New Yiddish Rep's AWAKE AND SING, THE INVISIBLE BOOK and More Set for Theater at the 14th Street Y's 2017-18 Season

The Theater at the 14th Street Y continues to honor the edgy, diverse, and rich history of innovative culture making in the East Village with their 2017-2018 Season.

Each year, the company presents a provocative season of theater and dance from independent New York artists in dialogue with the residency program of LABA: A Laboratory for Jewish Culture. The goal is to provide a big picture narrative focused on social awareness and change that transcends cultures and borders. The Theater supports the creation of new art and culture by placing artists at the heart of the 14th Street Y community, and providing the space, time, and resources needed to create new work.

"In an effort to provide an environment for free expression for our curated artists to more easily create, the 14th Street Y has changed its model to be a co-presenter of all the works in our season," said Ronit Muszkatblit, Artistic Director of Arts + Culture, the 14th Street Y. "To make this possible, we have made our Theater even more accessible to a wider artist base, also providing Box Office, administrative, marketing, and technical support to truly put artists at the center of our community."

The Theater at the 14th Street Y welcomes artists of all backgrounds, seeking to create an inclusive and open cultural experience for all.

Highlights of the season include:

- Flux Theatre Ensemble's AM I DEAD? The Untrue Narrative of AnatomicAl Lewis, the Slave by Kevin R. Free

- New Yiddish Repertory presents Awake and Sing by Clifford Odets, in the original Yiddish.

- Shamel Pitts and Mirelle Martins perform Black Velvet, a dance/multi-media piece developed through an art residency at São Paulo Dance Company and Escola de Dança de São Paulo in Brazil.

- Based on the children's book by Keren Ann Zeidel, The Invisible Book introduces audiences to invisible characters in an invisible world, whose surroundings slowly become visible through their love for each other.

- 14th Street Y continues the ground-breaking series by LABA: A Laboratory for Jewish Culture, which pushes the boundaries of what Jewish art can be and what Jewish texts can teach. LABA is a program of the 14th Street Y. Each year, LABA Fellows share works in process partnered with a teaching in the LABAlive Series. The LABA 10th Anniversary season kicks off with DRUNK, an evening of wine tasting with renowned sommeliers, revelry, and new work inspired by ancient Jewish text.

"Seven years ago, I began work with the Theater at the 14th Street Y as a LABA: Laboratory for Jewish Culture fellow, with no idea that I would become the Artistic Director of Arts + Culture. When I began in this role, the different artistic programs existed in their own bubbles and had no discourse," said Ms. Muszkatblit. "Now for the first time, two separate programs, LABA and the Theater/Dance Series, are being brought together around a central theme. Through the collaboration with my Associate Artistic Director, David Stallings, we are presenting a season that merges these seemingly two separate worlds that co-existed here at the 14Y into one larger conversation -- a Talmudic kind of argument. One necessary theme, OTHER resonated in a world so divided, hostile and fragmented. In Hebrew we say DAVKA (exactly now or in spite of), which is the moment to find the most humane, ethical, and touching examples of bridging our differences. We are not afraid to present differences - join us in the dialogue."

$14@14Y Flex Pass: Subscribe to the 14th Street Y and save with Flex Pass. Now, you can create your own subscription series to our season! For the low price of $42, choose any 3 shows from our upcoming season themed, OTHER. Visit 14streety.org/flexpass for more information.

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2017-2018 Season:

Addy & Uno / Realabilities

Original Concept & Book by Nava R. Stilton Ph.D.

Music & Lyrics by Bonnie Gleicher

August 28-September 24, 2017

Addy & Uno

is a new puppet musical about kids with disabilities. Told through unforgettable music, humor, and heart, this show celebrates the wondrous abilities within disability, empathy, and the understanding that it's "nice to be nice."

Committed / Altruistic Theater Company

Written by Natalie Menna and directed by Brock Hill

August 28-September 24, 2017

Committed examines the final days of Dutch filmmaker Theo Van Gough's life before his murder. The play explores the collision of an artist's unyielding vision with modern political realities and the inevitable tragedy when uncompromising values clash.

The Curly Monologues / Jonathan Pillot and Project Curly

September 25-28, 2017

What happens when you get twelve women, girls, and even some guys performing original Monologues that speak to the essence of who they are? This show is about way more than hair, or even the Tribe of Curls.

AM I DEAD? The Untrue Narrative of AnatomicAl Lewis, the Slave / A Flux Theatre Ensemble

Written by Kevin R. Free and directed by Heather Cohn

October 6-22, 2017

In the 1830s, the University of Virginia owned a slave called "AnatomicAl Lewis" who was tasked with the maintenance of its students' dissection chamber. Now, four strangers find themselves trapped forever in the purgatory of Lewis' anatomical theater - unless they can find a way to reassemble his body.

House on Poe Street / Yonder Window Theatre Company

Written by Fengar Gael and directed by Katie McHugh

October 27 - November 12, 2017

Two sisters inherit the house where Edgar Allen Poe penned

The Raven, only to find it haunted. This play shows how the power of poetry can affect emotions and visions of a spectral afterlife.

DRUNK / LABA: A Laboratory for Jewish Culture

November 18, 2017

The 2017-18 LABA fellows kick off the season with an evening of wine, revelry and new work inspired by ancient Jewish text on the theme, WAR + PEACE.

Awake and Sing / New Yiddish Repertory

Written by Clifford Odets and directed by Johanna Gruenhut

November 20 - December 24, 2017

New Yiddish Rep brings an American Classic to new life in Yiddish. In this play, Clifford Odets claimed that he was writing not about individuals so much as about a whole social class being sundered by economic problems beyond their control. One solution he offers is particularly chilling and ironic.

Black Velvet / Shamel Pitts, Mirelle Martins and Lucca del Carlo

January 8-14, 2018

Black Velvet

is a 45-minute dance/multi-media piece performed by Shamel Pitts and Mirelle Martins, developed through an art residency at São Paulo Dance Company and Escola de Dança de São Paulo in Brazil.

LABAlive I

January 18, 2018

First in the new work series by 2017-2018 fellows as they present their work in progress on the theme, WAR + PEACE.

Y Cabaret / Bearded Ladies Productions

January 19-21, 2018

Get up close and personal with some of the hottest new choreographers in town. Experience dance outside of the boundaries of traditional performance.

The Invisible Book

Book created by Keren-Ann Zeidel and Elinor Milchan, adapted by Gina Bonati and Ronit Muszkatblit, music by Keren-Ann Zeidel, directed by Ronit Muszkatblit and produced by Adi Ezroni.

January 22-February 11, 2018

An invisible boy and an invisible girl wander through an invisible town - but in this invisible world, there is no sound. Then one day, a sound begins: a beating, a drumming, a thumping calling out to the invisible friends. The audience is led into a parallel world of sound and visual poetry.

Everything you have is yours? / LABA 2nd Stage

By Hadar Ahuvia with Mor Mendell and multimedia by Gil Sperling.

February 8-10, 2018

Everything you have is yours? is a darkly humored, evening length performance that deconstructs instructional videos of Israeli folk dance to uncover the Arab origins of Israeli identity.

The Art of Loss / Bryn Cohn + Artists

February 12-18, 2018

Bryn Cohn + Artist presents their first evening of repertory, The Art of Loss - a collection of notable works from 2014-2017 that examine isolation, intimacy and a return to the self within a universal community.

Tap & Tom / Felipe Galgani & Company

February 21-25, 2018

Using Tom Jobim's compositions, Felipe Galganni's Tap & Tom is celebrating the 60th anniversary of the creation of bossa nova and Jobim's 90th birthday with an evening of tap dance, live music, and singing with music direction by award-winning Carlos Bauzys.

A Footnote in Ballet History / From the Horse's Mouth

March 12-18, 2018

The life and times of Magda Saleh, Prima Ballerina of Egypt, in celebration of Egyptian Dance in all its forms and traditions.

LABAlive II

March 22, 2018

The second showing in the new work series by 2017-2018 fellows as they present their work in progress on the theme, WAR + PEACE.

Y Cabaret / Bearded Ladies Productions

March 23-25, 2018

Get up close and personal with some of the hottest new choreographers in town. Experience dance outside of the boundaries of traditional performance.

We Are A Masterpiece / Retro Productions

Written by Gina Femia and directed by DeLisa M. White

April 6-22, 2018

During the AIDS crisis, patchwork families were formed; friends and co-workers becoming brothers and mothers, stepping into the holes that their family members left. When a nurse, Joan meets John, who has been abandoned by his partner and family, an unlikely friendship blossoms between them.

In[heir]itance Project

April 23-May 13, 2018

Five Cities. Three Years. One Book.

The Genesis Plays, inspired by five unique narratives were devised between 2015-2017 in Minneapolis, Charleston, Austin, Seattle, and Kansas City. The In[heir]itance Project uses a community-driven process of theatrical tools and educational programming to create original performance events inspired by common sacred stories.

LABAlive III

May 31, 2018

The third and final showing in the new work series by 2017-2018 fellows as they present their work in progress on the theme, WAR + PEACE.

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Full season tickets and detailed information on shows available at www.14streety.org/tickets.

The Theater at the 14th Street Y focuses on social awareness and change through big picture narrative. Inspired by works that welcome artists of all backgrounds, we place artists at the heart of our community and seek to create an inclusive and open cultural experience for all. Art is incubated here.

At the core of LABA's mission is the belief that classical Jewish text study can and should be a source of inspiration and creativity for contemporary culture-makers and thinkers. All of the public art created through LABA aims to transcend cultural and social borders by bringing to light the universal themes and questions our artists encounter through their engagement with Jewish thought.

The 14th Street Y's philosophy is grounded in the belief that contemporary Jewish sensibilities can be a source of inspiration, connection and learning. No matter what your background, we aim to inspire you to live your best life. We're committed to the development of the whole person, to strengthening family connections and to building inclusive and sustainable communities. The 14

th Street Y serves more than 20,000 people annually with a variety of community programs and is proud to be a part of Educational Alliance, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization with a 128-year history of serving New Yorkers downtown.