Centre Stage Announces DELIKATESSEN

The year, 1972. The place, New York City. The Bronx is burning, Vietnam drags on, Watergate is coming to light and the Munich, Olympic massacre has just transpired. David and Yossi Shapiro, owners of a landmark delicatessen in midtown Manhattan have fallen on hard financial times. Reinhardt's, a soon to open, German delicatessen is well under construction across the street. The Shapiro brothers' livelihood is immediately threatened by the impending competition, exacerbated by the new restaurateur, who is of German descent. Being orphans of the holocaust, the older Shapiro brother enlists the services of a Nazi hunter to investigate the German family's past as a possible means to discredit them. With the horrors of the Holocaust a daily reality and Shapiro's failing delicatessen fading fast, the stage is ripe for conflict.

The play follows the intense friction between both Jewish and German factions and how that struggle profoundly affects the next generation, culminating in an inescapable, yet dramatic climax.

DelikateSSen was written by Richard Atkins, who will also star as David Shapiro. Atkins served as Centre Stage's playwright-in-residence during the 2016 New Play Festival. Mr. Atkins has combined writing, music, composition, and acting for the last 40 years of his life. His vast repertoire includes 27 penned plays, 7 musicals, and a screenplay in the pipeline along with so much more. Atkins can communicate both Comedy and Drama with the same flair as a Neil Simon or David Mamet. His trademark consists of capturing the humor in an otherwise serious situation. Taking a topic such as the Holocaust, and creating a fresh, original work, allows audiences to witness a form of storytelling that is highly unique in its time.

DelikateSSen is directed by Ellen Jones.

Tickets for DelikateSSen are $30, $25, and $15. Student rush tickets are available for $15 with school ID (based on availability), one ticket per ID. Shows run Tuesday through Sunday and all seats are reserved. Tickets can be purchased by calling the box office at (864) 233-6733 on Tuesdays - Fridays from 2-6 p.m, in person at the Centre Stage Box Office, or online at www.centrestage.org. Handling fees will be applied to all purchases.

DelikateSSen is sponsored by Greenfield's Bagels and Deli, Savannah House Design, and the SC Council on the Holocaust