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AMERICA-IN-PLAY presents a work in progress showing of
fire escape
Richmond Shepard Theatre
www.richmondshepard.com
309 East 26th Street at 2nd Ave. Saturday, May 14 at 8pm and Sunday, May 15 at 5pm Ticket prices: $15 / $12 for students and seniors Reservations: 212-684-2690
By Laura Henry, Andrea Lepcio, Susan Tenneriello and DeLora Whitney
Music by Rob Hartmann
Lyrics by Rob Hartmann & Andrea Lepcio
Conceived & Directed by Lynn M. Thomson
Choreography & Movement by Yvonne Conybeare
Dramaturgy by Lynn M. Thomson, Elizabeth Bojsza, Yvonne Conybeare
Video by Myra Mniewski & Chana Pollack
Stage Manager Kimberly Wadsworth
CAST
Darcie Champagne*, Tawny Sorensen*, Stephanie Lynge*, Tessa Zugmeyer*, and Shaundra Noll*
AMERICA-IN-PLAY
Artistic Director Lynn M. Thomson
Associate Artistic Director Dominic Taylor
Sponsored artist of The Field
Equity Approved Showcase.
* Actors are appearing courtesy of Actors' Equity Association.
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Breaking News: America-in-Play has been nominated to receive a
subsidized run at the Brooklyn Lyceum. Only one group wins, so it's up to
you to make America-in-Play the winner. Vote during Open House New York
TODAY or TOMORROW (10/9-10/10) ONLY at the Lyceum Fall Marketplace.
See the Lyceum's website
for more information. Thanks for voting!
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BEYOND THE HORIZON: the coming-up season
Last season was one day for surprises after another as performance
opportunities expanded and the new piece kept changing shape. We are thrilled that
AIP went so far beyond what we'd initially envisioned when our Crossing Over: A
Medicine Show Entertainment turned into a glorious mini-tour to four venues
uptown and downtown: The Tenement Museum, The Spoon, Martin Segal Center, and
University Settlement. This upcoming season, at the invitation of the Tenement
Museum, we are undertaking two new projects, created by a collaboration of our most
experienced writers. Both projects will start their journeys in the Tenement
Museum's new building and presenting space and then move to other venues. The
Tenement Museum is also joining with us to build relationships with other partners.
Our first project is inspired by "A Bintel Brief," a column that
appeared for some eighty years in Forverts, the Yiddish language newspaper
(now the Jewish Daily Forward, published in English). The column
printed unsolicited letters from readers: people needing a place to shout their
troubles and share their secrets. The stories, gathered together, offer an
extraordinary collage of immigrant life on the Lower East Side. Please plan
to join us for the first performance of this new theatre piece on February 24, 2011.
Our second piece, now using the working title, Fire Escape,
explores the infamous Triangle factory fire. Nearly 150 people died for a complex
array of reasons rooted in neglect of safety measures: some were locked into the
building under a policy meant to limit theft. The fireproofed building still
stands on the campus of NYU; the incident is honored yearly. 2011 is the centennial
anniversary of the fire and commemorative events will occur throughout the city.
AIP is proud to be the Tenement Museum's offering for this significant memorial.
This play will see its first performance on March 22, 2011. Meanwhile,
we seek to join with other institutions in the city, as we did last year, and to
move again beyond the horizon. We will keep you informed!
Sincerely,
Lynn M. Thomson Artistic Director,
America-in-Play
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America-in-Play
FOUNDER AND
ARTISTIC DIRECTOR: Lynn M. Thomson
ASSOCIATE ARTISTIC DIRECTOR: Dominic Taylor
BOARD OF ADVISORS:
Anne Bogart Polly K. Carl, Anne Cattaneo Jennie Greer Linda
Herring Morgan Jenness Shelby Jiggetts-Tivony Susan Jonas Lynn
Nottage Joel Ruark
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The America-in-Play staff continues to grow as we welcome back artists from
previous seasons and introduce new collaborators. Sarah Stern, Associate
Artistic Director of the Vineyard Theatre, and Elizabeth Bojsza, literary
manager of Young Playwrights Inc., will both continue their dramaturgical work
for the company. Elizabeth is now Resident Dramaturg, working primarily on
Crossing Over and the Bintel project, along with facilitating
the whole season. We are also pleased to welcome back video artist Linsey
Bostwick and to introduce new staff member Shane Breaux, graduate student of
theatre history at Brooklyn College, as literary assistant. America-in-Play
remains under the direction of founding Artistic Director Lynn M. Thomson and
Associate Artistic Director Dominic Taylor.
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Play along with us
America-in-Play aims to expose playwrights to little-known plays
from the American theater. We have hidden the titles of some of those
plays in this newsletter. Can you find them? Email the names
of all of the play titles that you find in this newsletter to America-in-Play
at:
America-in-Play@hotmail.com.
Then keep your eyes open for future newsletters, because we'll hide titles in our
next newsletter too. Find all the titles and, at the end of our season,
you'll be entered into a drawing for a prize and dramaturgical bragging rights!
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* * *
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America-in-Play visits the Hudson Opera House. Pictured actors
(from l to r) are Leeanne Hutchison, Susan Dey and Keith Randolph
Smith.
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America-in-Play's pieces often start to find their shape at annual retreats.
In early 2010, writers on the Crossing Over project met with a
terrific group of actors at the Hudson Opera House--the oldest surviving
theatre in New York State. More pictures of the retreat can be seen
here.
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Quincy Long Awarded NYSCA Grant
A round of Applause: for Quincy Long, who will receive a New York State
Council on the Arts Individual Artists grant. AMERICA-IN-PLAY asked
Quincy to propose a new work that could be part of our plans for 2011/12 .
He brought to us the idea for a play with the working title of The Gospel
According to Trains, a piece to use heartily so many of the American
archetypes of story and character we've been exploring. AIP is delighted that
our grant request was successful. The project will be given a workshop
and stage reading in the late fall of 2011: and inaugurate also an extension
of our season. The year will be devoted to The Recovery Project, which
we'll announce next spring: so do stay with us for more than many a day for
surprises.
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* * *
A Welcome to Our New Artists
We searched high and low, hitting the streets and sidewalks of New York and
after a competitive application process, America-In-Play is pleased to welcome
a new cohort of thirteen artists who will participate in a three-year
residency. Applicants were asked to provide a sample of their work as
well as letters of recommendation and a personal statement that specifically
addressed why he or she wanted to collaborate with our theatre company.
The new cohort is quite the melting pot, coming from diverse backgrounds
and experiences. Some are natives to New York, others are transplants,
and still others will commute from such far away states as Massachusetts and
New Jersey. Some are early in their work life; others have
well-established careers. These artists bring to us an array of
ethnicities and writing voices. Please join us in welcoming:
Katie Baldwin Eng, Deborah Brevoort, Darren Canady, Cheryl L. Davis, Jennie
Eng, Willy Holtzman, Georgia James, Barry Jay Kaplan, Kait Kerrigan, Victor
Lesniewski, Kalle Macrides, Karen Lee Ott, and Monica Raymond.
On September 25th, the group convened for the first time and began a
series of workshops which will continue throughout the year. Each workshop
will consist of dramaturgical presentation, discussion, and writing/creating
time. Subjects to be explored include the evolution and contrast between
American character archetypes, minstrelsy, and the origin of an American music.
Tentative (virtual) field trips include a trip to Niagara, attending the
Mulligan guard ball, and taking a glance at New York.
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America-in-Play 484 W. 43rd Street New York, New York 10036
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