Gaffin, Michelle Mantione, Katie Labahn, and Liz Treston performing as themselves. Mr. Mozgala and Ms. Treston also serve as head writers for the project.
Krista Smith has conceived and directed two previous True Story Projects, each of which was developed over an intensive two-year writing- and rehearsal process. Other directing credits include Pvt. Wars at the Duncan Smith Theatre in New Jersey, and the world premiere of The Ballad of Round Eyes by Stacey Engels. She has appeared in over 40 plays, including the Actor's Studio Free Theatre revival of Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? directed by Arthur Penn, and the OOBR best drama award-winning Two Rooms by Lee Blessing. Other work includes: Hitler’s Addendum with Ruby Dee, That Tuesday written by Eduardo Machado and directed by Joseph Chaikin, and a cameo in the HBO film Let it Snow. She teaches acting at Johns Hopkins University.
Laura Silence is a member of the Visible Lab and Visible Writing Circle. She has taught acting for twelve years with organizations such as Merry-Go-Round Playhouse, Curtain Call in Stamford CT, The National Theatre Workshop for the Handicapped, The Boys and Girls Club of San Francisco and Visible Theatre. Her regional performances have included the Milwaukee Repertory Theatre, the Mendocino Shakespeare Festival and Off Off Broadway. She has worked extensively in children’s theatre and in improvisational theatre. Silence says of her work: “Theatre should ideally be the telling of a story--honestly, creatively, expressively, wholly, joyfully, soulfully, and clearly.”
“Since founding the Visible Theatre in 2000, Krista Smith, an actress, director, and advocate for people with disabilities, has nurtured a range of theatrical projects that are bringing able and disabled bodies together in performance. With a vision directed toward confronting issues of social exclusion and a mission to foster long-term development of provocative theatre art, the Visible Theatre enfolds all bodies in its theatre training, workshops, and new play development.”—Susan Tenneriello, Brooklyn College forthcoming review, Theatre Journal 58:3 (October 2006). This fall’s production of Krankenhaus Blues will be dedicated to the memory of playwright John Belluso, a Visible Board member, friend and inspiration for Visible’s mission and work
The five-week performance schedule (October 4 through November 4) for “True Story Project: SEX” will be: Wednesdays at 8:00 p.m. and Saturdays at 3:00 p.m. The official opening performance will be Wednesday, October 4 at 8:00 p.m. Admission will free of charge, with tax-deductible donations accepted at the door. The box office number for individual and group reservations is 212-479-8418.
For more information on Visible Theatre or “True Story Project: Sex” visit www.visibletheatre.org or e-mail desk@visibletheatre.org
Posted by Elizabeth Treston
Posted by mjohnson at 04:56 PM
VISIBLE THEATRE
VISIBLE THEATRE
presents
“KRANKENHAUS BLUES”
A NEW PLAY BY SAM FORMAN
Directed by DONNA MITCHELL
Performances will begin October 5 at the
Dorothy Strelsin Theatre in the Abingdon Theatre Arts Complex
Officially Opens October 8
(New York) August 18, 2006—Visible Theatre (Krista Smith, Artistic Director) will present a re-mounting of Sam Forman’s new play “KRANKENHAUS BLUES,” directed by Donna Mitchell, at the Dorothy Strelsin Theatre, part of the Abingdon Theatre Arts Complex, 312 West 36th Street (between 8th and 9th Avenues.) Performances will begin on October 5 and the official opening performance will be Sunday, October 8 at 3:00 p.m. Performances will run through Sunday, November 5.
“KRANKENHAUS BLUES” is a frightening and funny play about disability issues, genocide, and the grim realities of show business. A playwright, an actress and a clown are locked in a Nazi asylum for reasons beyond their comprehension. Moving effortlessly between 1930’s Berlin and present day New York City, the characters make great efforts to connect with each other as they confront their existentially bleak surroundings. Artistic Director Smith says: “’KRANKENHAUS BLUES,” for me, is about the disconnect that we often feel in today’s society regarding horrific events and our struggle to connect to our own humanity.
Sam Forman is the lyricist and co-book author for the musical I Sing! which has been produced off-Broadway and in theaters throughout the world. (A recording from The York Theater Concert Cast of I Sing! is available in stores on the Jay Records label.) Sam’s other plays and musicals include: The Grille Room (Cherry Lane Mentor Project 2005); Quarterlife (Workshop at The Ford Center, dir. Mark Brokaw); Fringical! (Ars Nova, NYC; American Theatre of Actors, New York Musical Festival 2004); The Quiet Game (Hangar Theater, Ithaca NY); Please Stop Talking (The Cherry Lane, NYC); Hunter For Hunter Green (Singularity Company, NYC); Utica Forever (Chashama, NYC); Schmoozy Togetherness: a kid's play (Manhattan Theater Source, NYC); Narcissus and Goldstein (Pantheon Theater, NYC); Rob (Naked Angels, NYC); Do You Like Me Europe? (Dostotheaterfest, Berlin) Living Arts / I’m In Relationship Hell (Magnetic North). He is currently developing an original television series for AMC, and is the producer of the late night cabaret phenomenon Creation Nation at Ars Nova, NYC.
page 2—Visible Theatre’s “KRANKENHAUS BLUES”
Donna Mitchell’s directing credits include a Los Angeles production of August Strindberg’s The Pelican starring Salome Jens. For that production she also collaborated with Strindberg scholar Anne-Charlotte Harvey on a new translation of the play. In New York she directed Irish playwright Jim Doyle’s play Kevin Barry at the Workshop Theater Company, and was at the helm for Visible’s production of Krankenhaus Blues when it premiered and ran at the Blue Heron Studio Theater in 2005. Her acting credits in theater include playing Martha in Edward Albee’s Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf, directed by Arthur Penn and leading roles in New Group productions of Elmer Rice’s The Adding Machine and Brian Friel’s Faith Healer, both directed by Scott Elliott. Her movie roles include parts in: Syriana, Mona Lisa Smile, The Baxter, The Ice Storm, The Rookie, Wet Hot American Summer, and Pollack.
The cast includes: Christine Bruno (Anka, an actress), Bill Green (Bruno, the plawright), Joe Sims (Fritz, a clown) and Angela DeMatteo (as a nurse). Ms. Bruno and Mr. Green are members of the Actors Studio and all four actors are members of the Visible LAB. The set and costume design will be by Kimi Maeda and the lighting design by Paul Jepson. Music will be composed and performed by Helen Yee, with additional song material written by Hannah Hens-Piazza. The production stage manager will be Emily Alexander-Wilmeth.
“Since founding the Visible Theatre in 2000, Krista Smith, an actress, director, and advocate for people with disabilities, has nurtured a range of theatrical projects that are bringing able and disabled bodies together in performance. With a vision directed toward confronting issues of social exclusion and a mission to foster long-term development of provocative theatre art, the Visible Theatre enfolds all bodies in its theatre training, workshops, and new play development. In addition to producing original theatre pieces, the theatre sponsors The True Story Project, a performance collaborative devoted to autobiographical storytelling, and the Visible Lab, a studio for actors, writers, and directors to share work-in-progress…(in Visible’s Krankenhaus Blues) Donna Mitchell’s direction carves out a taut, seventy-minute, mind-bending roller coaster…with swiftly moving episodes, dynamically acted”—Susan Tenneriello, Brooklyn College forthcoming review, Theatre Journal 58:3 (October 2006). .” This fall’s production of Krankenhaus Blues will be dedicated to the memory of playwright John Belluso, a Visible Board member, friend and inspiration for Visible’s mission and work.
The five-week performance schedule (October 5 through November 5) for “KRANKENHAUS BLUES” will be: Thursdays through Saturdays at 8:00 p.m. and Sundays at 3:00 p.m. The official Opening Performance will be Sunday, October 8 at 3:00 p.m. Tickets will be $20.00. The student and senior rate will be $15.00. TDF vouchers will be accepted. The box office number for reservations is Smarttix at 212-868-4444 or www.smarttix.com. For information about Visible Theatre, visit www.visibletheatre.org
Posted by Elizabeth Treston
Posted by mjohnson at 04:54 PM
August 30, 2006
Just what the world needs; another website. www.theothersideofbroken.com
Just what the world needs; another website. www.theothersideofbroken.com
John
Posted by John E. Smith
Posted by mjohnson at 03:19 PM
August 21, 2006
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Posted by Steve Popham
Posted by mjohnson at 03:22 PM