IMPRESSIVE, SINCERELY to Have World Premiere at Lower East Side Bookstore

Ugly & Arrogant Productions, in association with P&T Knitwear, present the site-specific world premiere of Impressive, Sincerely by Robert Norman (All of My Blood), directed by Alex Hare (Capricorn 29). Running November 9-December 6, Impressive, Sincerely is a sharp, deadpan comedy about an American author who travels to a small German town where her failed debut novel is inexplicably popular. Through a series of author events, she begins to suspect her translator of manipulating her conversations - and of authoring a translation that is somewhat less than faithful.

The cast includes Amara James Aja* (The Ford/Hill Project), Annika Burley* (Come from Away), Joshua William Gelb (Theater in Quarantine), Liz Leimkuhler* (American Horror Story), and Sophie Sorensen (Barbarian). The creative team includes producer Sara Robillard.

Presented by Ugly & Arrogant Productions, Impressive, Sincerely is the first theater production to have a multi-week run at P&T Knitwear, a family-owned independent bookstore, podcast studio and community space on the Lower East Side. Doors will open a half hour before curtain time to allow audience members to explore the bookstore.

Performances of Impressive, Sincerely will take place November 9-December 6 (see schedule above) at P&T Knitwear (180 Orchard St, Manhattan). Critics are welcome as of November 13, which serves as the official opening. Tickets are available from $20-55 and can be purchased at impressivesincerelyplay.com.

ABOUT THE ARTISTS

Robert Norman (playwright) lives in New York with his wife and their two daughters. His prose has appeared in the Kenyon Review, Strange Pulp, Sinking City, and Food&. His plays have been developed and performed at venues including the cell, La Mama and the Corkscrew Theater Festival.

Alex Hare (director) is a theater and film director based in NYC. Short films in post-production: Bernie and Abel (with Zachary Desmond) and, as producer, Black Egg (written/directed by Gus Reed, featuring Taylor Trensch). Other directing credits include The Monkeypox Gospel (Ars Nova, Edinburgh Fringe Festival), Topdog/Underdog (StageCenter LA), the video game The Judgment of Quintus (upcoming winter release), and films Capricorn 29 and We Take Pictures. Alex is currently developing several original musicals, including A Burning Church with Zhailon Levingston and Nehemiah Luckett. Assistant credits: School of Rock and Side Show (Broadway). Alex is a member of the theater collective Necessary Labor.

Amara James Aja (Sebastian) is a Brooklyn-based actor and teaching artist. Selected projects include The Ford/Hill Project & Do Not Tell Them I Am a Prince (Waterwell), Julius Caesar (Smith Street Stage), The West End (Cincinnati Playhouse), The White Devil (Red Bull Theater), In The Heat of the Night (Barter Theater), The Tempest (Oregon Symphony), The Blameless (The Old Globe). BA, Cornell University. MFA, University of San Diego/Old Globe. amarajamesaja.com, IG: @amarajamesaja

Annika Burley (Madison) is a NYC based artist originally from TN. Theatre (select): A Midsummer Night's Dream (Helena, PBS / Commonwealth Shakes); Come From Away (Janice, Nashville Rep); Next to Normal (Natalie, Scranton Shakes); Macbeth (Lady Macbeth, Comm Shakes / Malcolm, Cincinnati Shakes); Kill the Magistrate (Boston Playwrights); You're A Good Man, Charlie Brown (Sally, Berkshire Theatre Group); The Play That Goes Wrong (Cincinnati Shakes); Romeo & Juliet (Tybalt, Cincinnati Shakes / Comm Shakes), As You Like It (Rosalind, Nashville Shakes); She Reached For Heaven (Nash Rep); As You Like It (Little Foxes Theatre - London). Voiceover/TV: Dead Sea Squirrels (Jane, Prime). She is also the Management Director of The Table Read Co, a non profit which supports emerging new works in NYC. annikaburley.com @annikaburley

Joshua William Gelb (Peter) is the founder of Theater in Quarantine (TiQ), the Obie and Drama League Award-winning digital performance lab launched in 2020 from a closet in the East Village. Recent projects include Phantom of the Opera (NYU Skirball), The 7th Voyage of Egon Tichy (Under the Radar / NYTW / Lortel), Nosferatu: A 3D Symphony of Horror (NYU Skirball), and Untitled Miniature (HERE Arts Center). Gelb has performed in much of TiQ's work, as well as with Little Lord, Target Margin Theater, Theater Reconstruction Ensemble, Haruna Lee, Tele-Violet, Woodshed Collective, and others. joshuawilliamgelb.com @joshuawilliamgelb (facebook/insta/tiktok)

Liz Leimkuhler (Katarina) is an actor, comedian, musician, and sculptor based in Brooklyn. Select stage credits include Oratorio for Living Things (Ars Nova), Beardo (Pipeline Theater Company), and Gloria dir. by Doug Hughes. She has helped develop new work with The Public, Atlantic Theater Company, The New Group, The Civilians, and many more. TV: American Horror Story (FX), The Gilded Age (HBO). She performs improv monthly with Entirely From Memory at littlefield. MFA: NYU. www.lizleimkuhler.com IG: @lemonwarmer

Sophie Sorensen (Martha) was born in the English countryside and raised in Sweden. Credits include: Kate Hamill's Pride and Prejudice (Playhouse on Park), The Russian And The Jew (The Tank), The Report opposite Michael Countryman (FringeNYC), Kristine in A Doll's House (Axial Theatre). Also Olga in Eve Best's workshop of Three Sisters. Film and TV: Barbarian and Dr Death. Sophie is the female voice of The Beatles Channel on SiriusXM and thoroughly enjoys all kinds of voice-over work. Graduate of The American Academy of Dramatic Arts and longtime student of the late Michael Howard. She is also a RN, a Reiki practitioner, and a lover of trees. For my book-loving husband. sophiesorensen.com