Lisa Ramirez's TO THE BONE Opens Tonight at Cherry Lane

The legendary Cherry Lane Theatre - which this year will celebrate its 90th anniversary as one of the nation's most revered institutions for its commitment to producing new works for the stage - opens its 90th season with the world-premiere of Lisa Ramirez's play TO THE BONE directed by Lisa Peterson, set to open tonight, September 17 at Cherry Lane Theatre (38 Commerce St. in Greenwich Village). The production runs through October 4.

TO THE BONE is being presented as part of the second annual Theater:Village festival, which presents a series of new plays in prominent West Village theaters based around one playwright or common theme. The participating theater companies for Theater:Village are Axis Company, Cherry Lane Theatre, New Ohio Theatre and Rattlestick Playwrights Theater and their plays are presented collectively under the title E PLURIBUS with four new plays celebrating the diversity of America.

A contemporary American drama, TO THE BONE is about Latina immigrant poultry workers in the U.S. and in the spirit of John Steinbeck's OF MICE AND MEN gives audiences a look inside the lives of the invisible work force that puts food on our tables. The play was inspired by interviews conducted by Ms. Ramirez during a six month period in New York State's Sullivan County. The play was originally commissioned by Working Theater, Mark Plesent, Producing Artstic Director.

The cast for TO THE BONE features Lisa Ramirez, Annie Henk, Liza Fernandez, Paola Lazaro-Munoz, Xochitl Romero, Dan Domingues, Gerardo Rodriguez and Haynes Thigpen. Scenic design is by Rachel Hauck, lighting design by Russell Champa, costume design by Theresa Squire, sound design by Jill Du Boff. Morgan Jenness is dramaturg, Terri Kohler is stage manager and Theresa Von Klug is general manager.

LISA RAMIREZ's first play, EXIT CUCKOO was first presented Off Broadway by the Working Theater (Colman Domingo-director) and subsequently toured in various theaters throughout the U.S. and Ireland. Other writing credits include; ART OF MEMORY; a dance theatre piece, commissioned by Company SoGoNo and presented at the Ontological-Hysteric Theater and the 3-Legged Dog in New York. (Conceived and directed by Tanya Calamoneri); INVISIBLE WOMEN-RISE; a collaboration with the Foundry Theatre and Domestic Workers United; TO THE BONE; a Working Theater commission was a finalist for the 2011 Smith Prize, the O'Neill National Playwrights Conference and the first Ellen Stewart Award; ALL FALL DOWN was written during a residency at INTAR's 2011/12 Maria Irene Fornés Hispanic Playwrights in Residency Lab. In 2013 Lisa was part of Mentor Project's 15th anniversary season at the Cherry Lane Theatre where she wrote and performed her new solo-show; PAS DE DEUX (lost my shoe) (Cynthia Hopkins- mentor and Bryan Davidson Blue- director).

Lisa Peterson's recent NY directing credits include AN ILIAD, written by Denis O'Hare; SHIPWRECKED by Donald Margulies; SLAVS! By Tony Kushner; COLLECTED STORIES, THE MODEL APARTMENT at Primary Stages; and SUENO by Jose Rivera. Ms. Peterson has previously directed two productions with Cherry Lane Theatre's award-winning Mentor Project program.

Cherry Lane Theatre is one of the most renowned theaters in the country, having produced a large succession of plays by nascent writers whose names have lent distinction to the American and international literary and dramatic treasuries dating back to the 20s: F. Scott Fitzgerald, Auden, Gertrude Stein, Beckett, Albee, Pinter and many more. In 1996 Angelina Fiordellisi revived Cherry Lane, preserved the building and detailed history, and founded the producing company Cherry Lane Alternative, creating a number of programs to launch the next generation of American playwrights. Angelina Fiordellisi is Founding Artistic Director of Cherry Lane Theatre; Seri Lawrence is Literary Manager and Janio Marrero is Facility Director.

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