John Patrick Shanley's FIRE BURNING RAIN Plays Highline Ballroom, 9/8

FIRE BURNING RAIN, a multi-media rock opera created by internationally renowned artist/composer Jihaeand two time Academy Award winning playwright/director John Patrick Shanley, is set to play Highline Ballroom September 8. The show will begin at 9PM; doors open at 7PM.

Inspired by Joan of Arc, Fire Burning Rain tells a futuristic story of a heroine's journeys to free ‘the light'. The people of the upper world become devastated as the natural resources of the earth are depleted and their bodies have grown into buildings and wires. The heroine is their only hope to retrive ‘the light' to save the dying earth and humanity. The heroine's pilgrimage to the magical and eerie forest of the underworld begins...The 70-minute performance is a fantastical multi-media display, including live music, modern dance, elaborate costumes and digital integration that envelopes the audience in a dreamlike world.

Jihae is an internationally renowned musician, artist and style icon. Her self released albums, commercial compositions, fine art and films have received critical acclaim from IFC, NME, MTV, Pitchfork, ID and Vogue Germany. She has collaborated with numerous award-winning artists including Michel Gondry, Christopher Doyle, Marco Brambilla and Lenny Kravitz. Whether performing at the Cannes Film Festival or opening for Lou Reed and Sonic Youth, Jihae's captivating live shows transcend genres with an ever-evolving, always-electrifying sound. 

John Patrick Shanley is an award-winning playwright, screenwriter and director. Shanley won an Academy Award for Best Screenplay for Moonstruck, starring Cher. His 2005 play, Doubt: A Parable was awarded the Pulitzer Prize, the Drama Desk Award, the Obie Award and the Tony Award for Best Play. Shanley went on to write and direct the 2008 film version starring Meryl Streep, Amy Adams and Philip Seymour Hoffman. Shanley's work has been nominated by the Independent Spirit Awards, the Satellite Awards, the Golden Globes, the Emmys, the BAFTA Awards and the Academy Awards. He has written twenty-four plays and ten films. He currently works and resides in New York.

For additional information, visit: http://www.highlineballroom.com

The High Line is a 1.45-mile-long elevated rail structure set to open in 2008 as a public open space. Running through the West Side neighborhoods of the Meatpacking District, West Chelsea and Clinton/Hell's Kitchen, it was built in the 1930s to remove dangerous trains from Manhattan's streets. No trains have run on it since 1980. Friends of the High Line (FHL), a community-based 501(c)(3) non-profit group, formed in 1999 when the historic structure was under threat of demolition. FHL is currently working with the City of New York to transform the structure into a park. The High Line south of 30th Street was donated to the City by CSX Transportation in 2005. The team of Field Operations and Diller Scofidio + Renfro is now at work on a design for the High Line's public landscape. Construction began in spring 2006. The first phase (Gansevoort Street to 20th Street) is projected to open in 2008. For more information, and to see designs for the new park, please visit www.thehighline.org.

Photo Credit: Walter McBride/WM Photos