Monday, January 31, 2011

Review - A Small Fire (Playwrights Horizons)

Review by Judd Hollander

The fear of being trapped in a prison not of one's own making, with your efforts to connect to the outside world growing more difficult with every passing day. Playwright Adam Bock brilliantly taps into these fears in his searing, and very human work, A Small Fire, now at Playwrights Horizons.

Emily (Michelle Pawk) is a hard-charging, no-nonsense construction supervisor and a workaholic woman whose family life often takes a back seat to her job. A position accepted by her genial and loving husband John (Reed Birney), and less so by their daughter Jenny (Celia Keenan-Bolger). Emily and Jenny have never been close and their relationship is now even more strained as the family is preparing for Jenny's upcoming wedding to someone her mother doesn't think too highly of. This despite the fact Jenny and her fiancée are very much in love.

Emily's well-ordered if not always happy life is suddenly thrown for her loop when she unexpectedly begins losing her sense of smell (she's unable to detect the beginnings of a fire in the kitchen). This is followed by the loss of her sense of taste, sight, and finally hearing. Yet through it all she still tries (and for the most part succeeds) in being the independent one in the family. Too much so at times, often not realizing the effects her condition has on her daughter and husband, one which allows them to grow closer together and also drives them further apart.

What makes the play so affecting is not only how Bock has effectively tapped into this universal fear, but also through his creation of several fully-formed characters, especially Emily who is continually adapting to her limitations, working out a way to communicate with her friends and family. Even though, as she tells Billy (Victor Williams), her partner in the construction company, "I have to make up all the questions." She's also quite adept at reading the people around her, such as knowing when they're lying. Pawk is excellent in the role, bringing forth Emily's determination, anguish, fear and the ultimate realization that she needs the very people she's so often treated as little more than an afterthought. There's also a quiet dignity and pride about the character, and a few shattering moments when this mask slips, making it one of the best performances of the season.

Birney is very good as the long-suffering husband, forced to take the lead in the household and dealing with things he'd rather perennially put off. His most interesting moment, strangely enough, occurs when he's out having a good time with Billy (who raises pigeons) after Emily basically forces him to go out and have some fun. Williams is a nice supporting character as Billy, a big, burly and supremely loyal fellow who towers over Pawk, sharing both the camaraderie born out of experience on the job; as well as a quiet and poignant moment when he comes to visit her after she's stricken. Jenny unfortunately, makes for the one weak link in the story, the daughter not being developed as well as she could be. Keenan-Bolger is good in the role, but it would have been nice to see her have more to do.

Trip Cullman's direction is very good, effectively building the tension and keeping the story moving until it feels things are about to explode. Especially in the climatic scene and final words spoken, which are a testament to not only the power of the script and the actors bringing the characters to life, but also an emotional declaration of the power of the human spirit.

Loy Acrenas's set works nicely, Robert Kaplowitz's sound is good, offering important exposition in key points, and David Weiner's lighting is excellent. Costumes by Ilona Somogyi are fine.

Heart-tugging to watch and brilliant in its execution, A Small Fire is one show that hopefully will not be forgotten when awards season rolls around.

A Small Fire
Written by Adam Bock
Directed by Trip Cullman
Scenic Design: Loy Arcenas
Costume Design: Ilona Somogyi
Lighting Design: David Weiner
Original Music and Sound Design: Robert Kaplowitz
Press: The Publicity Office
Presented by Playwrights Horizons

Featuring:
Michelle Pawk (Emily Bridges), Victor Williams (Billy Fontaine), Reed Birney (John Bridges), Celia Keenan-Bolger (Jenny Bridges)

Playwrights Horizons
416 West 42nd Street
Closed: January 30, 2011
Running Time: 80 Minutes

Sunday, January 30, 2011

John Gabriel Borkman - A Triple Acting Tour de Force

Review by Judd Hollander

Denial and the desperate need for redemption. These are some of the themes present in Henrik Ibsen's rarely-performed drama John Gabriel Borkman, now being given a top-notch revival by Ireland's Abbey Theatre (with a winning translation by Frank McGuinness) at the Brooklyn Academy of Music.

The action takes place one snowy winter in an impressive mansion that also feels part mausoleum. This is the home of John Gabriel Borkman (Alan Rickman), a once powerful bank manager, beloved by all until he was convicted for embezzlement. He has not left the house since being released from prison eight years earlier, living on the second floor, (while his estranged wife Gunhild (Fiona Shaw) lives downstairs), waiting to be welcomed back into the community and the corridors of power.

On this particular night Gunhild's twin sister Ella (Lindsay Duncan) returns after an eight-year absence, there being a decades-old gulf between the two. Years ago, Ella and Borkman were lovers, but he deserted her to marry Gunhild and start himself on the road to success. Yet there remains an unspoken bond between Ella and Borkman, one which neither time nor distance can erase. Among the reasons for Ella's return is to win back the love of Erhart (Marty Rea), John and Gunhild's only son, who Ella raised during the years following the trial and who Gunhild sees as destined to restore the family name to respectability and honor. Erhart however may have other ideas as to how he wants his life to turn out.

The play is a fascinating tale about generational priorities, past decisions coming home to roost and how, if one wishes change, one must instigate it themselves, rather than simply waiting for it to happen, as Borkman and Gunhild have been doing for so long. (There's an interesting moment during a confrontation scene when Borkman and Erhart agree for a scant few seconds about the importance of taking control of their own lives).

The three major characters, all larger than life, all come icily alive with pent-up passion, desire and rage, thanks to three very exquisite performances. Rickman literally becomes the title character, a man obsessed with power seeing no wrong for what he has done. He also has such an insufferable ego, he would come across as completely ludicrous were the circumstances not so tragic. Duncan is superb as Ella, who blames John Gabriel for killing their love years ago and who has since clung to Erhart as the only warmth she has been able to find. Shaw is quite striking as Gunhild, who combines both pride and bitterness in the role, while making the character more than a stereotypical caricature by injecting a bit of self-deprecating humor into her lines, and thus making her feel more human.

Great credit must go to James Macdonald's able direction in bringing out the carefully timed bits of levity in an otherwise completely morose situation as the various characters strive for the chance to begin again. Rea works well as Erhart, a young man desperately trying to avoid being suffocated by his three parental figures and find his own happiness in the world. Cathy Belton adds some nice spice as Fanny Wilton, a hopeful realist (and divorcee) who is able to straddle the generational boundaries shown here using them to her own advantage. John Kavanagh is good in a tragicomic role as the aged Vilhelm, and Amy Molloy is nicely optimistically naive as Vilhelm's daughter Frida, who doesn't quiet yet realize the part she plays in what is happening.

Tom Pye's set is wonderfully spartan and spacious, mingled with pieces of a snowy exterior, all of which brilliantly gives the production the appropriate atmosphere. He's aided nicely by Ian Dickinson's excellent sound design and Jean Kalman's mood-inducing lighting. Costumes by Joan Bergin (mostly black and white) are nicely restrained and effective.

This production of John Gabriel Borkman is hauntingly brilliant and a play definitely not to be missed.


John Gabriel Borkman
Written by Henrik Ibsen
in a new version by Frank McGuinness
Directed by James Macdonald
Set design by Tom Pye
Lighting design by Jean Kalman
Costume design by Jean Bergin
Sound design by Ian Dickinson
American stage manager: Bonnie Panson
Producer: Abbey Theatre

Featuring: Fiona Shaw (Mrs. Gunhild Borkman), Joan Sheehy (Malene), Lindsay Duncan (Miss Ella Rentheim), Cathy Belton (Mrs. Fanny Wilson), Marty Rea (Erhart Borkman), Amy Molloy (Frida Foldal), Alan Rickman (John Gabriel Borkman), John Kavanagh (Vilhelm Foldal)

Brooklyn Academy of Music
Harvey Theater
651 Fulton Street

January 7th – February 5th
Tuesday-Friday at 7:30pm
Saturday at 2pm & 7:30pm
Sunday at 3pm

Tickets: 718-636-4100 or www.BAM.org
Running Time: Two Hours, 25 Minutes

Friday, January 28, 2011

Dainty Cadaver This Weekend At The Brick

Piper McKenzie’s Dainty Cadaver is an Exquisite Corpse-style playmaking project in which multiple playwrights collaborate on a single work without knowing what the hell the others are doing. Each writer reads the previous scene, writes a new scene, and passes it on to the next writer – who doesn’t see any of what came earlier. Beautiful madness ensues.

For its inaugural edition, Piper McKenzie will present one-night-only performances of three new plays written in this unique collaborative style, with results ranging from inspired chaos to eerie synchronicity – all tied together by the unique voices of 18 hot playwrights, to be staged by three intrepid directors!

TEAM A - Fri 1/28, 8pm
Johnna Adams (The Angel Eaters Trilogy)
Eric Bland (Emancipatory Politics: A Romantic Tragedy)
Jeff Lewonczyk (Theater of the Arcade)
Mac Rogers (Viral)
Crystal Skillman (The Vigil or the Guided Cradle)
Art Wallace (The Plowman’s Lunch)
Directed by Jordana Williams (Viral)
Starring James Comtois, Rebecca Comtois, Erin Maya Darke, Virginia Hodgkins, David Ian Lee, Mac Rogers, Jennifer Gordon Thomas, Kristen Vaughan, Sean Williams

TEAM B - Sat 1/29, 8pm
Danny Bowes (Q&A)
Matt Freeman (The Brandywine Distillery Fire)
Qui Nguyen (Alice in Slasherland)
Carolyn Raship (Antarctica)
August Schulenburg (The Lesser Seductions of History)
Alexis Sottile (Small Dinner)
Hope Cartelli (Bethlehem or Bust)
Starring Gyda Arber, Steven Burns, Lex Friedman, Gavin Starr Kendall, Jeff Lewonczyk, Doug MacKrell, Megan McGowan, Timothy McCown Reynolds, Ben VandenBoom, Stephanie Willing, Morgan Anne Zipf

TEAM C - Sun 1/30, 3pm
Maggie Cino (Ascending Bodily)
James Comtois (The Little One)
John DeVore (Tupperware Orgy)
Cara Francis (The Soup Show)
Rich Lovejoy (A Brief History of Murder)
Justin Maxwell (Your Lithopedion)
Directed by John Hurley (The Vigil or the Guided Cradle)
Starring Ryan Andes, Stephanie Cox-Williams, Kitty Lindsay, Joe Mathers, Roger Nasser, C.L. Weatherstone

at
THE BRICK
575 Metropolitan Ave.
Williamsburg, Brooklyn
L to Lorimer, G to Metropolitan

Tickets: $10

Tickets available online at https://www.ovationtix.com/trs/cal/122

Liza Minnelli To Star In The Best Of "JIM CARUSO'S CAST PARTY" At Town Hall

Show business superstar Liza Minnelli has announced that she will be performing at Town Hall on Thursday, February 17th in the All-Star, Best of Jim Caruso’s Cast Party, a major benefit for Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS. In its eight year history, Caruso's famous open mike night at Birdland has seen a huge number of major stars drop in unannounced. Fans pack the place hoping it might be the night that Michael Feinstein, Liza, Chita, Tony Bennett, Larry Gatlin, Lucie, Marilyn Maye, Paul Schaffer, Cheyenne Jackson, might pop in and sing a song or two. At Town Hall, on February 17th, the fans packing the place won't have to wonder who's coming to sing: it's the big guns, the big talent, the big stars in all their multitude that are coming to perform in The Best of Jim Caruso's Cast Party in support of Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS.

For this special show produced by Scott Siegel as part of his first "Siegel Season at Town Hall," the iconic Liza Minnelli will be re-united with her pal, Broadway legend Chita Rivera, as well as Country Superstar Larry Gatlin of The Gatlin Brothers. Also in the cast, Broadway and Nightclub star Lucie Arnaz, Marilyn Maye (Johnny Carson’s favorite singer, who holds the record for most appearances by a vocalist on “The Tonight Show”), YouTube sensation “Miranda Sings,” Broadway star and Tony nominee Christopher Sieber, Two-Time Tony nominee Sally Mayes, international jazz star Hilary Kole, R&B tenor William Blake (on the heels of his Carnegie Hall debut), Nightlife Award-winning jazz violinist Aaron Weinstein, multi-award-winning cabaret artiste Natalie Douglas, Klea Blackhurst (Merman afficianado and star of the new IFC Comedy Series “The Onion News Network”), acrobat and comedian Rudi Macaggi (direct from “America’s Got Talent”), and the rocking Dueling Fiddlers. There will be more special guest stars announced over the next few weeks! And you can count on a special surprise performer or two that night, as well!

The evening will be hosted by the multi-award winning Jim Caruso, with Billy Stritch at the piano, Steve Doyle on bass and Daniel Glass on drums.

About Jim Caruso’s Cast Party:
Jim Caruso’s Cast Party is an extreme open mic that has been running every Monday for the past eight years at Birdland, the historic music room in Manhattan’s Theater District. It’s also a bi-monthly event at The Magic Castle in Los Angeles. Stars like Martin Short, Carol Channing, Cheyenne Jackson, Michael Feinstein, Liza Minnelli, Melissa Manchester and Tony Bennett have all joined in on the fun and impromptu performances – sharing the stage with Broadway chorus cuties, jazzers and composers. Playbill put it best: "Starrier than the Hayden Planetarium…a hot spot where Broadway and Hollywood tip, twirl and hit the mic. It's become the place to cruise, schmooze, sing and be seen."

Scott Siegel presents…
The Best of Jim Caruso’s Cast Party

Thursday, February 17, 8PM
Town Hall Box Office is located at 123 West 43rd StreetTickets are $25 -$50 - $75
And can be purchased NOW by visiting TicketMaster.com or calling 800-982-2787
or at The Town Hall Box Office, open noon to 6 PM every day but Sunday.

THE SIEGEL SEASON at The Town Hall is supported, in part, by The Edythe Kenner Foundation, ASCAP, Jill & Irwin Cohen, Peter & Barbara Leavy, TheaterMania.com, The Berkshire Theatre Festival, Steve & Eda Sorokoff, Thoroughbred Records, Peter Hanson, and Steven T. Ernst.

Monday, January 24, 2011

Casting Announced for Reading of "The City Club," A New Noir Jazz Blues Musical

Casting has been announced for The City Club, a reading of a new noir jazz blues musical, produced by Roll You Own, LLC., to be presented on Friday, January 28th, 2011 at Theatre Row’s Beckett Theatre.

Directed by Mitchell Maxwell, the cast will feature Andrew Pandaleon (The History of War), Margaret Hoffman (Dreamgirls- tour), Natalie Peyser , Tess Soltau (Restoration Comedy), Kenny Brawner (The Brawner Brothers Band), and Michael Pemberton (The Farnsworth Invention). Felicia Ricci (Wicked - tour) , Sally Swallow, Stephen Lee Anderson (Wicked), Spencer Moses (Guys & Dolls) , Michael Lanning (Civil War) and Brian Munn (Rock of Ages) complete the ensemble.

Originally produced at Edinburgh International Festival, The City Club is written by Glenn M. Stewart and will be directed by veteran theatre producer Mitchell Maxwell (Damn Yankees, Dinner with Friends, Bells Are Ringing) with musical staging by Lorin Latarro (Swing!). The jazz blues style score is by James Compton, Tim Brown and Tony DeMeur. Mr. Compton (West End: The Queen and I, Elvis: The Musical) will serve as Musical Director.

The City Club centers around Charles Davenport, a passionate and naïve jazz club owner who tries to create the ultimate club in a dark city full of corruption and prejudice. With a blind passion for music, he headlines sizzling talent from “the wrong side of the tracks,” for his wealthy and decadent patrons who are willing to pay anything for what they want---with tragic results.

There will be two presentations on January 28th (1PM and 5PM) for invited theatre industry and Rialto insiders. Theatre Row’s Beckett Theatre is located at 410 West 42nd Street.

Interview Me! - Michelle Slonim

By Byrne Harrison

Michelle Slonim is a comedic character actress, producer and teaching artist. She has performed in the Florida production of Jewtopia, at the Williamstown Theater Festival and Comedy Central, HBO and regularly performs in the NYC downtown comedy scene. As seen in the Wall Street Journal and NY Post, Michelle is the creator of Date My Friend Parties and Date My Jewish Friend Parties which are tag team speed dating events. You can see her on the big screen this summer at the New Museum's "Festival of Ideas for A New City" and you can see her live in Chicago in the show "Date Me". She is currently developing a one-ish woman show called "Michelle's Man Hunt". She is a teaching artist with Urban Arts Partnership, a member of 24 Hour Plays on Broadway, TRU, CTI, a board member of the the Lower East BID, and the Friars Club. www.michelleslonim.com www.datemyfriendplay.com

When did you first get involved in theatre and when did you know it was going to become your passion?

Ever since I was in kindergarten I wanted to be in the school play, but every year my class wasn't selected until the 3rd grade when I was in the Jewish version of the Gift of Magi. Even though my school was co-ed I was cast to play Elijah and fell in love with the theatre.

Who is your inspiration?

Growing up I loved The Carol Burnett Show and would imitate her characters.

What was the best show you've ever seen?

The best show I've ever seen is Gypsy with Tyne Daley. I fought with my parents, that is was "inappropriate" and I didn't want to see, but I fell in love with the show and had to swallow my pride and tell my parents they were correct!

If you could work with anyone in the world, who would you choose?

Jackie Hoffman, David Cross, and John Hamburg.

What's coming up for you this year?

I'm developing a one-ish woman show called Michelle's Man Hunt.

Open forum: What do you want to say to the people out on the blogosphere reading this right now?

Come to my next Date My Friend Party; its an Anti-Valentines Day Special! It's speed dating party in pairs for those who are 21-39 and heterosexual. Discount code for $5 off: stagebuzz


Click here for more info.

Sunday, January 23, 2011

Blogger Night At Avenue Q

By Byrne Harrison

On Wednesday, January 19th, Avenue Q hosted a Blogger Night at the show. After a terrific performance, the actors and some of their fuzzy friends came out to talk about the show, the move from Broadway to Off-Broadway, and their experiences as part of the cast. Here are some photos (albeit somewhat blurry) of the meet and greet.



Want to see Avenue Q and save some money? There is an exclusive Avenue Q discount code for bloggers and their pals -- with the code AQBLOG12, you can get tickets as low as $55! (Valid through 5/26/11)

Avenue Q is playing at New World Stages, located at 340 West 50th Street, between 8th and 9th Avenues.

Interview Me! - Martin Blank

By Byrne Harrison

As part of a Thanksgiving Day promotion, I offered to interview any of my readers or other theatre professionals. Here is the first of those interviews.

Martin Blank is the author of ten plays. His new full-length dark comedy, No Rest for the Wicked, will receive a reading at the Kennedy Center in September. His full-length drama, The Law of Return, was produced at Center Stage Theater, Jerusalem, Maryland Ensemble Theatre, and was optioned for Broadway. His full-length comedy, Scenes from Life in America,was seen in New York at Ensemble Studio Theatre's Octoberfest. He has received new play commissions from the American Jewish Theater, Theatre Ariel, and the Georgetown Theatre Company and is published by Smith & Kraus. He has served as Artistic Associate for the American Jewish Theatre and American Place Theatre, New York City, as well as Literary Manager, Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company, and Founding Artistic Director, Theater J. Currently, he is Artistic Director for American Ensemble Theater. He attended the University of Maryland and the Yale School of Drama.

When did you first get involved in theatre and when did you know it was going to become your passion?

I produced and directed shows in my living room when I was four. However, in college, I worked as a sound designer, and the tech crew did a parody of each show at the end of a run. I started writing the parodies and when I saw people doubling over in laughter, I was hooked. I actually was on track to become an economist!

Who is your inspiration?

Actors!

What was the best show you've ever seen?

Jar the Floor by Cheryl L. West at Arena Stage

If you could work with anyone in the world, who would you choose?

Steve Martin

What's coming up for you this year?

A new comedy, No Rest for the Wicked. A dark updated spin on Rip van Winkle, getting a reading at the Kennedy Center in September.

Open forum: What do you want to say to the people out on the blogosphere reading this right now?

Come to Avenue of the Americas at the Tank Theater. Fourteen designers and
production people are working on this show! As well as a knockout director and five hilarious actors. Six performances January 21 to February 6. Tickets are only $10!

Thursday, January 20, 2011

Broadway Backwards 6 Coming to Longacre Theatre on Feb. 7th

BROADWAY BACKWARDS 6, the only Broadway event custom-made for the gay and lesbian community, their friends and families, takes to the stage again for a star-studded, one-night only event, February 7 at Broadway's Longacre Theatre (220 W. 48th Street).

"American Idol" runner-up Clay Aiken (Spamalot), HBO's "True Blood" star Denis O'Hare (Tony winner for Take Me Out) and Tony winner Alan Cumming (Cabaret, CBS's "The Good Wife") join a line-up of performers that also will include Tituss Burgess (The Little Mermaid), Len Cariou (Tony winner for Sweeney Todd), Robin De Jesus (La Cage aux Folles), Jose Llana (The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee), Lin-Manuel Miranda (Tony winner for In the Heights), Debra Monk (Curtains), Bobby Steggert (Ragtime), Brian Charles Rooney (The Threepenny Opera) and Tony Yazbeck (Gypsy). Additional performers will be announced soon.

The show is produced by Broadway Cares and will benefit BC/EFA and The Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Community Center of New York City.

BROADWAY BACKWARDS will feature some of Broadway's biggest names singing songs originally written for the opposite gender: women singing songs written for men and men singing songs written for women. By keeping all of the lyrics intact, including the original pronouns, each song takes on an entirely new dimension, sometimes with hysterical results and sometimes with immensely touching results. BROADWAY BACKWARDS will give its audience a chance to see and hear some of the most treasured songs of the Great White Way in a whole new key.

Creator Robert Bartley will again direct and choreograph with co-choreographer/associate director Kathryn Kendall and musical direction by Chris Haberl. The creative team also includes lighting designer Paul Miller, costumer designer Philip Heckman and musical supervisor Patrick Vaccariello.

BROADWAY BACKWARDS began as a grassroots concert performed at the Center in 2006. In subsequent years, the event grew quickly, performing Off-Broadway at 37 Arts, followed by Roundabout's American Airlines Theatre and last year at Lincoln Center Theater at the Vivian Beaumont.

For more information or to order tickets, visit the Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS website.

Wednesday, January 19, 2011

Shanley's "Savage in Limbo" to Play at The Drilling Company Theatre Beginning Feb. 11

John Patrick Shanley's Edgy Comedy, Savage in Limbo
Beginning February 11th at The Drilling Company Theatre

Three Bronx women, with nowhere else to go, end up in a bar taking stock of their lives in John Patrick Shanley's comedy Savage in Limbo. This passionate and touching tale of lost souls dealing with both hope and hopelessness is presented by Rosalind Productions, Inc. & The Platform Group at The Drilling Company Theatre, located at 236 West 78th Street. Directed by Brian Tom O'Connor, the play is being produced in association with The Drilling Company.

One quiet Monday night, three neighborhood friends, and former grade school classmates, find themselves in a local drinking establishment. There's Denise, a frustrated, 32-year-old virgin who's temporarily fled the home where she lives with her mother; April, an emotionally burned-out soul who drinks because she has nothing else; and Linda, a foxy lady with an easy reputation who has just been dumped by her boyfriend, Tony, a typical Italian stud, who now wants to date someone uglier because he thinks it will help him break out of his routine. As the women complain about their situations, under the watchful eye of bartender Murk--a fervent believer of all things status quo--they begin to hatch a plan whereby they can finally begin living their lives, instead of just existing in them. But it’s not long before the women's deeper needs for love and security begin to emerge, threatening to alter forever the life changes they are all desperately trying to achieve.

The cast of Savage in Limbo features Kendall Rileigh*, Abigail Rose Solomon*, Fabio Taliercio*, Shara Ashley Zeiger and Maxwell Zener*. The production team includes Andrew Lu (set designer), Isabella F. Byrd (lighting designer), and Marcie A. Friedman* (production stage manager). The production is an Equity Showcase.

* - Member of Actors' Equity

Among John Shanley's plays are Danny and the Deep Blue Sea, Italian American Reconciliation, The Dreamer Examines his Pillow, Sailor's Song (Drama Desk Nomination), Savage in Limbo, Four Dogs and a Bone, Beggars in the House of Plenty, Psychopathia Sexualis, Cellini, Where's My Money?, Dirty Story, Doubt (Tony and Drama Desk Award for Best Play, Pulitzer Prize for Drama), and Defiance. As a screenwriter, he received an Academy Award for "Moonstruck "and an Emmy nomination for the HBO film "Live from Baghdad". He was born in the Bronx.

Brian Tom O’Connor recently directed the New York premiere of Reggie Cheong-Leen's The Nanjing Race (Abingdon Theatre Company), and the world premieres of Skeleton at the Feast by Jim Beggarly (One Dream Theatre), Robert Cessna's David and Arthur, Arthur and David at 42nd Street Workshop and Demolition by Ben Sahl (Columbia Dramatists). Other New York productions include Trios and Final Vows by Robert Cessna, Taking Liberties by Dave Carley, Women of Manhattan and Welcome to the Moon by John Patrick Shanley, and Sari Body's Hide the Bride. He also directed the first staged reading of Samuel Beckett’s Eleutheria at the National Arts Club. Opera credits include The Magic Flute, The Impresario, and La Serva Padrona for the Bronx Opera Company.

Founded in 2005, Rosalind Productions Inc. explores stories in which the female characters are as vital, complex and influential as the male characters. RP was an associate producer of The Miracle Worker on Broadway. In Los Angeles, RP produced Misalliance, Proof, As You Like It, and the new play, Stages, which garnered a NAACP Theatre Award nomination. For more info go to www.RosalindProductions.com.

The Platform Group is a New York City production company formed in early 2010. Platform’s mission is to create work that challenges, inspires and provides a place to stand on. The Platform Group on Facebook: www.facebook.com/ThePlatformGroup The Platform Group on Twitter: www.twitter.com/platformgroup .

Running from February 11th through March 5th, Savage in Limbo will be performed at The Drilling Company Theatre, located at 236 West 78th Street (between Broadway and Amsterdam Avenues) on the third floor. (The theatre is not wheelchair accessible.) Show times are Thursday-Saturday at 8pm and Sunday at 3pm. There are additional performances on Monday, February 28th at 8pm and Wednesday, March 2nd at 8pm. Running time is 75 minutes (no intermission). All tickets are $18.00.

Reservations: 212-868-4444 or www.rosalindproductions.com

The Love Show Presents GO F♥CK YOURSELF!

With V-Day just around the bend, The Love Show wants to remind you that before you can truly love anyone else, you've got to fully embrace your ability to LLLOOOOOOOVE yourself!


Angela Harriell & The Love Show:
present
GO F♥CK YOURSELF!
A Pre-Valentine's Day Dance Cabaret
at
Public Assembly
70 N. 6th Street
(between Wythe & Kent)
Williamsburg, Brooklyn
L train to Bedford Avenue

Monday, February 7, 2011
Doors at 9PM, Show at 9:30PM

$10 cover, no minimum
Delicious food available from Cubana Social


An evening of dance, burlesque, song, comedy and magic, featuring The Love Show Dancers and special guests! Hosted by David F. Slone, Esq.!


www.theloveshownyc.com
www.publicassemblynyc.com
www.cubanasocial.com

_____________________


The Love Show gets the sexy goin' with their tightly choreographed and costumed numbers, theatrical appeal and gorgeous girls and boys. A little cabaret, a little ballet and a whole lotta rock and roll, The Love Show has entertained all audiences from the glitzy nightclub life to the gritty downtown theater. Classically trained dancers and detailed choreography tell a story with every number... a story both intimate and universal. The Love Show has worked for such clients as Vogue Magazine and Cointreau liqueur, and rocked stages ranging from CBGB's Gallery to The New York Burlesque Festival. The Love Show has also appeared with the glitterati on Patrick McMullan's website and been seen on The Insider.

FRIGID New York Festival Tickets On Sale

Tickets are now on sale for the 5th Annual FRIGID New York Festival, presented by Horse Trade Theater Group (Erez Ziv, Managing Director, Heidi Grumelot, Artistic Director), February 23-March 6. FRIGID New York is an open and uncensored theatre festival that gives artists an opportunity to let their ingenuity thrive in a venue that values freedom of expression and artistic determination. In true support of theatre on the fringe of the mainstream, 100% of box office proceeds will go directly to the artists. Riding the fringe of winter FRIGID will kick off the annual North American Fringe Circuit with a bang!

FRIGID 2011 will run February 23-March 6 at The Kraine Theater & The Red Room (85 East 4th Street between 2nd Ave and Bowery) and UNDER St. Marks (94 St. Marks Place between 1sr Ave and Ave A). Tickets ($10-$16) may be purchased online at www.FRIGIDnewyork.info or by calling Smarttix at 212-868-4444. All shows will run 60 minutes long or less.

FRIGID 2011 SHOWS

A Kind Kind Man
Written by Catherine Weingarten & Directed by Zach Stasz
Presented by Stasz/Pruitt Productions Queens, NY
When 14-year-old Flora shows up on Willard's doorstep selling toothpaste with a smile, Willard's repressed masculinity surfaces - triggering desires to drop his perfect muffin baking wife and run off with the unwilling Flora to the Virgin Islands. Dentistry meets Little Red Ridding Hood in this dark and modern farce.
UNDER St. Marks (94 St. Marks Place) $14
Thu 2/24 @ 7:30pm, Sat 2/26 @ 2:30pm, Wed 3/2 @ 9pm, Fri 3/4 @ 6pm, & Sat 3/5 @ 7pm

The Bitter Poet: Looking for Love in All the Wrong Black Box Performance Spaces
Presented by The Bitter Poet New York, NY
New York City’s comic performance artist, The Bitter Poet, performs his guitar-driven poems in this darkly humorous and satirical one-man show about searching for True Love and the contortionists you meet along the way… A high-energy, irreverent celebration of the crazy things we do for love.
UNDER St. Marks (94 St. Marks Place) $10
Fri 2/25 @ 10:30pm, Sat 2/26 @ 8:30pm, Thu 3/3 @ 9pm, Sat 3/5 @ 4pm, & Sun 3/6 @ 5:30pm

Boat Load
Presented by Stars and Hearts London, ON Canada
Gary is a brilliant actor who needs a thousand dollars to participate in a high-profile performer showcase. Also, his cat needs a thousand dollar operation, but that's too much money to spend on a cat.
The Red Room (85 East 4th Street) $14
Fri 2/25 @ 6:30pm, Sat 2/26 @ 3:30pm, Mon 2/28 @ 8pm, Fri 3/4 @ 9:30pm, Sat 3/5 @ 11pm, & Sun 3/6 @ 3:30pm

Fate, Fury and Musical Theatre: A Kind of Cabaret
Presented by The Furies Theatre Company New York, NY
In a panic, a young actress drives from her house in the suburbs of New York until she can't drive anymore. On the beach at the very tip of Long Island, the Three Fates of ancient mythology, androgynous and fabulous, wash onto the shore like Venus on the foam and lead the girl on a journey of self-discovery and show tunes.
The Red Room (85 East 4th Street) $15
Thu 2/24 @ 8pm, Fri 2/25 @ 11pm, Sun 2/27 @ 12:30pm, Thu 3/3 @ 9:30pm, & Sat 3/5 @ 8pm

Fucking Girls
Written by Ben Thompson & Directed by Paul Leopold
Presented by My Lieges Brooklyn, NY
A hilarious and misguided romantic fantasy about a young man “sleeping” his way through his ex-girlfriends en route to find true love, with a couple of major speed bumps along the way.
The Kraine Theater (95 East 4th Street) $10
Wed 2/23 @ 6pm, Sat 2/26 @ 4pm, Wed 3/2 @ 7:30pm, Sat 3/5 @ 1pm, & Sun 3/6 @ 5:30pm

FUNNY
A trunk show

Presented by Denmo Ibrahim San Francisco, CA
Inspired by a true story, FUNNY A TRUNK SHOW looks at what we leave behind in our search for the American dream. A smash up of clown, bouffant and immigrant interviews, this 45 minute fast paced epic reveals a heartbreaking tale -- a patriotic Egyptian, who will always be seen as an outsider despite his ability to vote. Hilarious, moving, and undeniably real.
UNDER St. Marks (94 St. Marks Place) $15
Thu 2/24 @ 9pm, Sat 2/26 @ 5:30pm, Sun 2/27 @ 5:30pm, Tue 3/1 @ 7:30pm, Sat 3/5 @ 1pm, & Sun 3/6 @ 4pm

Goodnight Lovin’ Trail
Written by John Patrick Bray & Directed by Akia Squitieri
Presented by Rising Sun Performance Company New York, NY
Goodnight Lovin’ Trail is a subtle and touching drama that takes place at a truck stop diner in West Texas, where two desperate and lonely strangers find redemption in each other's eyes while discussing a stolen guitar. The play explores raw human emotions and consequences while these two desperate characters navigate and come to terms with the choices they've made on the road of life.
The Red Room (85 East 4th Street) $12
Wed 2/23 @ 11pm, Sat 2/26 @ 6:30pm, Mon 2/28 @ 6:30pm, Thu 3/3 @ 8pm, & Sat 3/5 @ 3:30pm

Hi, How Can I Help You?
Written by Scout Durwood & Directed by Lucile Baker Scott
Presented by Mighty Little Productions Brooklyn, NY
The silly side of the sex industry: a one woman musical. Six women at a NYC house of domination navigate the volatile economy of the sex industry during a recession, the night of Barrack Obama's 2008 presidential election. They laugh, they cry, they roller-skate and hula-hoop.
The Kraine Theater (85 East 4th Street) $12
Thu 2/24 @ 10:30pm, Sun 2/27 @ 7pm, Tue 3/1 @ 9pm, Fri 3/4 @ 4pm, & Sat 3/5 @ 8:30pm

The Hyperbolist
Presented by Joe Mazza Chicago, IL
Grandiloquent farces of tiny proportion-- or-- desperate puppets want love. Joe Mazza's phantasmagorically raucous world returns to NYC.
The Red Room (85 East 4th Street) $15
Thu 2/24 @ 11pm, Sat 2/26 @ 5pm, Sun 2/27 @ 2pm, Wed 3/2 @ 9:30pm, Fri 3/4 @ 6:30pm, & Sun 3/6 @ 5pm

I Love You (We’re F*#ked)
Presented by 55BC Nashville, TN
Kevin J Thornton has been featured on NPR’s “All Things Considered” and is the recent New Faces Winner at The Comedy Store in Hollywood.His hilarious new show is a wild mix of concert, stand up and story
telling.
UNDER St. Marks (94 St. Marks Place) $15
Thu 2/24 @ 10:30pm, Sat 2/26 @ 4pm, Sun 2/27 @ 4pm, Fri 3/4 @ 9pm, & Sun 3/6 @ 1pm

I’m Not Sure I Like the Way You Licked Me!
Written & Performed by Bricken Sparacino & Directed by Lori Kee
Presented by Birch & Bricken New York, NY
Through humor, honesty and a little bit of rock and roll, come share with Bricken the battles she has fought, the mountains she has climbed and the licks she has endured.
UNDER St. Marks (94 St. Marks Place) $10
Wed 2/23 @ 9pm, Sun 2/27 @ 1pm, Mon 2/28 @ 9pm, Thu 3/3 @ 7:30pm, & Sat 3/5 @ 8:30pm

Inside Straight
Written by George Ridgeway & Directed by Letty Cruz
Presented by Thousand Eyes Productions New York, NY
Johnny Ace is a street-smart surveillance expert. He plays poker with our lives and tells us like it is. A "New Age Noir" detective, he tracks a life-and-death story about the invasion of privacy in our high-tech world.
UNDER St. Marks (94 St. Marks Place) $15
Fri 2/25 @ 6pm, Sat 2/26 @ 10pm, Wed 3/2 @ 6pm, Sat 3/5 @ 5:30pm, & Sun 3/6 @ 2:30pm

JapJAP
Written & Performed by Una Aya Osato & Directed by Moises Belizario
Presented by Keep It Movin' Productions New York, NY
JapJAP is trying to find out who she is, tearing down borders and tearing off clothes. Her body is her only road map as she embarks on a journey through identity, culture, and history.
The Kraine Theater (85 East 4th Street) $15
Fri 2/25 @ 5:30pm, Sat 2/26 @ 2:30pm, Tue 3/1 @ 10:30pm, Fri 3/4 @ 7pm & Sun 3/6 @ 7pm

Joe: The Perfect Man
Written by Rachelle Elie & Directed by Adam Lazarus
Presented by Crowning Monkey Toronto, Ontario, Canada
After losing his job, Joe’s passion to play all the lead roles in “The Scottish Play” explodes to the surface. Soon after he stumbles upon a Macbeth Open Call Audition and sees it as his one chance to fulfill his destiny. Through ridiculous failures and absurd attempts at brilliance he stumbles through the opportunity of a lifetime.
The Kraine Theater (85 East 4th Street) $16
Fri 2/25 @ 4pm, Sun 2/27 @ 4pm, Mon 2/28 @ 7:30pm, Tue 3/1 @ 6pm, Fri 3/4 @ 8:30pm, & Sun 3/6 @ 2:30pm

Mendacity
Written & Directed by Lauren Rayner New York, NY
Through the integration of dynamic multi-media installations, Mendacity, a solo word-collage, takes you deep inside the mind of a splintering personality wrought with self-loathing and denial over sexual assault. Join us in a rebellious journey of fragmented transcendence and the offering of hope.
The Kraine Theater (85 East 4th Street) $15
Thu 2/24 @ 9pm, Sat 2/26 @ 8:30pm, Mon 2/28 @ 9pm, Thu 3/3 @ 6pm, & Sat 3/5 @ 5:30pm

The Mysterious Mystery of Mystery Street
Written & Directed by Sergio Solorzano
Presented by Blame Your Fate Productions New York, NY
A beautiful lady in a red dress hires two clueless private eyes to investigate a matter of intrigue, foul play, and homoerotic undertones. Dangerous mystery, mysterious danger, and one big Lonely Sausage.
The Kraine Theater (85 East 4th Street) $15
Thu 2/24 @ 7:30pm, Sat 2/26 @ 5:30pm, Wed 3/2 @ 10:30pm, Fri 3/4 @ 5:30pm, & Sun 3/6 @ 4pm

My Pal Izzy: The Early Life and Music of Irving Berlin
Written by Melanie Gall & Directed by Karen Gall
Presented by Sisterscene Productions Brooklyn, NY
Narrated by Berlin's childhood friend Becky, My Pal Izzy is a musical comedy that explores the early life of famed composer Irving Berlin. From a song plugger to a singing waiter, young Irving would do anything to succeed.
The Kraine Theater (85 East 4th Street) $16
Thu 2/24 @ 6pm, Fri 2/25 @ 7pm, Sun 2/27 @ 2:30pm, Wed 3/2 @ 9pm, Thu 3/3 @ 7:30pm, & Sat 3/5 @ 4pm

ONEymoon (A Honeymoon for One)
Created & performed by Christel Bartelse
Presented by Dutch Girl Productions Toronto, ON Canada
A solo tour-de-force comedy about a woman who decides to marry herself. Humor, heart and tap-dancing too!
UNDER St. Marks (94 St. Marks Place) $16
Wed 2/23 @ 6pm, Sat 2/26 @ 7pm, Sun 2/27 @ 2:30pm, Mon 2/28 @ 7:30pm, Wed 3/2 @ 10:30pm, & Thu 3/3 @ 6pm

The Oregon Trail: Quest for the West!
Presented by No. 11 Productions New York, NY
Inspired by the iconic game, The Oregon Trail: Quest for the West! is an interactive comedy with music. Join our five brave pioneers on a grueling journey as they fight snakebites, dysentery and meager rations. Will YOU ford the river?
The Kraine Theater (85 East 4th Street) $13
Wed 2/23 @ 7:30pm, Sat 2/26 @ 7pm, Mon 2/28 @ 6pm, Thu 3/3 @ 10:30pm, & Sun 3/6 @ 1pm

Pretty-n-Papi
Written by Leah James Abel, Cody Schreger, and Olivia Lehrman
Presented by Awkward at Best Brooklyn, NY
The very last reality show to be made. Are Pretty & Papi the first 'reality' lesbian couple? The 1st immigrant couple? Poster children for love after sixty? Let this zany trio of women take you on an energetic and absurd ride to the future of reality television.
UNDER St. Marks (94 St. Marks Place) $14
Thu 2/24 @ 6pm, Sun 2/27 @ 7pm, Mon 2/28 @ 6pm, Fri 3/4 @ 7:30pm, & Sat 3/5 @ 2:30pm

Saving Tania’s Privates
Written & Performed by Tania Katan
Presented by AJ Epstein Presents Seattle, WA
Funny, outrageous and true! This critically acclaimed comedy hit from the Edinburgh Fringe Festival will have you laughing till you weep. A show about far-out families, quirky girlfriends and boobs...but not necessarily in that order.
UNDER St. Marks (94 St. Marks Place) $12
Wed 2/23 @ 7:30pm, Fri 2/25 @ 9pm, Sat 2/26 @ 1pm, Tue 3/1 @ 6pm, Wed 3/2 @ 7:30pm, & Sat 3/5 @ 10pm

Scarlet Woman
Written by Matthew Wells & Directed by Rob O’Neil
Presented by SunsetGun Productions Minneapolis, MA
Scarlet Woman is a two-woman, film noir thriller. This brand-spanking new play is a colorful homage to all the dangerous Delilahs of noir. A fast and furious exploration of all the extreme female archetypes in this genre. One femme fatale, two actresses, twelve characters, and more dead bodies than the last scene of Hamlet.
The Kraine Theater (85 East 4th Street) $16
Wed 2/23 @ 10:30pm, Sat 2/26 @ 1pm, Sun 2/27 @ 5:30pm, Tue 3/1 @ 7:30pm, Wed 3/2 @ 6pm, & Sat 3/5 @ 2:30pm

The Shorebound Swim With a One-Click Kick: A Tragedy of Reason
Written by Markus Paminger & Directed by Alison Carroll
Presented by The Lucky Artist Theater Company Brooklyn, NY
A genius removes himself from society and attempts to unlock the science behind the secrets of the human experience; a boy gets his first taste of love, lust and betrayal; and a desperate caretaker struggles to control her destiny in this gripping drama that connects the cerebral with matters of the heart.
The Red Room (85 East 4th Street) $10
Wed 2/23 @ 6:30pm, Sat 2/26 @ 8pm, Mon 2/28 @ 9:30pm, Wed 3/2 @ 6:30pm, & Sun 3/6 @ 12:30pm

There is No Good News
Written by David Mogolov & Directed by Steve Kleinedler
Presented by The Plant Boston, MA
Bringing together bullwhip-armed children, bomb scares, and runaway fryalators, There Is No Good News is Mogolov’s hilarious search for something—anything—he can teach his daughter. Somewhere between Spalding Gray doing slapstick and Mike Birbiglia analyzing McLuhan, Mogolov’s style is relaxed, congenial, and witty, sneaking insights in between near-constant laughs.
The Red Room (85 East 4th Street) $10
Thu 2/24 @ 6:30pm, Sat 2/26 @ 2pm, Tue 3/1 @ 9:30pm, Fri 3/4 @ 8pm, Sat 3/5 @ 5pm, & Sun 3/6 @ 6:30pm

TIRED WAVE STOP!
Written by Steve Boleantu & Directed by Miguel Rivas
Presented by Brave Face Theatre Edmonton, AL Canada
The Sea Captain has one rule: life at sea. But after falling in love with a mermaid, plus taking on a new crewmember, the old man of the sea is forced to examine the costs and rewards of his stubbornness. A grown-up comedic yarn.
The Red Room (85 East 4th Street) $12
Wed 2/23 @ 9:30pm, Fri 2/25 @ 9:30pm, Sun 2/27 @ 5pm, Wed 3/2 @ 8pm, Fri 3/4 @ 5pm, & Sat 3/5 @ 12:30pm

We Might Be Experimenting On You
Written by Kym Bernazky & Melanie Jones
Presented by Collision Productions New York, NY
Dr’s. Bernazky and Jones (PhD, BFA, WTF) are seeking participants in a theatrical research study. Lab rats will be asked to perform various convention-blasting, audience-related tasks. Hijinks and non-slip shoes are required.
The Red Room (85 East 4th Street) $16
Fri 2/25 @ 8pm, Sun 2/27 @ 6:30pm, Thu 3/3 @ 6:30pm, Sat 3/5 @ 6:30pm, & Sun 3/6 @ 2pm

Wonder Woman: A How To Guide for Little Jewish Girls
Written & Performed by Cyndi Freeman Brooklyn, NY
Two-time FringeNYC award-winning writer/performer Cyndi Freeman's latest solo show traces her journey from little suburban Jewish girl obsessed with Wonder Woman to becoming the fabulous burlesque Queen, Cherry Pitz, in NYC. Join her on a crusade to right wrongs while wearing fabulous costumes.
The Red Room (85 East 4th Street) $10
Wed 2/23 @ 8pm, Sat 2/26 @ 9:30pm, Tue 3/1 @ 8pm, Thu 3/3 @ 11pm, & Sat 3/5 @ 2pm

Year of the Slut
Written by Jennifer Lieberman
Presented by JJ Rockstar Productions Maple, ON Canada
As a horny 18 year old virgin on a quest for romance, a naive Jewish Canadian girl moves to NYC and becomes entangled in seduction, heartbreak and adventure. Jennifer Lieberman weaves her provocative poetry across the stage while bringing nine vivid characters to life.
The Red Room (85 East 4th Street) $15
Thu 2/24 @ 9:30pm, Sat 2/26 @ 11pm, Sun 2/27 @ 3:30pm, Tue 3/1 @ 6:30pm, Fri 3/4 @ 11pm, & Sat 3/5 @ 9:30pm

YIPPIE!
Written and Directed by Randy Anderson & Harrison Williams
Presented by The Beggars Group Brooklyn, NY
YIPPIE! is an explosive look back on the events that defined the Youth International Party. 1967 meets 2011 in this time twisting exploration of freedom, fun, and fanatics.
The Kraine Theater (85 East 4th Street) $16
Wed 2/23 @ 9pm, Fri 2/25 @ 8:30pm, Sun 2/27 @ 1pm, Thu 3/3 @ 9pm, & Sat 3/5 @ 7pm

You Shouldn’t Be Here
Written & Performed by Kelly “Killy” Dwyer Brooklyn, NY
No one is safe and nothing is sacred as Killy Dwyer declares war on fear in this surprisingly personal comedy of terrors. This multimedia, musical, comedic performance artsploration “sees something and says something” about our love-hate relationship with control and dysfunction.
UNDER St. Marks (94 St. Marks Place) $10
Wed 2/23 @ 10:30pm, Fri 2/25 @ 7:30pm, Mon 2/28 @ 10:30pm, Fri 3/4 @ 10:30pm, & Sun 3/6 @ 7pm

Look for interviews and articles on the FRIGID shows coming up on StageBuzz.com