2017 Lucille Lortel Winner Jess Chayes Helms HOLIDAYS IN / COYOTE In Exponential Festival

The Exponential Festival and The Tank team up to present the world premiere of HOLIDAYS IN / COYOTE (a geological, indigenous history of north-east Kansas as dreamt by the Topeka Holidome on 6th & Fairlawn, spring 1989) from January 14-20th at The Tank's new mid-town venue.

Developed over a series of residencies - at University Settlement and at Lake Tofte, supported by the Jerome Foundation - this new play spans the entire geological history of the Great Plains over the course of a night, from the perspective of a Holiday Inn Holidome. Written by award-winning playwright Adam R. Burnett (T.B. Sheets, Mammoth) and directed by 2017 Lucille Lortel Award-Winner Jess Chayes (co-artistic director of The Assembly), the play utilizes video, dioramas, and dance to present a kaleidoscopic narrative.

Set in a Holiday Inn Holidome - a brand of the franchise that proliferated the United States in the 1970's & 80's as a resort-like setting for the middle class - and in the middlest part of the country, where quiet and subtle magic occur, a family checks in to escape their home, six blocks away. Over the course of the evening, the hotel's non-human inhabitants and the surrounding landscape overtake the narrative, as the forgotten geological, ecological and indigenous histories of the Great Plains come into focus for the hotel's guests.

The production will feature performances by Ben Beckley, Lanxing Fu, Sam Gonzalez, Manny Rivera, and Kate Schroeder; choreography by lisa nevada; video/projection design by David Pym; sound design by Asa Wember; scenic/diorama/puppetry design by Ethan Gould; lighting design by Emma Rivera; stage management by Manny Rivera; and assistant direction by Jess Cummings.

Performances will take place at The Tank (312 W. 36th Street) January 14-15 at 7pm, and January 17-20 at 7pm, with a matinee on January 20th at 3pm. Tickets are $15 and are now available at http://thetanknyc.org

The Exponential Festival presents and promotes theatrical performances created by New York-based artists and exhibited across Brooklyn (and now sneaking into Manhattan). The Exponential Festival celebrates the increasing growth and importance of Brooklyn venues, unique Manhattan spaces and local artists, working together to keep theatre kicking.

Jess Chayes (director) is a Brooklyn-based director and founding co-artistic director of The Assembly. With The Assembly, Jess has co-created and directed eight original productions. Recent directing includes: Latter Days and The Providence of Neighboring Bodies (Dutch Kills), Half Moon Bay (Lesser America), I Will Look Forward to this Later (The Assembly, Archive Residency 2015-2016), Primal Play (New Georges), The Bachelors (Williamstown Theater Festival), The Sister (Dutch Kills), The Netflix Plays (Ars Nova), and HOME/SICK (The Assembly, NY Times and Backstage Critic's Pick). She has developed new work with The Playwrights Center, NYTW, The Vineyard Theatre, The Civilians, P73, and Labyrinth among others. Jess is a founding member of the New Georges Jam artists lab and a NYTW Usual Suspect. Recent Affiliations: The Civilians R&D Group, The Soho Rep Writer/Director Lab, Associate Director on Peter and the Starcatcher (Brooks Atkinson Theater and New World Stages) and Misery (Broadhurst Theater). Jess was awarded the 2017 Lucille Lortel Award by the League of Professional Theater Women. jesschayes.com

Adam R. Burnett (playwright) is a playwright and artistic director of Buran Theatre. His plays include Prelude; Shores of Lake Michigan (Dixon Place), Money Buckets! (Metropolitan Ensemble Theater), The House of Fitzcarraldo (The Unicorn Theater), Nightmares: A Demonstration of the Sublime (The Brick), The Keep (Tricklock Company), Magic Bullets (Incubator Arts Project), Erik Satie / If I Told Him / Erik Satie (Bushwick Starr/Target Margin), Mammoth (The Brick), Poshlost Saudades! (Ars Nova), The Dolly Dali Show! (The Duplex) and T.B. SHEETS (The Tank/ A.R.T./NY Gural Theatre). His work has been produced across the globe including at Highways Performance Space (Los Angeles), Revolutions International Theatre Festival (Albuquerque, NM), Marigny Opera House (New Orleans), and Vilnius Chamber Theater (Vilnius, Lithuania). adamrburnett.com

lisa nevada (choreographer) is a choreographer, performer, producer and naturalist. Her choreographic compositions focus on site-specific dances in nature and unconventional performance settings, as well as the concert stage. Her choreography has been commissioned by New Mexico Ballet Company, John Donald Robb Musical Trust (ABQ), 516 ARTS (ABQ), Tricklock Company (ABQ), Radical Evolution (NYC), Santa Fe University of Art and Design(NM), and Buran Theatre (NYC). In 2014, nevada was named the Valle de Oro National Wildlife Refuge Performance Artist for her site-specific dance concert, Radicles: Rediscovering humankind's primary roots. She is a founding member, co-director and resident choreographer for SHIFT | DANCE, an Albuquerque-based presenting platform that serves as a vehicle to elevate and generate awareness for the range of contemporary dance forms within the Albuquerque community. Nevada is choreographer, dancer and artistic director for her individual project lisanevadadance. She received her MFA in dance from the University of New Mexico. lisanevada.com

The Tank is a non-profit arts presenter serving emerging artists engaged in the pursuit of new ideas and forms of expression. We serve over 1,000 artists every year in over 400 performances, and work across all disciplines, including theater, comedy, dance, film, music, public affairs, and storytelling. Our goal is to foster an environment of inclusiveness and remove the burden of cost from the creation of new work for artists launching their careers and experimenting within their art form. The heart of our services is providing free performance space in our 98-seat proscenium and 56-seat blackbox that we operate in Manhattan, and we also offer a suite of other services such as free rehearsal space, promotional support, artist fees, and much more. We keep ticket prices affordable and view our work as democratic, opening up both the creation and attendance of the arts to all. Since its founding in 2003, artists who have come through The Tank include Alex Timbers, Amy Herzog, Lucy Alibar, Mike Daisey, Reggie Watts, Kyle Abraham, Andrew Bujalski, We Are Scientists, and tens of thousands of others. www.thetanknyc.org

Photo Credit: David Pym

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