New Hampshire Theatre Project 2020 - 2021 Announces New MainStage Programs

"This isn't your grandma's variety show," says New Hampshire Theatre Project Artistic Director Catherine Stewart. With a touch of nostalgia and an eye on the future of entertainment, New Hampshire Theatre Project reinvents the theatre revue for the current moment.

Tiny Mayhem, a quarterly event that showcases new plays, dance, music, visual art and experimental performance, launches on Friday, December 11. Both in-person and online tickets are available. Further details about the line-up and how to purchase tickets can be found at www.nhtheatreproject.org/currentseason.

Tiny Mayhem is a contemporary performance laboratory produced in partnership with NHTP Company Artist Emily Karel. Originally conceived at the Red Door in Portsmouth NH in the summer of 2015, the events are an eclectic assortment of theatre, music, dance, and drinks curated to create a one-of-a-kind night.

"There's a kind of magic in the classic vaudeville form," adds Stewart. "Audiences are looking for new music, dance, theatre - and they'll find all that and more in Tiny Mayhem." Each Tiny Mayhem is curated by a team of artists from an open call for submissions, and artists invited to experiment with something new. The December 11 show will include The Singing Lesson by Adam LaFramboise and Katie Gall, choreography by Sarah Duclos and Anthony Bounphakhom, poetry by Mike Nelson and Amy Desrosiers' new comedy, Nut Free. "I'm thrilled to be able to share this ridiculous play," explains Desrosiers. "I think we can all use a laugh right now. Tiny Mayhem provided the perfect opportunity for me to embrace the season theme 'What Are You Waiting For?' - this play has been sitting on my computer in some form for the past 6 years. It's totally bizarre and completely unrelated to the current state of the world, which is exactly what I needed and what, I think, we all need!"

The evening will be hosted by Michael Towle, an actor and improviser most commonly seen on the Seacoast in Dorks and Dungeons. The Tiny Mayhem team construct a character and script for each event in order to pull the assorted acts together. For this first event of the series Towle will play an increasingly inebriated holiday party host. "It's all about playing with what theatre and performance can be for in-person, and also for the new online, audience," adds series co-producer Emily Karel. "There will definitely be surprises, and a little bit of madness - it's what we've all been waiting for."

For more information about the artists and work in New Hampshire Theatre Project's 2020-2021 season, visit nhtheatreproject.org.