Raffael Pacitti's MISTER HALSTON To Have Industry Reading At Cooper Square

MISTER HALSTON, a new play exploring the life and times of famed American fashion designer Halston, written by Raffael Pacitti and directed by Kimberly Senior (Broadway's Disgraced), will hold an invitation-only industry staging on Friday, January 17 at Cooper Square, in advance of a 2025 commercial run in New York. 

Ken Barnett (Broadway's Fun Home, Wonderful Town, The Green Bird) will play Halston in this one-person play, set in 1987, that is a fictionalized version of the interview that led to a seminal New York Times article about the legendary designer. It had a sold-out run at New York's United Solo Festival, where it garnered critical acclaim and earned three Festival Awards (Best Actor—Ken Barnett; Best Script—Raffael Pacitti, and the Audience Award).

ABOUT THE PLAY:

It is early spring, 1987, New York. Late afternoon, spilling into dusk. The play is set in the living room of the East 63rd Street apartment of famed American fashion designer, Halston. A journalist has arrived and throughout the interview, the audience learns about varied aspects of Halston's life and career, including people Halston knew and loved, as well as the cultural figures who influenced him. The new play explores the visionary work that not only gripped the fashion world for decades, but also helped shape the evolution of identity, gender politics, sexuality and style— in America and around the world.

ABOUT THE ARTISTS

Ken Barnett (Halston). His Broadway credits include Fun Home, Wonderful Town, and The Green Bird.  His Off-Broadway credits include Novenas for a Lost Hospital (Rattlestick); The Cradle Will Rock (Classic Stage); America Is Hard To See (HERE); The Light Years (Playwrights' Horizons); Plenty, Fortress of Solitude, February House (Public Theater); Too Much Sun (Vineyard); La Ronde (HERE--Best Actor, Fringe Award); Debbie Does Dallas (Jane Street); The Whore of Sheridan Square (La Mama—NYIT Award nomination).  Regional credits include The Waves, Private Lives, True West, Gentleman's Guide to Love & Murder (CT Critic's Circle Award/San Diego Critics Circle Nomination), February House (CT Critics Circle Award), Next Fall, Burn This, and Merrily We Roll Along.  TV/Film includes “Godfather of Harlem,” “The Good Fight,” “American Crime Story: Versace,” Christophe on “Mozart in the Jungle,” “House of Cards,” “Mad Men,” Lavender (Sundance & SXSW 2019, acquired by Fox Searchlight), Radio Killer, Admission, Ira & Abby, Friends With Kids, People Like Us, Puccini for Beginners and others. 

Kimberly Senior (Director). Her New York credits include Disgraced (Broadway); Bella Bella and The Niceties (Manhattan Theatre Club); Chris Gethard: Career Suicide (Judd Apatow presents); The Who and The What, and Disgraced (Lincoln Center Theater 3); Discord (Primary Stages); Engagements (Second Stage); Dan Rather's Stories of a Lifetime, Margaret Trudeau's Certain Women of an Age, and Aasif Mandvi's Sakina's Restaurant (Audible). Chicago credits include Support Group for Men, Disgraced, and Rapture, Blister, Burn (Goodman Theatre); Buried Child, The Scene, Marjorie Prime, Diary of Anne Frank, Hedda Gabler, and The Letters (Writer's Theatre); Discord, 4000 Miles, and The Whipping Man (Northlight Theatre); Want and The North Plan (Steppenwolf); Inana, My Name is Asher Lev, All My Sons, and Dolly West's Kitchen (TimeLine Theatre); The Great God Pan, After The Revolution, Madagascar, The Overwhelming, and The Busy World is Hushed (Next); Waiting for Lefty (American Blues); Old Times, The Conquest of the South Pole, Uncle Vanya, Cherry Orchard, Three Sisters, Fuddy Meers, and Knives in Hens (Strawdog); Cripple of Inishman, Bug, and The Pillowman (Redtwist Theatre); Thieves Like Us (The House Theatre); among others. Her Regional credits include Sweat and The Niceties (Huntington Theatre Company); Byhalia, MS (The Kennedy Center); The Niceties (Geffen Playhouse); Miss Bennett: Christmas at Pemberly (Milwaukee Repertory Theatre); Other Than Honorable (Geva); Sex with Strangers (The Geffen Playhouse); Disgraced (Mark Taper Forum, Berkley Repertory Theatre, Seattle Repertory Theatre); The Who and The What (La Jolla Playhouse); Little Gem (City Theatre); Games Afoot, Murder on the Nile, and A Few Good Men (Peninsula Players); and Mauritius (Theatre Squared, Fayetteville, AR). Film and TV includes Chris Gethard: Career Suicide (HBO). 

RAFFAEL PACITTI (Playwright) is a professional Art Director, working in advertising, with a varied background in the magazine and publishing worlds. His passion has always been theatre, music and fashion; and he continues to write as well as produce projects around the city. As a performer and producer, Raffael has explored classical and modern music as well as theatrical projects. 

MISTER HALSTON is produced by Tony Award winning producer Sue Vaccaro and Associate Producer Donna Rubin, in collaboration with RPR Media Group. For more information, please vist www.halstonplay.com.

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