United Solo Festival Presents Slash Coleman's PBS Special NEON MAN AND ME, 10/11

Award-winning storyteller Slash Coleman will present the stage version of his PBS Special, Neon Man and Me, at the 3rd Annual United Solo Theater Festival on October 11, 2012 at 7:30 pm. The festival, which is an annual international festival for solo performances held at Theatre ROW in the heart of the New York City theatre district on 42nd Street runs from runs from October 11 – November 18, 2012.

Neon Man and Me which is distributed by NETA (National Educational Telecommunications Alliance) and sponsored by ADEC (Association for Death Education and Counseling) began to air nationwide as a PBS Special in 2010 and has been seen by over 77 million viewers to date.

Writer/performer Slash Coleman has toured nationally with the stage version of the production six times since 2006. It received Style Weekly's Top 40 under 40 Award in 2006 and the Groucho Award for best one man show in 2005.

Neon Man and Me is a tribute to the life of Coleman's best friend, Mark Jamison, a neon artist from Roanoke, VA who was electrocuted as he was hanging a neon sign. Billed as a "rock n roll comedy about best friends," the production consists of eight stories about friendship in which Coleman portrays 30 characters and an original guitar score.

"A month after my friend died his girlfriend found out she was pregnant. I'd like to think that my show is a care package to my friend's son and family," Coleman says, "but it has helped me and countless others in our search for peace after love one's have died."

Coleman has used the production to raise more than $100,000 for non-profit organizations, children's hospitals, and bereavement groups. Funded in part by the NEA (National Endowment for the Arts), the show has grown to include a public school curriculum entitled, "Healing Community: Helping Students come to Terms with Tragedy, Loss and Violence."

Slash Coleman, descended from a grandfather who was a dancer at the Moulin Rouge, is the author of The Bohemian Love Diaries (Lyons Press 2013) and host of the NYC talk show for artists Slash Wednesday. Over the last decade, his storytelling work has been featured in The Washington Post, American Theatre Magazine and multiple times on NPR including the series, "How Artists Make Money." As a storyteller, he's been featured at: TEDx, The International Storytelling Center, The National Storytelling Festival (Exchange Place), the Oral History Performance Conference, and Pete Seeger's Clearwater Festival.

The Neon Man and Me will be performed on October 11, 2012 at 7:30 pm at 410 West 42nd Street, New York City. Tickets are $18 and available at online through at www.telecharge.com. You may also call Telecharge at 212-239-6200. More information about Slash Coleman is available at www.slashcoleman.com.

The 3rd annual UNITED SOLO THEATRE FESTIVAL is an annual international festival for solo performances held in New York City. Through a diverse range of one-person shows, they explore and celebrate the uniqueness of the individual, staging the most intriguing productions at the highly acclaimed Theatre ROW in the heart of the New York City theatre district on 42nd Street. For more visit unitedsolo.org.

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