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16 New Plays Featured in Summer Play Festival, July 5-31

By: Jun. 15, 2005
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The works of 16 emerging New York playwrights will be showcased in the 2nd annual SPF 2005 Summer Play Festival, which will run from July 5th to July 31st on Theatre Row (410 W. 42nd Street).

Quiara Hudes' The Adventures of Barrio Grrrl! will play the Clurman Theatre from July 12th to July 17th. The play, which is directed by Leisl Tommy, is described on the SPF website: "In real life, Ana is overweight and bored to tears, but in her imagination she is the fearless superhero Barrio Grrrl! who must use her powers to overcome the evil Alchemists - imaginary villains who kill women and mine their golden hearts."

Laura Schellhardt's Courting Vampires recounts how "When a passionate and headstrong young woman falls victim to a fatal disease, her protective older sister vows revenge on the man who gave it to her. With passion and love the sisters battle vampires and fight for righteousness, but is anything – even justice – an equal opponent to death?" The show, directed by Lou Jacob, will be at the Kirk Theatre from July 5th to July 10th.

crooked, written by Catherine Trieschmann and directed by Linsay Firman, concerns "A precocious newcomer to Oxford, Mississippi, 14-year-old Francie befriends the hapless born-again Marible at school, which sends her on a journey of self-fashioning including God, lesbians, and lots of story writing in between." crooked will be performed at the Lion Theatre from July 5th to July 10th.

John Yearley's Ephemera will play the Lion Theatre from July 19th to July 24th; the play will be directed by Erma Duricko. "When a married professor of pornography falls in love with an adult film star, he is convinced he only has one option left - hire a hit man to murder his wife. But when his wife "hits" it off with her hired assassin, things begin to go awry. Throw into the mix a young Christian Scientist looking for some overdue lovin' and all's fair in love and war."

Chloe Moss' How Love is Spelt will be performed at the Lion Theatre from July 26th to July 31st, and is directed by Michael Sexton. The play tells how "After moving from Liverpool to London, Peta learns that solo life in the big city isn't as simple as she thought. Trying to escape a life she left behind, Peta tries on identities like new outfits; each is a glimpse of what might have been, but can you ever really run away from yourself?"

Indoor/Outdoor, written by Kenny Finkle and directed by Daniel Goldstein, plays the Kirk Theatre from July 12th to July 17th. "For Samantha the cat, the indoor life is one of safety and comfort where her nerdy owner Shuman beckons to her every call. But soon his constant attention becomes smothering to the restless feline. When a sexy alley cat shows up at her window, Samantha is faced with the biggest decision of her life – stay indoors, or venture out?"

In Madagascar, "A man mysteriously disappears and changes forever the lives of his family and friends. At three different periods of time each loved one finds him or herself alone in the same hotel room in Rome, struggling to put together the pieces of his vanishing. Paul is the one missing, but it's those left behind who are struggling to survive." The J.T. Rogers play will be directed by Gus Reyes when it runs at the Lion Theatre from July 12th to July 16th.

Chris Lee's The Map Maker's Sorrow will be at the Clurman Theatre from July 19th to July 24th. Directed by Stefan Novinski, the play is about "Henry, a struggling sleep therapist and Morag, a successful maker of maps. When their only child kills himself they are forced to look at a world full of failed expectations in a new light. A politician with a fondness for prostitutes, and a prostitute with a need for something more round out this story of control, regret, and love."

Messalina by Gordon Dahlquist recounts how "For a casual evening of drinks and conversation, a writer and producer conspire for an Italian actress to come over so they can pitch a project; soon, however, the conversation turns to questions of decadence, faith, fear, and security – not to mention the end of the world." The David Levine-directed play will run at the Kirk Theatre from July 19th to July 24th.

Carlos Murillo's Mimesophobia, directed by Matt August, will be performed at the Beckett Theatre from July 12th to July 17th. In the play, "A young woman is viciously murdered by her husband, who then takes his own life. While two young screenwriters turn the event into a film, the sister of the victim tries to fill in the crime's gaping holes. An emotionally unbalanced academic holds the link between the real life crime and its cinematic retelling."

Zakiyyah Alexander's Sick will run at the Kirk Theatre from July 26th to July 31st. The play will be directed by Daniella Topol, and tells how "While taking care of her dying father, Tasha becomes involved with an Internet affair, is offered a promotion, and suddenly finds herself having some unusual symptoms – a lot can happen in one week in New York City, especially without health insurance."

Split Wide Open by Christina Gorman will be directed by Lisa Rothe at the Beckett Theatre, where it will run from July 19th to July 24th. "While Merita prepares for her waleemah, a Muslim wedding feast, the young Albanian bride learns a rumor is spreading that she was raped by a gang of Christian soldiers; the play moves back and forth in time, revealing the consequences of such an accusation and the evolving "truth" behind the supposed attack."

Jed Kaczynski Killed People with Bombs, written by Michelle Carter, runs from July 26th to July 31st at the Clurman Theatre, and is directed by Jeremy Dobrish. "Wonder what Ted Kaczynski was like as a child? A collegiate? A coworker? Follow Wild Nature as she sings and dances her way through a man's demise exploring why Ted Kaczynski killed people. With bombs."

In Dan Dietz' tempOdyssey, "Genny is the perfect temp – smart, efficient, and anonymous – except she believes she's the Goddess of Death, which is bound to cause some problems when she's placed as a temp at a bomb-manufacturing company." The play, directed by Randy White, will be performed at the Beckett Theatre from July 5th to July 10th.

In Kristoffer Diaz' Welcome to Arroyo's, "Alejandro and his rebellious sister Amalia cope in very different ways with their mother's death. But when an aspiring hip-hop historian returns to the old neighborhood with a secret about her past, the siblings are suddenly forced to question everything they thought they knew about their mother, their heritage, and themselves." The play will be at the Beckett Theatre from July 26th to July 31st, and is directed by Jaime Castaneda.

Victor Lodato's Wildlife, directed by Michael Sexton, will run at the Clurman Theatre from July 5th to July 10th. "After a disastrous exhibition, a famous conceptual artist and his neurotic wife escape from Manhattan and move upstate where life among the trees and critters proves difficult for these bred-in-the-bone New Yorkers. When it comes to a painful past, is mountain air healing, or does too much of it sting?"

"Last July, the Summer Play Festival showcased 18 emerging writers all under the roof of the Theatre Row Complex on 42nd Street. The result was one hot and successful event. In 2005 this summer is looking even hotter. Broadway luminaries narrowed down over 1000 applications to 16 finalists. Under producer and founder Arielle Tepper (Spamalot, Pillowman, A Raisin in the Sun, De la Guarda) these 16 writers from all over the US and UK will have their plays produced by professionals from all over the theatre community."

To order $10 tickets for any, some or all of the plays in the SPF 2005 festival, visit www.spfnyc.com/tickets/. To learn more about the festival, as well as to find out the individual performance times of the shows, visit www.spfnyc.com.





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