Abingdon Theatre Company Hosts INVENTING AVI Talkback With Broadway Producers and Playwrights 10/20

Abingdon Theatre Company to host Post-Performance Talkback on producing and playwriting
Tuesday, October 20 following the 7pm performance of new hit comedy by Robert Cary and Benjamin Feldman

INVENTING AVI
(and other theatrical maneuvers)

Talkback participants include Broadway producers Nelle Nugent, Sharon Carr and Janet Pailet
and playwrights Cheryl Davis, Michele Raper Rittenhouse and Frank Tangredi
Abingdon Theatre Company will host a Post-Performance Talkback featuring Broadway producers and playwrights on Tuesday, October 20 following the 7pm performance of its latest hit INVENTING AVI (and other theatrical maneuvers), a new behind-the-scenes theatrical comedy by Robert Cary and Benjamin Feldman, at Abingdon Theatre Arts Complex's June Havoc Theatre (312 West 36th Street) in Manhattan.

On October 20, a panel consisting of Broadway producers Nelle Nugent, Sharon Carr and Janet Pailet and playwrights Cheryl Davis, Michele Raper Rittenhouse and Frank Tangredi will discuss what producers look for when selecting new works to develop for the stage.

Directed by Mark Waldrop, INVENTING AVI is a zany comedy of theatrical manners. INVENTING AVI grapples with questions of authorship and identity as two sisters "of a certain age" -- one a rich producer and the other, a diva of the stage -- collaborate on a hit play from a sexy Israeli writer. The play seems autobiographical, but the story is actually stolen from a place closer to home than either sister could ever imagine.

Nelle Nugent is one of the most prolific independent Broadway producers of recent years. Among her numerous producing credits are the Tony Award-winners AMADEUS, THE ELEPHANT MAN, MORNING'S AT SEVEN, THE LIFE AND ADVENTURES OF NICHOLAS NICKELBY and DRACULA. Along with producer John Schwally, Ms. Nugent co-founded the East Coast chapter of The Producers Guild of America.

Janet Pailet is currently represented on Broadway with BURN THE FLOOR. Other Broadway credits include the recent Tony Award-winner PASSING STRANGE and Dr. Seuss' HOW THE GRINCH STOLE CHRISTMAS.

Sharon Carr's credits include Broadway's BURN THE FLOOR and AMERICAN BUFFALO. Other credits include I LOVE YOU BECAUSE, the Broadway-bound DIRTY DANCING, and NYMF award-winner IDAHO! THE MUSICAL COMEDY LOVE STORY.

Playwright Cheryl Davis is a recipient of Kleban and Writers' Guild awards for her writing. A practicing attorney, Ms. Davis has written for TV's "As the World Turns." Her current project, the musical BARNSTORMER, is in development.

Michele Raper Rittenhouse is a recipient of Abingdon Theatre Company's Witter Bynner Fellowship Award. Her plays include IN THE ARMS OF BABY JESUS and HEARTLAND. Ms. Rittenhouse is currently Managing Director for Rutgers University's New Jersey Institute of Technology Theatre Arts Program.

Frank Tangredi's play PASTORAL won the 2008 Christopher Brian Wolk Award. It received a reading at Abingdon Theatre Company last year, and will be presented at the Pasadena Playhouse in 2010. His play GALATEA, was presented to acclaim as part of FringeNYC 2008, and also received an L.A. Weekly Theatre Award for Best Playwriting. His other plays include DYLAN'S DAD, ALONG THE FAULTLINE, EARLY, MILK, OF DOGS AND DOLPHINS, BROTHER AND HIS KEEPERS, and THACKERAY'S GHOST.

Comedienne, and cabaret star Alix Korey, whose Broadway credits include ALL SHOOK UP and CHICAGO, leads the cast of INVENTING AVI. Joining Ms. Korey are Emily Zacharias (JEKYLL & HYDE) and Stanley Bahorek (THE 25TH ANNUAL PUTNAM COUNTY SPELLING BEE), along with Havilah Brewster (A.R. Gurney's A LIGHT LUNCH), Lori Gardner (MY DEAH), and Juri Henley-Cohn ("New York, I Love You").

INVENTING AVI features set design by Ray Klausen; costume design by Matthew Hemesath, lighting design by Brian Nason; and sound design by David Margolin Lawson. Production stage manager is Joshua Pilote.

INVENTING AVI opened to critical and audience acclaim on October 14. The New York Times called it "a screwy backstage tale with savvy topical jokes, a potpourri of sly theatre references, and every conceivable sexual pairing," adding, it is "like a well-stocked party boat...everyone's having a great time!" CurtinUp.com noted that the play "tickles the audience's funny bone!" Backstage proclaimed that "comedy has resurfaced in Robert Cary and Benjamin Feldman's INVENTING AVI!" While nytheatre.com called it "an energetic farce... pretty darn funny!" And theatermania.com added that the playwrights, "abetted by a superb cast and their deft director Mark Waldrop, are consistently setting up -- and getting -- the laughs!"

Since 1993, Abingdon Theatre Company has developed and produced new plays by American Playwrights exclusively. Our actors, directors, designers, producers and dramaturgs have collaborated with more than 200 playwrights to develop original plays. Under the artistic direction of Jan Buttram, the company provides a safe home in which playwrights collaborate with other theatre artists and receive audience feedback through the utilization of a four-step development process: First Readings, Staged Readings, and Workout Labs, which culminate in Studio Productions and Mainstage Productions.

On Tuesday, October 20, INVENTING AVI runs at 7pm, immediately followed by the talkback. INVENTING AVI (and other theatrical maneuvers) runs through November 1 at the Abingdon Theatre Arts Complex's June Havoc Theatre (312 West 36th Street): Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays at 7:00pm; Fridays at 8:00pm; Saturdays at 2:00pm and 8:00pm; and Sundays at 2:00pm. Tickets are $45. For reservations, visit www.abingdontheatre.org or call 212-868-2055.

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