Following last year's award-winning inaugural production (Seattle's first all-female 1776), Reboot Theatre Company rides again with the Seattle premiere of the indie rock fable FLY BY NIGHT, hot off its acclaimed Off-Broadway run at Playwrights Horizons.
In this darkly comic musical, set during the months leading up to New York's 1965 blackout, Harold the hapless sandwich maker is propelled by fate and time to make a life-changing choice, proving that it sometimes takes a blackout to see the light. Conceived by
Kim Rosenstock (99 Ways to Fuck a Swan, Tigers Be Still) and written by musician and Broadway actor
Will Connolly (Once), award-winning playwright
Michael Mitnick, and Rosenstock, FLY BY NIGHT explores the journey of love from all its delectable angles.
With seasoned Seattle director
Harry Turpin at the helm and musical direction by Joel Kurzynski, FLY BY NIGHT plays November 4-19, 2016 at Slate Theater in the International District. Tickets ($15-$20) go on sale August 1, 2016. For more information, visit
www.reboottheatre.org
FLY BY NIGHT is a puckish indie-rock musical that flirts with the conventions of typical storytelling, leaving audiences questioning whether fate's work is ever truly done. It had its world premiere at TheatreWorks (Palo Alto, CA) in July 2011 and premiered in New York City at
Playwrights Horizons in 2014, under the direction of
Carolyn Cantor. Described as "the most paradoxical of musicals -- hilarious and bittersweet, deeply immersed in tradition, but utterly original" by Dallas News and "tuneful and evocative" by The San Francisco Chronicle, this compelling show won the 2011 Edgerton Foundation New American Play Award and was nominated for four 2015 Drama Desk Awards including Best Musical. The New York Post expounds, "FLY BY NIGHT will enchant audiences...Romance doesn't come any sweeter. Its unabashed emotionalism could turn it into more than a hit. It could turn it into a cult phenomenon."
"We are absolutely honored to bring Seattle its first look at this incredible musical," says founder and Producing Artistic Director
Jasmine Joshua. "Right now the Seattle theatre community is working to foster a culture of inclusivity when it comes to casting and Reboot wants to be a part of that. We asked permission from the authors to do some cross-gender casting and were delighted that they agreed. In our production, at least three typically male roles will be open to actors of all genders. In a cast of seven, that is significant." Auditions will be held in August 2016.
Reboot Theatre's production of FLY BY NIGHT includes set design by Brandon Scalf, costume design by award-winning Barb Klingberg (1776), and props by Angela Snyder.
Through a combination of nontraditional concept, interpretation, and casting, Reboot Theatre Company endeavors to test new interpretations of established works both as a way for local artists to stretch their wings and for audiences to experience classics in a different light.
