Dreamcatcher Offers MEET THE ARTIST Free New Play Readings

Dreamcatcher Repertory Theatre, professional Theatre in Residence at the Oakes Center in Summit, will present its annual Meet the Artist free new play reading series on Wednesday, May 17 and Wednesday, May 24 at 7 pm at the Oakes Center.

The new play reading series is a chance for the audience to participate in the development of new works, both to hear the play read by professional actors and also to discuss the project with the playwright, director and actors afterward. Feedback from these evenings helps the playwrights to further refine their scripts and also gives them a first-hand experience of how the audience will respond to the finished work. These evenings provide a fun and lively way to interact with the creative process, and to receive a preview of plays that may be performed on Dreamcatcher's mainstage in the future.

On May 17, The Net Will Appear by Erin Mallon tells the story of Bernard, a man who has been beaten down by loss in his seventy years of life. Rory is nine, and searching for a friend. They discover, across the gap between their rooftops, that they are exactly what the other needs. This fresh and surprising story of connection across the generations is funny and heartbreaking with dialogue that snaps and a pulse that beats with compassion and warmth. The play will be directed by Laura Ekstrand and features Frank Licato and Oona Callender.

Erin Mallon is a writer, actor and voice artist in NYC. Her plays have been presented with Urban Stages, New Georges, Hudson Valley Shakespeare Festival, The Collective, Cherry Picking, Project Y Theater, Mile Square Theatre and more. Erin's play Branched (dir. Robert Ross Parker) premiered with InViolet Theater at HERE Arts Center in NYC and is in print with Original Works Publishing. Her new play, The Net Will Appear is an Honorable Mention on the 2016 Kilroys List and will have its World Premiere this fall at Mile Square Theatre in Hoboken, NJ. Other full-length plays include: Stunning Displays of Prowess, Hand Me Down (commissioned by Ethical Culture Fieldston School), Good Riddance and The Other White Meat. Erin is the narrator of 175 audiobooks, a member of InViolet Theater and The Collective and is founder and co-curator of The Brooklyn Generator, a playwriting engine that creates "plays in less-than-30-days." www.erinmallon.net

May 24's play, The Messenger by Phoebe Farber, is both fantastical and rooted in reality. Anat is a transplant from her native Israel, where she has fled her family and a terrible accident for which she feels responsible. Her nursery school is in disrepair; moreover, her manner seems harsh and uncaring to the families she serves. Trish, a teacher whose soft heart hides a deep loneliness, is trying to help her save the school from ruin. One day, an unusual man appears who may hold the key to their redemption. Featured are Laura Chaneski, Jason Szamreta and Harriett Trangucci, and the reading is directed by Laura Ekstrand.

Phoebe Farber's plays have been seen around New York and New Jersey. Her play Scrimmage was seen at The Players Theatre (best play, NYC), The Short Play Lab (best play, NYC) and Strangedog short play festival (NJ). Home Care was seen in the Strawberry One-Act Festival (Finalist, NYC), The Aery Theatre's One-Act Play Festival (NY),Variations Theatre Group (NYC) and at Lab at Luna through Luna Stage (NJ). Jump It was a finalist at The Depot Theater 20/20 festival in Garrison, New York, and appeared at The Everyday Inferno Theater Festival (NYC) and at Lab at Luna (NJ). Class Reunion was seen at The Cell Theater (NYC) and Strangedog short play festival (NJ). Readings have included Jump It and Nina at Fresh Produced Reading Series (NYC) and Dancing in Captivity at Horsetrade Theatre Group (NYC). Her plays have been published in Applause Theatre & Cinema Books and The Best Plays from the Strawberry One-Act Festival. Phoebe lives in Montclair, New Jersey, has a private psychotherapy practice and is a professor at Montclair State University.

The readings are at the Oakes Center, located at 120 Morris Avenue in Summit. Admission is free and no reservations are necessary. The parking lot is accessible from Ashwood Avenue, behind the theatre. For information on any of Dreamcatcher Repertory Theatre's programs, please contact Dreamcatcher Repertory Theatre at the Oakes Center, 120 Morris Avenue, Summit, NJ 07901, 908-514-9654, www.DreamcatcherRep.org.