John Feffer's THE PUNDIT Begins 8/11 at FringeNYC

THE PUNDIT, written & performed by JOHN FEFFER, will make its New York debut as part of the 16th Annual New York International Fringe Festival/FringeNYC, after sell-out shows & rave reviews at the Capital Fringe Festival. DOUG KREHBEL directs this thriller about power, politics & punditry.

THE PUNDIT follows ambitious Washington pundit Peter Peters on a busy day of back-to-back radio & TV interviews. During his first interview, he bluffs his way through a Q & A about a suicide bombing in a country he can’t even locate on the map. As a result, Peters is lured out of his political comfort zone & into an escalating series of showdowns with an international terrorist. The balance of power shifts back & forth, from talking head to terrorist, leading up to a final, terrifying climax.

John Feffer plays the lead character in THE PUNDIT, which is directed by Doug Krehbel, who directed Hapgood at the Silver Spring Stage & has appeared as an actor in various Washington, DC productions. THE PUNDIT also features Sean Coe, Anthony Hacsi, Sarah Daisy Splitt & Carol Spring. The video director is Maria Meriwether.

John Feffer is a North Korea expert at the Institute for Policy Studies, a Washington, DC think-tank. His plays, Krapp’s Last PowerPoint, Edible Rex & The Bird, have all appeared in the Capital Fringe Festival. He has appeared as a pundit on NPR, “The Tavis Smiley Show,” “The Diane Riehm Show,” on various TV programs & throughout print media. His latest book, Crusade 2.0, was recently released by City Lights Books & was highlighted on CSPAN Book-TV in May. His article “My Backlogged Pages,” was published in The New York Times; an excerpt from Edible Rex & his article on Jeju Island, were published by The Washington Post.

The Washington City Paper called last year's The Bird “a captivating personal story" & praised Feffer as “a brilliant writer & performer.” DC Theatre Scene called Edible Rex “a treasure,” awarding it five stars, while The DCist stated “Feffer is magnetic, a born storyteller.” The Bird appeared in Emerging Artists Theatre’s One Man Talking Festival in New York in the Spring of 2012.

THE PUNDIT “deflates its target with a sharp satiric pin,” writes The Washington Post. DC Theatre Scene gave THE PUNDIT five stars & its “Pick of the Fringe” designation & DC Metro Theater Arts gave the play five stars, saying “The Pundit is a funny, thought- provoking & ultimately tragic look at the shallowness of our political thought in a media-saturated world.”

DATES: Sat 8/11 @ 5pm, Sun 8/12 @ 8:15pm, Tues 8/14 @ 3:15pm,
Wed 8/15 @ 4:30pm, Fri 8/17 @ 8:15pm & Sat 8/18 @ 2:45pm
THEATRE: Dorothy B. Williams Theatre ~ HERE ~ 145 Sixth Ave.
PRICE: $15 in advance ~ $18 at door
TICKETS/INFORMATION: www.FringeNYC.org www.johnfeffer.com/the-pundit