CUZ I JUST GOT TO BE ME...FREE Begins Tonight at Dixon Place

Dixon Place presents new work every month -- theater, puppetry, performance and visual art, music, dance and literature -- at all stages of development. This Fall, Dixon Place will present new-works-in-progress written and performed by current Artist-in-Residence David Cale. On Thursday evenings this month -- September 4th, 11th, 18th, and 25th at 7:30pm -- Cuz I Just Got To Be Me...Free, a series of workshop performances that feature unfettered new songs, monologues and stories -- each evening a different 45-minute set -- will be performed in The Dixon Place Lounge. On Monday, October 27th at 7:30pm, the hilarious, sexually charged new one-man thriller, Harry Clarke, will be presented for the first time in NYC as a work-in-progress on the Dixon Place Mainstage. As with all shows presented in The Lounge, admission to Cuz I Just Got To Be Me...Free is FREE (available on the night of the performance on a first-come, first-served basis). Tickets to Harry Clarke are $12 in advance, $15 at the door, and $10 for students and seniors. Dixon Place is located at 161a Chrystie Street. Visit dixonplace.org for information and tickets.

In Cuz I Just Got To Be Me...Free, David Cale performs a series of workshops performances featuring unfettered new songs, monologues and stories, including 29 org*sms, I Wish I Loved You More and excerpts from his new work-in-progress musical, Eggie. Each performance will feature a different 45-minute set.

A sexually charged and hilarious one-man thriller, Harry Clarke will be presented for the first time in New York City as a new work-in-progress. In it, a shy mid-westerner who feels more himself when adopting the persona of a cocky Londoner, Harry Clarke, moves to New York and presents himself as an Englishman. He charms his way into a wealthy family's life, romancing two family members as the seductive and sexually precocious Harry, with more on his mind than love. With his trademark emotionally nuanced story-telling, David Cale presents a riveting story of a man leading an outrageous double life.

David Cale's solo shows include A Likely Story (The New Group), Lillian (Playwrights Horizons, OBIE Award), Deep in a Dream of You (The Public Theater, Bessie Award) and The Redthroats (Second Stage, P.S. 122, Bessie Award). He wrote the book, lyrics, co-composed the music for, and appeared as Floyd in the musical Floyd and Clea Under the Western Sky (Playwrights Horizons, Outer Critics Circle Nomination). He performed on Broadway in The Threepenny Opera (Roundabout) and most recently Off-Broadway in The Total Bent (The Public). His film credits include Winter in the Blood, Two Lovers, The Slaughter Rule and Pollock.

Dixon Place, an incubator for performing and literary artists since 1986, is a non-profit organization committed to supporting the creative process by presenting original works of dance, theater, music, puppetry, literature, performance and visual art at all stages of development. Presenting over 700 artists each year, this local haven inspires and encourages diverse artists of all stripes and callings to take risks and push personal and professional limits. Dixon Place's foremost priorities are to serve as a safety net for artists, and to provide vivid experiences for audiences. Many artists, such as Deb Margolin, Blue Man Group, John Leguizamo, Lisa Kron, David Cale, Penny Arcade, and Reno began their careers at Dixon Place. In addition to emerging artists, Dixon Place has also been privileged to present evenings of new and experimental work by more established artists, such as -- Theater/Performance: Justin Vivian Bond, Taylor Mac, Lily Tomlin, Wallace Shawn, Craig Lucas, BD Wong, John Fleck, Kate Bornstein, Ethyl Eichelberger, Holly Hughes, Karen Finley, Kate Clinton, Peggy Shaw, Alan Cumming, Big Art Group; Literary: A.M. Homes, Rick Moody, and Oscar Huelos; Dance: Mark Dendy, Jane Comfort, Douglas Dunn, and Yoshiko Chuma; Music: Vernon Reid, Rodney Crowell, Diamanda Galas, Martha Wainwright, Loudon Wainwright, Lucy Wainwright Roche, Suzzy Roche, Maggie Roche, Rodney Crowell, Cyndi Lauper, and They Might Be Giants.

In 1989, Ellie Covan, founding director, was a recipient of a Bessie, a New York Dance and Performance Award, for her service to the community; and Dixon Place received Village Voice Obie Grant Awards in 1990 and 1999. Additionally, in 1999, Dixon Place was awarded an Edwin Booth Award for Excellence in Theater.

Dixon Place is located at 161A Chrystie Street (between Rivington & Delancey), New York City 10002-2885. For tickets and information for all shows at Dixon Place, call 212.219.0736 or go to www.dixonplace.org.