THE SUN EXPERIMENT to Play FringeNYC, 8/13-22

HelikonRep announced today that it will produce the world premiere of THE SUN EXPERIMENT, by NYTW Emerging Playwright of Color CATHERINE YU, at the 18th annual New York International Fringe Festival. Inspired by Shakespeare's Twelfth Nightand named for 20th century philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein's theory on the rotation of the sun, THE SUN EXPERIMENT will be directed by HelikonRep Artistic Director and Drama League Directing FellowELENA HEYMAN. The play will feature Ben Chase, Lauren Currie Lewis, and Julia Watt.

THE SUN EXPERIMENT entangles three illicit love triangles across time and space. The characters' romantic pursuits - whether in Illyria, a contemporary American college town, or Cambridge at the turn of the 20th century - speak to the universal physics of longing. Gender bending and startling reversals make for a spinning, provocative exploration of desire.

Heyman, a non-traditional theatre director with a foot in the rock world (Neutral Milk Hotel's Julian Koster is a regular collaborator), calls playwright Catherine Yu a "hidden gem," adding, "her voice is a rare mix of polished prose and raw poetry...she's going to be an important voice in American theatre."

The director's fearlessness, Yu says, led her to entrust the script to Heyman. "I knew THE SUN EXPERIMENT would require an extraordinary visionary - someone who could propel the play's intense feelings of passion and 'tug of war' between characters straight into the hearts of the audience."

CATHERINE YU (Playwright) has been named an "Emerging Playwright of Color" by New York Theatre Workshop, was a Literary Fellow at The Public Theater, and received her MFA in Dramatic Writing from New York University. Her short plays have been commissioned by Culture Project's IMPACT Festival, UglyRhino Productions, and The 52nd Street Project. She is the author of The Sun Experiment, The Discreet Charm of The Changs, Man in the Zoo,and other plays.

ELENA HEYMAN (Director) is a New York City-based director of theatre, film and live events. Her work is best known and celebrated for its athletic physicality and visually imaginative aesthetic. In addition to serving as the Artistic Director of HelikonRep, Elena is the Creative Director of The Orbiting Human Circus with Julian Koster. Directing credits include: The Traveling Imaginary (Merge Records/The Orbiting Human Circus); Be Careful of Words (HelikonRep); Our Lady (The Boston Center of American Performance at Boston University); Identify Theft (Bowery Poetry Club); Orlando (Roschel Performing Arts Center); Chaplin Play No. 1 (University of Chicago Summer Arts Incubator); Contents May Be Extremely Hot (Phalanx Theater);Tennessee Williams' The Two Character Play (EL2 Stage Works);togethercolouredinstant (Experimental Theatre Chicago); Flight(Manifest Theatre); Dead Letters: An Exploration of Uncle Vanya (Big Theatre); Big Love (Big Theatre); Border of Paradise (Big Theatre);The Yes! Yes! Valentine's Day Show (Big Theatre); and The Bar Show, a neo-burlesque performance that toured the bars of Chicago (Paper Crane Theatre). Elena is presently developing a radio play series, The Orbiting Human Circus of the Air, for NPR. Elena is a graduate of Boston University's MFA Directing program, holds a BFA in Theatre from Northwestern University, and is currently a Drama League Directing Fellow.

The creative team for The Sun Experiment includes Movement Director Connie Rotunda, Set Designer Paul Tate dePoo III,Costume Designer Jen Bennett, Lighting Designer Mary Ellen Stebbins, Sound Designer Eric Sluyter, Stage Manager Tom Kordenbrock, and Assistant Stage Manager Florence Le Bas.

Full company bios and images available upon request. Please email batya.feldman@gmail.com.

THE SUN EXPERIMENT will run for five performances at The Robert Moss Theater @ 440 Studios (440 Lafayette Street, New York).

PERFORMANCE DATES AND TIMES:

Wednesday, 8/13 at 8:30 PM

Friday, 8/15 at 4:15 PM

Saturday, 8/16 at 6:15 PM

Sunday, 8/17 at 2:45 PM

Friday, 8/22 at 8:45 PM

TICKETS for The Sun Experiment are $18 in advance and $24 at the door, plus applicable fees. Tickets may be purchased online atfringenyc.org, up to 30 minutes prior to performance; in person at Fringe Central (114 Norfolk Street), up to 1 day prior to performance; or in person at The Robert Moss Theater (440 Lafayette Street), no more than 15 minutes prior to performance and with credit card only.