Distraction Theatre Company's Third Season Kicks Off with a New Show at a New Venue

Distraction Theatre Company inaugurates its third season with a third play from The Reduced Shakespeare Company - The Complete World of Sports (abridged) - taking on the complete world of sports and announcing a new collaboration with another non-traditional venue partner for the production. The latest show from Distraction runs April 20-28.

Just across the street from the East Precinct of the Nashville PD lies an unassuming, one story building with a "For Lease" sign out front. A former electrical supply store, this building is now home to a vibrant co-working space called Sparkworks Union. Sparkworks houses a myriad of small business owners: an attorney, a photographer, a church and, for the month of April, a scrappy theatre company called Distraction.

This is the second time that Distraction has partnered with a non-traditional venue to present a stage play. In their first season, the group partnered with the Red Arrow Gallery, also in East Nashville, to put up The Shape of Things by Neil LaBute.

"We've been very lucky to forge partnerships with our neighbors here in East Nashville that bring theatre to an area that has been traditionally underserved," says Amber Buker, Distraction's managing director. "There are just a handful of venues that small, professional theatres can use in Nashville; availability and budgets often put those out of reach. Being flexible in our craft has helped us find creative solutions to that problem and we're able to give local businesses visibility and add value to our neighborhood at the same time."

Distraction will transform a warehouse into a performance venue that will transport audience members into the raucous, rowdy and almost complete world of sports. This script is another in a long line of Reduced Shakespeare Company works that follows a time-tested formula: take a very large subject matter and boil it down into a 90-minute stage play with just three actors. The fast pace and physical comedy are designed to delight both theatre and athletic supporters alike.

"With a new Major League Soccer team, the best season the Titans have seen in a while and a play-off bound Predators, it's a good time for sports in Nashville," says artistic director Randall Pike. "We think this show will be a great opportunity for everyone - whether they're sports a fan or not - to have some fun and rally together."

The Complete World of Sports (abridged) runs April 20-28 at Sparkworks Union (935 E. Trinity Lane, Nashville). Show times: Friday, April 20, through Sunday, April 22, at 7:30 p.m. Industry Nights are Monday and Tuesday, April 23 and 24 at 7:30 p.m; and the regular run picks back up from Thursday, April 26 and continues through Saturday, April 28, with shows at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are available on Eventbrite.