Casting Announced For IT'S COMPLICATED In Virtual Rochester Fringe

"It's Complicated", an evening of three short plays written by playwright Derek Roland, has announced casting for it's Rochester Fringe Festival production. The show will be featured during the Virtual Fringe which runs September 15th-26th and will be available on demand throughout the festival at rochesterfringe.com.

The three new plays take a close look at couples throughout history navigating the challenges of being in a relationship. The show features a cast of professional performers from Broadway, Off-Broadway, film, and television which are in real life relationships.

"Me Make Warm" will star CK Edwards and Tia DeShazor as a prehistoric couple who discover fire - or at least one of them does. CK Edwards has performed on Broadway in Shuffle Along, After Midnight, and Billy Elliot and recently performed in the National Tour of Frozen. Tia DeShazor has appeared on Comedy Central's Alternatino with Arturo Castro and will also be featured in HBO's upcoming film Bad Education starring Hugh Jackman. She recently produced The New Black Leading Lady, a show featuring her own work as a writer and lyricist.

"Et Tu, Cornelia?" will feature Emilee Dupre as Cornelia and David Larsen as Maximus, a Roman Soldier whose decision to leave the army to pursue his dream of becoming a philosopher causes Cornelia to question their future, and the future of the Republic. Emilee Dupre has originated roles on Broadway in Chaplin and The People In The Picture, and has performed in the National Tours of Fosse, A Chorus Line, and Dirty Rotten Scoundrels. David Larsen has performed in the Broadway productions of Hands On A Hardbody, American Idiot, and Billy Elliot, and starred as Elder Price in the National Tour of Book Of Mormon.

"Together Forever" will showcase Brent McBeth as Stuart and Matthew Napoli as Chris. When a couple discover that they each have very different plans for the afterlife, it casts a shadow over their current relationship. Brent McBeth has starred Off-Broadway in Room 17B (59E59), Time Step (New Victory Theatre), Everybody Gets Cake (59E59) and numerous productions at City Center Encores, as well as the Big Apple Circus' The Grand Tour. Matthew Napoli has appeared Off-Broadway in Holy Ghosts with Theatre East, in the NY Fringe Festival, and in films Across The Universe and Ode To Joy. He has also performed with a number of opera companies, including The Metropolitan Opera, The New York City Opera, and The Virginia Opera.

Originally from Rochester, NY, Derek Roland is a writer, performer, choreographer, director, and arts educator based in New York. His writing has been featured at the New Victory Theatre (Off-Broadway), the Traverse Theatre (Edinburgh Fringe Festival), the New York Theatre Festival (winner "Best Actor"), the International Human Rights Festival (NYC), and as a part of The Comfortably Quarantined Project, for which he is also the artistic director. He holds a Master's in Playwriting from the University of Edinburgh, where he was awarded the William Hunter Sharpe Memorial Scholarship for playwriting. Derek is also a long-standing company member with 3-time Drama Desk nominated Parallel Exit Theatre Company in New York City.

Tickets are $10 and may be purchased at rochesterfringe.com

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