William Donnelly's NO WAKE to Make NYC Premiere at 59E59 Theaters

59E59 Theaters will host The New York premiere of NO WAKE, written by William Donnelly and directed by Veronica Brady. Produced by Route 66 Theatre Company and Bella Vita Entertainment, NO WAKE begins performances on Thursday, September 28 for a limited engagement through Sunday, October 15. Press Opening is Wednesday, October 4 at 7:30 PM.

Many years after a contentious divorce, Edward and Rebecca have moved on - she with a new husband and he to a series of a tenuous relationships. When they are forced confront an unspeakable tragedy, they must navigate their complicated feelings of guilt, relief, and grief. Acidically funny and brutally honest, NO WAKE unpacks the grieving process and the aftermath that death brings to those left behind.

NO WAKE had its world premiere at the Berkshire Theater Festival, moving on to productions by producing company Route 66 Theatre Company (producers of A Twist of Water in 2012 at 59E59) in their hometown of Chicago, then transferring to Los Angeles. This production marks the NYC premiere of both the play and Massachusetts-based playwright William Donnelly.

The cast features Tim Ransom (founding member and former artistic director of Naked Angels); Tricia Small (LA premiere of Jason Robert Brown's The Last Five Years and Sunday in the Park with George); and Stef Tovar (A Twist of Water at 59E59; Jeff Award nomination for South Pacific at the Chicago's Marriott Theater).

The design team includes Tom Buderwitz (scenic design); Brian Tovar (lighting design); Michael Mullen (costume design); and Lindsay Jones (composer and sound design). The production stage manager is TK.

The performance schedule is Tuesday - Thursday at 7:30 PM; Friday at 8:30 PM; Saturday at 2:30 PM and 8:30 PM; and Sunday at 3:30 PM and 7:30 PM. Performances are at 59E59 Theaters (59 East 59th Street, between Park and Madison Avenues). Single tickets are $25 ($20 for 59E59 Members). To purchase tickets, call Ticket Central at (212) 279-4200 or visit www.59e59.org.

William Donnelly (playwright) served as resident playwright for the Massachusetts-based Industrial Theatre from 1997 to 2008. His plays have been produced by Portland Stage Company, Merrimack Repertory Theatre, Berkshire Theatre Group, Active Theater Company, Act II Playhouse, The Public Theatre (Lewiston, ME), Unicorn Theatre, SacRed Fools and Mill 6 Collaborative among others. He has been the recipient of an Edgarton Foundation New American Play award and a Playwriting/New Theatre Works grant from the Massachusetts Cultural Council. Magnetic North was awarded the Clauder Competition grand prize in 2006. Other works include Homestead Crossing, Remuda, Motel Stories, and Painted Alice (music and lyrics by Michael Mahler). He is member of the Dramatists Guild.

Veronica Brady (director) is a Los Angeles based director and producer, and has a distinguished 30-year career in theater, film, and television. She has directed over 100 plays, founded three theater companies, worked on countless television and film productions, and received an Emmy and numerous Ovation and LA Weekly awards. This year, she directed Reverend Tall Tree's Blues Opera and Butterflies Are Free at the Malibu Playhouse. Her most recent film projects include documentaries Love 99, which will premiere at the Napa Valley Film Festival in November; Not Carol, a film about Carol Coronado and postpartum illness; Ethyl (Emmy-nominated/Television Critic Award HBO documentary); Every Fifteen Minutes (Telly Award short film about teenage drunk driving); Grandpa, Do You Know Who I Am? (Emmy/Television Critic Award HBO documentary); and Patrick Dempsey: Racing Le Mans (five-part series for Discovery).

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