I AM SALOME Begins Tonight at Access Theater

In this World Premiere of I Am Salome, award-winning director Alexandra Siladi pieces together a unique version of the classic titular character based on the innovative work of American author/playwright Charles Mee. With a troupe of six actors portraying the iconic and dangerous female temptress, Salome - the original femme fatale - Siladi creates a theatrical collage that depicts myriad Salomes found throughout history. This provocative interpretation explores from a female perspective why sex is perpetually and inextricably linked to danger.

Mee crafted his original play by culling together the writings of Colette, Gustave Flaubert, Camille Paglia, Catherine Millet, Annie Sprinkle as well as anonymous Internet-based authors. Siladi takes her cue from Mee's mosaic approach by allowing a multitude of performers give voice to the character. The iconic role is re-imagined in this limited engagement for the millennial, culturally fluid, ADD-generation; one who identifies with the trans-formative story of Caitlyn Jenner as much as the horrific details of the "Barbie" murderer, Karla Homolka. Starting with cold read auditions for the title character, follow the actors as they make their way to an empty club at the end of the world, telling shared stories about their sexual emergence in an attempt to find their innocence and embrace all of their inherent complexities and contradictions.

ABOUT THE ARTISTS:

Alexandra Siladi (Director) Artistic Director of Black Lodge Theater. A graduate of UCLA's School of Theater, Film, and Television, works that she directed, produced, designed, and developed have been seen in New York at the Bleecker Street Theater, JACK NYC, Galapagos Art Space, The Access Theater, The Brick Theater, The Silent Barn, and The Collapsable Hole. She started her career in theater working on productions with Theater for a New Audience, The Wooster Group, Incubator Arts Project, and The Westport Country Playhouse. In 2012, Alexandra won Outstanding Direction and Outstanding Overall Production of a New Play at the Planet Connections Theater Festivity for The American Play. She's currently working on the world-premiere of author Barry Gifford's Do the Blind Dream? A fundraiser was held for the project at Anthology Film Archives hosted by VICE. The production is planned to premiere in spring 2017. In addition to her creative work, Alexandra is currently Associate Manager, Development Events at the New York Public Library. www.tajlisiladi.com

Remy Bennett (Three) is a New York based writer, director, and actor. Rémy trained at the central school of speech and drama in London where she received at BA in drama. she has directed music videos for musicians such as Skaters, Hurray for the Riff Raff, Fall On Your Sword, and artist Mike Viola. Her acting credits include The Wolf of Wall Street, and HBO's The Leftovers and Boardwalk Empire. Rémy recently co directed, wrote, and starred in the feature film Buttercup Bill that is now on the festival circuit.

Ryan Castalia (Four) is an American theatre artist. He is currently a part of the Brooklyn-based ritual performance company Theatre Group Dzieci. He has worked as the co-creator and one of the chief collaborators of The Free Theatre, with whom he produced and performed several experimental Shakespeare productions and a lo-fi tour of the United States.

Emily Fleischer (Five) moved east from Valencia, California to train in the acting conservatory at SUNY Purchase. She left the city for Vermont in 2012, hired as an artist in residence for an outdoor theatre on an organic vegetable farm. Film: Glass Chin, Fall to Rise, and The Grind to name a few. Theater: Frank Winter's On the Head of A Pin at 59E59. Now, officially a city-dweller once more, she is studying herbal medicine and beginning production on her passion project: a Shakespeare on film series.

Cristina Lippolis (Six) is an actress, writer, and producer. Selected credits include: NEW YORK; The Window, The Deep North (Cherry Lane Theater); The Motherfucker With The Hat, Hurly Burly (Stella Adler Studio); A Theory of Perpetual Motion (The Tank Theater); The Patron Saint of Plants (La MaMa). ITALY: A Doll's House (FAP).TV: Unforgettable (CBS); Distretto di Polizia (Canale 5); The Sonnet Project. FILM: La Malaerba (Giffoni Film Festival 2015 Official Selection); Lucid Dream; Day Into Night; Le Notti Bianche. www.cristinalippolis.com

Cecilia Lynn-Jacobs (Two) is an actor and dancer. She is currently the voice of Captain Lovelace on the scifi podcast drama Wolf359 and has performed in works by Andrew Schneider, Zoe Beloff, Marlieke Burghouts, and Jamie Poskin. She has worked with the Wooster Group, Zara Aina, and Gallim Dance. She trained with The Studio/New York and the Freeman Studio (acting) and has studied at Gibney Dance (contemporary dance). She's a graduate of Wesleyan University.

Sonia Oleniak (One) is a cross-disciplinary director and writer. A graduate of UCLA's School of Theater, Film, and Television, she produced and directed many of her own live original works in LA before moving to NYC two years ago. Most recent creation is writing and directing the short film COLOR MY GUM. Sonia is also a freelance creative director for music videos, commercials, and film. She speaks several tongues.