Castillo Theatre Presents LICENSE TO DREAM, Opens 4/29

The Castillo Theatre (Dan Friedman, artistic director, Diane Stiles, managing director) is opening FrEd Newman and David Truskinoff's musical LICENSE TO DREAM, Friday, April 29 and running through Sunday, June 5 with an official press preview on Thursday, April 28, directed by David Nackman and choreographed by Javier Dzul.

License to Dream brings together inner-city youth and professional modern dancer/aerialists from the acclaimed Dzul Dance company. This musical is set at a summer dance camp for underprivileged kids, "Camp Development", in the Hamptons. Neither the underpaid dance counselors nor the poor campers want to be there, and certainly not with each other. With songs by Newman-Truskinoff and choreography by Javier Dzul, sparks fly when East New York meets East Hampton. Though only 90 miles apart, the distance between those who dream and those who have no reason to, requires more than a bridge to connect them.

Performances are Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 p.m. and Sundays at 2:00 p.m. April 29 through June 5 (with no performances Memorial Day weekend). The Castillo Theatre is located at 543 West 42nd Street (between 10th & 11th Avenue). Tickets are $35 for adults, $10 for students and seniors. Group rates are available. Tickets can be purchased through the Castillo Box Office at 212-941-1234 or go to www.castillo.org.

Creative team is available for interviews. Contact Gail Peck at 212-356-8449 or email gpeck@allstars.org.

BIOGRAPHIES

Javier Dzul (choreographer) grew up in Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula performing the ritual dances of his Mayan tribal community. Formal dance training began at the Universidad de Veracruz at which time he also became a principal dancer with Ballet Nacional de Mexico and Ballet Folklorico de Mexico. Javier then received a scholarship to study at Ballet Nacional de Cuba where he remained until 1989. In 1989 Javier was awarded another scholarship by Martha Graham to study at the Martha Graham School of Contemporary Dance. Javier has worked with numerous dance companies since his arrival in New York. He performed primarily with the Martha Graham Dance Company, Pearl Lang Dance Theater, Battery Dance Company, Alvin Ailey Repertory Ensemble and American Indian Dance Theater. In 1995 Fondo Nacional para la Cultura y las Artes (FONCA) of Mexico awarded Javier a scholarship to pursue his dance career in the United States. When he is not performing with his own company he performs and tours regularly as an aerialist with Acroback under the direction of renowned contortionist Jonathan Nosan. Javier began choreographing in 1998 and established Dzul Dance in 2003. In the Spring of 2009 Javier accepted an invitation from the Institute of Culture of Campeche to create and direct Compania de Danza Contemporanea y Aerea del Gobierno del Estado de Campeche; a dance and aerial company funded by Consejo Nacional para la Cultura y las Artes (CONACULTA) of Mexico City and the Government of Campeche.

David Nackman (director) is the Creative Director of Performance of a Lifetime. His first performing experience was as a pre-teen magician. His magic career was short-lived, though, because he found it much more interesting to show people how it's done than to bewilder the audience. In his subsequent career as an actor, director, trainer, and coach, David has dedicated his talent to revealing to "the rest of us" (the non-performers of the world) that the tools of theater can be a powerful force in transforming everyday life. David is a strong believer in, and passionate advocate of, applied theater and improvisation for professional and personal development. He is an innovator in introducing the skills of improvisation as a method for creative effective, authentic, high-impact presentations and communications, and has designed and conducted a wide range of experiential education programs in corporate and non-profit settings. David's work as an actor has taken him from Broadway to theatrical appearances before the 30,000-member convention of the American Psychological Association. On the stage, he has played characters ranging from Franz Kafka and Fidel Castro to Neil Simon and Richard Nixon. A graphic artist in his early career, David approaches his work with Performance of a Lifetime as a designer of peak experiences. An accomplished videographer, editor, and writer, he is a critical implementer of all of POAL's work. David most recently appeared in an award-winning independent feature film, Nothing Really Happens. As an artistic associate at the avant-garde Castillo Theatre on 42nd Street in New York City, he serves as resident acting coach and is a member of the directing staff and acting ensemble.

FREd Newman (playwright) is the artistic director emeritus and playwright-in-residence of the Castillo Theatre. Mr. Hirsch Died Yesterday is the first of 33 plays and musicals he has written since 1986. These plays include: Billie & Malcolm: A Demonstration, Lenin's Breakdown, Outing Wittgenstein, Sally and Tom (The American Way) and Stealin' Home. Mr. Newman served as artistic director for the Castillo Theatre from 1989 until his retirement in 2005. His play Satchel: A Requiem for Racism was co-produced by Castillo and the New Federal Theatre in 2008. In addition, he is one of America's foremost directors of the work of the German post-dramatic playwright Heiner Müller and has also directed plays by Bertolt Brecht, Aimé Césaire, Yosef Mundy and Peter Weiss. In 2002 Mr. Newman wrote and directed the independent film, Nothing Really Happens (Memories of Aging Strippers), which won several film festival awards. In addition to his theatrical work, Mr. Newman is an independent political pioneer, a social therapist and a philosopher. He is a founder of the All Stars Project, Inc. Mr. Hirsch Died Yesterday appears in Still on the Corner and Other Postmodern Political Plays by FrEd Newman, an anthology of his plays published in 1998.

David Truskinoff (composer) has joined the Castillo Theatre as Music Director for past productions of Mantle, Maris, and Mom, Hamletmachine, and Sally and Tom (The American Way). Other Music Director/Conductor credits include, Broadway: RENT, National Tours: RENT, HAIR (currently). Regional credits include productions at Arena Stage, Walnut Street Theatre, Adirondack Theatre Festival, and Florida Stage. David served on the faculties of the Yale School of Drama, The National Theatre Institute and the American Musical and Dramatic Academy. He recently produced and arranged the debut CD of singer Rachel Bay Jones, ShowFolk, a collection of theatre songs performed in a folk/bluegrass setting. www.plumsongrecords.com

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