Passage Theater Premieres INSTRUCTIONS FOR BREATHING 4/16- 5/10

Passage Theatre, Trenton's premiere professional theater company, is proud to announce the world premiere of Instructions for Breathing by acclaimed playwright Caridad Svich, April 16 through May 10 (Opening Night: Saturday, April 18). Performances are held at the Mill Hill Playhouse, 205 East Front Street, at the corner of Montgomery Street in historic downtown Trenton.

Directed by Daniella Topol, the cast includes Bryan Close, Frank Harts, Kate Hopkins, Polly Lee, Gerardo Rodriguez and Heidi Schreck. Ms. Schreck was singled out by Time Out New York for being a "brittle, nearly transparent actor you can actually see thinking, Schreck specializes in spiky, brilliant women who make you want to cuddle them-and let the devil take the risk."

Ms. Svich, who is one of the most prolific Latino/a and American playwrights working today, began 2009 with The House of the Spirits (La casa de los espiritus), a new play based on Isabel Allende's best-selling novel, commissioned and produced by Repertorio Espanol in New York City. This spring she has two works that will receive their world premieres Instructions for Breathing at Passage Theatre, and Wreckage at Crowded Fire Theatre Company in San Francisco.

Instructions for Breathing is a lyrical, dreamlike drama that exposes tragedy in the modern world - personal, private and public - through the story of a marriage blown apart by the sudden loss of a child, Sonya, by an act of casual neglect. Her disappearance turns her parents - and the community - upside down with regrets, judgments, and gossip; but also galvanizes them to take responsibility for their own fate in today's global and frenetic society.

"Instructions for Breathing is a play about loss and faith; an intimate portrait of quiet lives broken by tragedy, and how we may heal and transform from moments of crisis," said playwright Caridad Svich.

Artistic Director June Ballinger noted, "The play speaks directly to Passage's artistic mission. We look for plays that celebrate the resilience of our human nature. This story centers on a couple who made an error in judgment and suffer a loss. This loss affects their marriage and the lives of their friends. But they survive! There is an aspect of grace in the story that testifies to the mysterious connection between people...strangers as well as friends. It is play of hope and instruction in love."

Caridad Svich is an award-winning playwright, translator and lyricist whose works have been produced across the U.S. and abroad at diverse venues including 7 Stages (Atlanta), Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park, The Women's Project, INTAR, 59 East 59, Salvage Vanguard (Austin, TX), ARTheater-Cologne, Edinburgh Fringe Festival, and the Royal Court Theatre. Her more than 40 plays include 12 Ophelias, Any Place But Here, Alchemy of Desire/Dead-Man's Blues, Antigone Arkhe, The Booth Variations, Iphigenia...a rave fable and The Labyrinth of Desire. She has translated nearly all of Federico Garcia Lorca's dramatic works as well as plays by Lope de Vega, Calderón de La Barca, Julio Cortazar and contemporary works from Mexico and Cuba. She has been a Radcliffe Institute Fellow, NEA/TCG Fellow at the Mark Taper Forum Theatre and a TCG/Pew Charitable Trust Fellow at INTAR. Svich is an alumna playwright of New Dramatists, founder of NoPassport Theatre Alliance & Press, Associate Editor of Routledge's Contemporary Theatre Review and Contributing Editor of TheatreForum. She is featured in the Oxford Encyclopedia of Latino History and holds an MFA from University of California, San Diego. For more information, visit www.caridadsvich.com.

Daniella Topol's recent New York directing credits include Judith Thompson's Palace of the End (Epic Theatre), Trista Baldwin's Sand (Women's Project and Productions), Sheila Callaghan's Dead City (New Georges), Peter Gil-Sheridan's Topsy Turvy Mouse (Cherry Lane Mentor Project), and Zakiyyah Alexander's Sick? (Summer Play Festival). A graduate of Carnegie Mellon's directing program, Daniella has been the Artistic Program Director at the Lark Play Development Center, the New Works Program Director at the National Alliance for Musical Theatre, and the Associate Producing Director of City Theatre. She is currently working as a resident artist at HERE developing a new multi-media piece on floods with Sheila Callaghan, Bill Cusick, and Katie Down. Upcoming projects include: Trista Baldwin's Forgetting (Playlabs, MN), Susan Bernfield and Rachel Peters' Tiny Feats of Cowardice (NYC Fringe), and Leslie Ayvazian's Behave Yourself (LarkPlayDevelopmentCenter).

Passage Theatre performs in the historic Mill Hill Playhouse an intimate 115-seat theater in the heart of downtown Trenton adjacent to the beautiful Mill Hill district. Security-guarded on-street parking is available on S. Montgomery St., Ernie Kovacs St., E. Front Street and in the Artworks parking lot.

To reserve tickets, please call (609) 392-0766 or visit online at http://www.passagetheatre.org.

Tickets can also be purchased at the Passage Theatre Office: 219 East Hanover Street in Trenton, Monday through Friday from 12:00 pm -5:30 pm or at the box office, one hour before each performance at the Mill Hill Playhouse, 205 East Front Street at the corner of Montgomery.

For over 20 years, Passage Theatre has developed and showcased new work by emerging and established playwrights. As a key participant in the revitalization of urban Trenton, Passage presents outstanding plays that celebrate experiences common to all and transcend culture and race.

Accessibility
Passage Theatre is committed to ensuring that all individuals have access to the joy of the performing arts. Passage is dedicated to being a leader in the education and assistance of all organizations, working towards making our programs and services accessible to people with disabilities. For more information, please call (609) 392-0766.

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