The Hypocrites to Bring Beach-Party PIRATES OF PENZANCE to NYU Skirball

Swimming pools, twinkly lights, a well-stocked Tiki Bar and beach balls welcome the audience to a raucous and utterly zany beach party in The Hypocrites theater company of Chicago's adaptation of Pirates of Penzance, running November 29 - December 10 at NYU Skirball.

The entire audience joins the cast on the stage-beach, immersed in the action alongside sappy pirates, dewy-eyed damsels, bumbling bobbies and one very stuffy Major General. Directed and adapted by Sean Graney, with book by W.S. Gilbert and music by Arthur Sullivan, The Hypocrites' Pirates is a spunky model of a (post) modern major musical.

The Hypocrites, founded in 1997 Artistic Director Sean Graney, is one of Chicago's premier off-Loop theater companies, specializing in mounting bold productions that challenge preconceptions and redefine the role of the audience. The company has a reputation for creating exciting, surprising, and deeply engaging theater as it re-interprets classics and tackles ambitious new works. The American Theatre Wing, best known as the creator of the Tony Awards, presented The Hypocrites with one of its 2013 National Theatre Company awards. The company's smash-hit production of Our Town, directed by David Cromer, transferred in 2009 to Off-Broadway, Los Angeles and Boston. Since the company's founding, The Hypocrites have produced over sixty mainstage productions and a dozen festival pieces, securing thirty-one Non-Equity Joseph Jefferson awards, six Equity Joseph Jefferson awards and two After Dark Awards. Visit the-hypocrites.com for more.

NYU Skirball, located in the heart of Greenwich Village, is one of New York City's major presenters of international work, and has been the premier venue for cultural and performing arts events in lower Manhattan since 2003. The 860-seat state-of-the art theater, led by Director Jay Wegman, provides a home for internationally renowned artists, innovators and thinkers. NYU Skirball hosts over 300 events annually, from re-inventions of the classics to cutting-edge premieres, in genres ranging from dance, theater and performance arts to comedy, music and film.

NYU Skirball's unique place as a vibrant cultural center within New York University enables it to draw on the University's intellectual riches and resources to enhance its programming with dialogues, public forums and conversations with artists, philosophers, scientists, Nobel Laureates and journalists. Go to www.nyuskirball.org.

Jay Wegman is responsible for the direction and leadership of the Center's artistic programming. He previously served as director of the Abrons Art Center at Henry Street Settlement from 2006-2016, where he curated a balance of local, international, emerging and established multi-disciplinary artists. During his tenure, Abrons was awarded a 2014 OBIE Award for Innovative Excellence and a 2015 Bessie Award for Best Production. He also served as Canon for Liturgy and the Arts at The Cathedral of St. John the Divine for over a decade and was a Fellow at The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C. from 2004-2005. Jay is a graduate of Yale University.

Pirates of Penzance will play November 29 - December 10: Wednesday - Fridays at 7:30pm; Saturdays at 11 am, 3 pm & 7:30 pm; and Sundays at 3 pm. Tickets start at $65 and may be purchased online at www.nyuskirball.org, by phone at 212.998.4941, or in person at the NYU Skirball Box Office: Tuesday-Saturday, 12:00-6:00 P.M. NYU Skirball is located at 566 LaGuardia Place at Washington Square, New York, New York 10012.

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