BAD JEWS and TIGERS BE STILL Set for Black Lab Theatre's 2015 Season, Beginning Today

Black Lab Theatre's shines an endearing and humorous light on family dysfunction with two regional premiere comedies about the difficulties of familial love in the 21st century. The season opens in January 2015 with Kim Rosenstock's Tigers Be Still and then follows with Joshua Harmon's no-holds-barred comedy Bad Jews to be co-produced by Stages Repertory Theatre and the Jewish Community Center of Houston.

Critically acclaimed in its 2010 New York premiere, Tiger Be Still is a quirky and deliciously dark Off-Broadway hit about two families who turn to art therapy as a means to get out of a rut of bad luck. Tiger Be Still follows the travails of Sherry, a newly graduated art therapist, whose luck turns around when she gets hired as a substitute teacher. Now, if only her mother would get out of bed, her sister would stop stealing her ex-boyfriends dogs to get his attention, and her first therapy patient would do his homework.

"Tigers Be Still is the funniest play about dealing with depression while a tiger is on the loose you'll ever see," jokes Black Lab's artistic director Jordan Jaffe about the humorous premise for Rosenstock's comedy. "I have a very positive memory of the role my Middle School art teacher played in our lives. I think Tigers Be Still taps that sentimental place and in a way that keeps the audience laughing."

The cast of Tigers Be Still will offer a special treat to Houston audiences who have enjoyed the award winning performances of Justin Doran and his son, Ty Doran. Doran, a resident director at Black Lab Theatre and Ty will star respectively in Tigers Be Still as Joseph Moore, a high school principal and Zach, his wayward son. It will be the first time the famous pair have performed together in the same play.

Tigers Be Still , to be directed by Jordan Jaffe, will run at Wildfish Theater in the Galleria Area today, January 15 through January 31 at 8pm on Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays plus a Monday Industry Night on Jan 19.

Black Lab's season then continues into spring with the regional premiere of Joshua Harmon's no-holds-barred comedy Bad Jews to be presented as a co-production with Stages Repertory Theatre with and at the Evelyn Rubenstein Jewish Community Center of Houston.

Bad Jews follows Daphna, who has just returned from her birthright Israel trip, empowered by her journey and in love with an Israeli soldier. Meanwhile, her cousin Liam has fallen for an "American Girl" who is anything but Jewish. Battle lines are drawn as the self-absorbed cousins clash over possession of a beloved family heirloom in this riveting new play about claiming the past while building the future.

Bad Jews will run April 16 through May 3 in the Kaplan Theatre at the Evelyn Rubenstein Jewish Community Center of Houston at 7:30pm on Wednesdays and Thursdays, 8pm on Fridays and Saturdays, and 3pm on Sundays.

"We're very excited to be teaming up with Stages Repertory Theatre and the Evelyn Rubenstein Jewish Community Center of Houston", says Jaffe, Black Lab Theatre artistic director whose 2013-2014 season was praised for welcoming "challenging and pertinent productions" to Houston. "Bad Jews is a sharp, unflinching look at religious versus cultural identity in today's America. Watching people putting on their worst behavior at a family gathering like Daphna and Liam in Bad Jews makes for riveting theater," says Jaffe. "Like real life, it can be both funny and shocking to see how far family members are willing to push each other."

Both plays continue Black Lab's commitment to millennial-centered dramatic works. Founded in 2011 by Rice University graduate Jordan Jaffe, Black Lab Theatre focuses on bringing newer, socially conscious shows to audiences in fresh and innovative ways.

General admission tickets are available for each show as well as season ticket packages. Tickets may be purchased at the door, by phone or via www.blacklabtheatre.com. Box office number: 713-515-4028. For more information visit www.blacklabtheatre.com, www.facebook.com/BlackLabTheatre or www.twitter.com/BlackLabTheatre.

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