Epic Theatre Ensemble Presents MAHIDA'S EXTRA KEY TO HEAVEN Post Show Series, Begins 9/18

New York's OBIE Award-winning Epic Theatre Ensemble (Zak Berkman, Melissa Friedman, Ron Russell, Founding Executive Directors) today announced initial programming for their Post-Show Forum Series in conjunction with the world premiere of Mahida's Extra Key To Heaven by Russell Davis, winner of the 2008 Pew Fellowship in the Arts, directed by Will Pomerantz. In recent years, the company has become a top destination for smart audiences interested in placing the theatrical experience at the center of a larger public dialogue concerning vital social issues.

In addition to their cutting-edge Off Broadway productions and ongoing, in-depth work in the city's public schools, the company has also garnered a following for their carefully curated and thought-provoking Post-Show Forum Series. The series is unique in New York City as Epic is the only Off Broadway company committed to providing a post-show discussion following every performance of every show they produce. Guest speakers from various areas of expertise and multiple perspectives join the company onstage to discuss the key questions and ideas that emerged during that particular performance.

Confirmed participants currently include:

Friday, September 18
David Berreby, Author of Us and Them: The Science of Identity

Bruce Andrews, Poet; Associate Professor of Political Science, Fordham University

Saturday, September 19
Priscilla Murolo, Professor of Women's History, Sarah Lawrence College

Monday, September 21

Evan Resnick, Assistant Professor of Political Science, Yeshiva University

Wednesday, September 23

Lela P. Love, Professor of Law, Director of the Kukin Program for Conflict Resolution and the Cardozo Mediation Clinic, Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law

Thursday, September 24

Ari Melber, The Nation, The Huffington Post, Politico.com

Friday, September 25

Julian Zelizer, Princeton University; author of On Capitol Hill: The Struggle to Reform Congress and its Consequences, 1948-2000

Tuesday, September 29

Anthony Arnove, Author of Iraq: The Logic of Withdrawal; Editor, with Howard Zinn, of Voices of a People's History of the United States

Sunday, October 4 matinee
Chris Hedges, Author of War Is a Force Which Gives Us Meaning and American Fascists: The Christian Right and the War On America

Other participants will include Bruce Jones, Director, NYU Center on InternationAl Cooperation, Sara Batmanglich, Program Officer, NYU Center on InternationAl Cooperation, George Andreopoulos, Director, Center for International Human Rights, John Jay College of Criminal Justice, City University of New York, Oz Frankel, Assistant Professor, Committee on Historical Studies, New School for Social Research, Alyson Cole, Professor of Political Science, Queens College/ CUNY and Corey Robin, Brooklyn College; author of Fear: The History of a Political Ideas. For updates and additional speakers, visit www.epictheatreensemble.org

Epic's Post-Show Forum Series is made possible in part by funds from the New York Council for the Humanities, a state affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities.

Mahida's Extra Key To Heaven is a poetic, funny and haunting story about crossing borders of all kinds. Thomas is visiting his mother's island home when he encounters Mahida, an Iranian college student stranded after an argument with her brother. The two strangers begin a beautifully awkward search for a common country, but discover that sometimes the smaller the world the bigger the invasions. The four-person cast features Tony Award-winner Michele Pawk with Roxanna Hope, Arian Moayed and James Wallert. Performances begin September 16, 2009 and continue through October 11, 2009 at Signature Theatre's Peter Norton Space (555 West 42nd Street). Opening night is set for Saturday evening, September 26, 2009 at 7:00 p.m.

The creative team includes Mimi Lien (Scenic Design), Theresa Squire (Costume Design), Justin Townsend, (Lighting Design) and Katie Down (Sound Design). The Production Stage Manager is Erin Koster.

Mahida's Extra Key To Heaven will play the following performance schedule: Tuesdays - Saturdays at 8:00 p.m. with special Monday evening performances on September 21 and October 5 at 8:00 p.m. Matinee performances are scheduled on Tuesday, September 22, Wednesday, September 30, Thursday, October 1 and 8, all at 1:00 p.m., and Sunday, October 4 and 11 at 2:00 p.m.

Tickets are priced at $38.50, with all matinee performances at $15, and may be purchased by calling (212) 352-3101 or (866) 811-4111, or by visiting Epic's website at www.epictheatreensemble.org.

The 2009-2010 Epic Theatre Ensemble season continues with the return of the nationally acclaimed REMIX Series with Shakespeare Remix Macbeth, a collision of Shakespeare's classic play about ambition, mysticism and war colliding with new writing by students from NYC's Chelsea High School. Directed by Epic co-founder, Melissa Friedman (Hannah and Martin, A More Perfect Union), Shakespeare Remix Macbeth features a fusion acting ensemble of professional and student performers.

From Broadway to Brooklyn! In Spring 2010, Epic Theatre Ensemble will present the New York premiere of Passion Play by Sarah Ruhl (In The Next Room (or the vibrator play)) at the Irondale Center, a converted Sunday School inside the Lafayette Avenue Presbyterian Church in Fort Greene, Brooklyn. Passion Play is a wildly imaginative, adventurous and moving exploration of the timeless intersection of religion, art and politics. Inspired by the historic festivals where everyday citizens came together to elevate their communities by staging the life and death of Christ, Passion Play transports audiences first to 16th century England, where Queen Elizabeth threatens to shut down a small town's production; then to Nazi Germany, where Adolf Hitler's arrival at the famous Oberammergau Passion Play influences the lives of its cast and finally to Spearfish, South Dakota in 1984, as a local production becomes a campaign stop for a famous actor-turned-President running for re-election. MarK Wing-Davey will return as director following his highly acclaimed productions of Passion Play at the Goodman Theatre and Yale Repertory Theatre, but will be re-envisioning the play for this site-specific production.

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