Tangent Theatre Slates 2017 NEWvember New Plays Festival

Tangent Theatre Company announces their annual NEWvember new plays reading series, NEW17 Works in Progress - a festival of five original plays by Tangent company and past NEWvember playwrights, to be held at their intimate Carpenter Shop Theater, November 9-12, 2017 (Thurs., Fri. and Sat. at 8pm; Sat. and Sun. at 2pm).

Their seventh such festival, the spirit of the readings is to provide a dynamic, interactive and assured place where writers can hear their plays read by seasoned actors and discuss their work and process. All five writers will be present for their readings and post-show Q+As; the series will also feature an ensemble of local and

long distance actors and directors. Audiences will get a first look at fresh plays - these selects are a different take on their standard NEWvember festival in an effort to give these invited writers a spotlight of their recent works. The plays were chosen based on originality, storytelling quality and character intrigue.

The writers hail from California, New York, New Jersey and the Hudson Valley, including: David Riedy (New Jersey): "Tuition" (Thurs. Nov. 9 @ 8pm) - David's play Quick & Dirty appeared in Tangent's Subway Series production in New York City: Dan O'Neil (New York): "The Wind Farmer" (Fri. Nov. 10 @ 8pm) - Dan's play How The Dog Runs appeared in NEWvember 2012; Michael Rhodes (Tivoli/Hudson Valley): "Gone" (Sat. Nov. 11 @ 2pm) - Michael's play wanderers was Tangent's first original show in New York City, and his plays The Local and Down in the Depths were featured in Subway Series (Michael is also Tangent's Artistic Director); Shawna Casey (Los Angeles): "blue blue moon" (Sat. Nov. 11 @ 8pm) - Shawna's play Strong Force was featured in NEWvember 2014 and Jennifer Skura (Clermont/Hudson Valley): "A Mad Woman's Breakfast" (Sun. Nov. 12 @ 2pm) - Jennifer's play Pirate premiered in Tangent's first NEWvember festival in 2011.

NEWvember was originally conceived in 2011 and produced along with then New York-based members of AboutFACE Ireland, Anna and Paul Nugent. The team relocated back to Ireland last year and are now launching NEWvember | Dublin as part of their programming, the week following the Tangent festival - featuring six new plays over one weekend.

Tangent's performances have boosted visitors and business to Tivoli's eclectic village and has seen writers whose works have gone on to further development and acclaim. Of note, NEWvember alumni John Cariani's Love/Sick has been widely produced since it appeared at the 2012 festival, James McLindon's Comes a Faery, saw an Off-Broadway run.

According to Tangent's Producing Director, Andrea Rhodes, "Original new stories are the future of theater and our passion, where emerging voices are discovered. Our NEWvember festivals are audience favorites - they're getting a sneak peek at the process, and possibly the next great play."

NEWvember | NEW17 Works in Progress, Nov. 9 - Nov. 12 (five plays read over one weekend); at the Carpenter Shop Theater, 60 Broadway, Tivoli. General seating, tickers $18 (on sale Nov. 1). For more information, visit tangent-arts.org.

Tangent was founded in New York City in 2000 by Hudson Valley natives Andrea and Michael Rhodes and Keith Teller, and re-located to Tivoli in 2009. Tangent is known for intimate character driven productions, their new plays festivals and their popular pub readings.

Pictured: Samuel Hoeksema, Brendan Burke, Paul Nugent and Audrey Rapoport from a previous NEWvember festival.