Vital Signs New Works Festival Begins November 30

Vital Theatre Company will present its annual Vital Signs New Works Festival. The three-week festival of new, short plays begins Thursday, November 30 at 7:00 p.m. runs Thursdays through Sundays at 7:00 p.m. through December 17th.  Series Three, running December 14th through 17th, features the work of Vital R&D, Vital Theatre Company's ongoing playwright's workshop running each evening at 7:00pm and 9:00pm. 

Series One plays November 30th through December 3rd.  In Andrew Lepcio's How I Won the War, a WWII Navy vet finally makes peace with himself while recounting his wartime experiences of bribes, famous athletes, 30-foot waves, untold death and a bevy of beauties.  In Shawn Hirabayashi's Tav, tension rises between two old friends, one Japanese-American and the other Jewish who meet at a cemetery in rural France.  In Michael John Garces' Souvenirs, Aya and Rebecca search for God in a sunset as they lounge on a beach in Mindoro.  In the final piece of Series One, a married couple discovers that it IS possible to watch too much television in Mark Harvey Levine's The Remote. 

Series two runs December 7-10.  It kicks off with Five Wishes by Thomas H. Diggs; the play tells the story of Nick and his boyfriend Quinn; when they agree to work on a living will they soon learn they are making plans for more than just the end of a life.  In Anton Dudley's Antartica, a couple's entire marriage is called into question when a mysterious package arrives at their desert island home.  In Steven Yockey's Bright.Apple.Crush, Ethan, Nancy and Dan rapidly slip from the darkly comic to purely dark as three disturbing acts of vengeance unfold.  Finally, Ross Maxwell's Crimes Against Humanity examines what happens when a sister chooses to save the world rather than her family.

Series Three (12/14-12/17) at 7 PM features the work of Vital R&D, Vital Theatre Company's ongoing playwrights' workshop.  Each playwright composed a play set in and around the Upper West Side.  First up is Mark Loewenstern's The Bloomingdale Road, which is set in 19th Century Manhattan on a dirt path that will one day become the intersection of Broadway and 76th St.  In Deen's Saffron, two people from opposite ends of the social spectrum find their common humanity.  Kim Rosenstock's comedy Discovering Columbus skewers celebrity culture through the lens of two star-crossed Starbuck's employees.

Series Three also plays at 9 PM.  It's Giuliani Time by Aurin Squire examines the fear that creates shocking rifts between neighbors, friends and lovers when race, crime and politics come into play.  In David Ben-Arie's Double Fantasy, an encounter between a man and woman at Strawberry Fields leads to heated debate about the legacy of John Lennon in a violent and divided world.  In the final play of the series, Robin Rothstein's Breaking Routine a weekly rendezvous between two elderly friends who meet for their regular bagel, lox and cream cheese at Barney's Greengrass turns out to be anything but routine.

The plays in this evening all take place in and around Vital Theatre Company's Upper West Side neighborhood.  Tickets are $18; students and groups pay $10. TDF accepted. For reservations, please log onto www.theatermania.com or call (212) 352-3101.  For more information, visit ww.vitaltheatre.org  Vital Theatre Company is located at the McGinn/Cazale Theatre, 2162 Broadway, 4th Floor at 76th Street.