New Perspectives Theatre Company's May Mini Festival of Staged Readings Kicks off This Weekend

New Perspectives Theatre Company (NPTC) has announced the May Mini Festival of Staged Readings, featuring new works from the Women's Work Full-length LAB. All performances are at New Perspectives Studio, 458 West 37th Street @10th Avenue. Admission is by donation ($10 suggested) and reservations may be made on Eventbrite.

The festival features four completed scripts in First Look, Up & Coming and Ready for Primetime categories including LEDA'S CHILDREN by Joan Castagone, THE WORST ROOMATE IN THE WORLD by Michele A. Miller, THE DICTATOR'S DENTIST by Sonya Hayden,. and I CAN'T REMEMBER by Zakeia Tyson-Cross. Bits & Pieces offers sneak previews of four brand new works by Gena Bardwell, Rebekah Lopatto, MJ Perrin, and Jane Denitz Smith.

SATURDAY, MAY 20:

READY FOR PRIMETIME:

LEDA'S CHILDREN by Joan Castagnone, 2:00pm

Inspired by Aeschylus' Agamemnon, LEDA'S CHILDREN takes place in 1978 after the violent upheavals of the 1960s. Radical revolutionaries are now working within the system, but the death of a daughter for political gain still requires a reckoning. After 10 years on the run, the leader of the movement returns, ready to resume his rightful place in the hierarchy. His wife has other plans. Directed by Melody Brooks

FIRST LOOK:

THE WORST ROOMMATE IN THE WORLD by Michele A. Miller, 5:30pm

College roommates Ter and Blane are having some issues, especially since Blane continues to colonize Ter's space without a care in the world. In this absurdist modern Morality play, their struggles are set against a re-imagined backdrop of Creation, and the true legacy of the loss of Eden. Directed by Kathy Curtiss

SUNDAY, MAY 21

UP & COMING

THE DICTATOR'S DENTIST by Sonya Hayden, 2:00pm

This history-inspired dramedy follows the journey of Hitler's dentist as his ambitions get in the way of his relationships and morals. The play poses a question about the cost of silence in the face of injustice and reflects on the deeply embedded oppressive systems we are still facing today. Directed by Zoya Kachadurian

BITS & PIECES, 5:00PM

Excerpts from brand new plays still in the early development stages from Gena Bardwell, Rebekah Lopatto, Jane Denitz Smith, and MJ Perrin.

MONDAY, MAY 22

READY FOR PRIMETIME:

I CAN'T REMEMBER by Zakeia Tyson-Cross, 6:30pm

When Jerome Davis' sister, Renee reveals to him a long- held secret, it opens the door to many things that have been hidden within the family. As tensions rise, the family struggles to reconcile competing memories, complicated by father Ed's increasing dementia. Directed by Melody Brooks

TUESDAY, MAY 23

A Roundtable/Panel Discussion, 7:00pm

How are Playwrights Managing the New Focus on Inclusivity in Their Work?

Moderated by Malini Singh McDonald, Executive Producer, Theatre Beyond Broadway

NPTC is an award-winning, multi-racial company performing at its home in the Theatre District, communities throughout NYC and as of 2015, internationally. NPTC's Women's Work Project has been developing and producing award-winning, provocative scripts since its inception in 1994. The Project was the featured program for the 2018 Barbour Playwriting Award, submitting three finished scripts from the LAB as finalists. Alexis Roblan was the winner, with The Andrew Play. NPTC received a prestigious and highly competitive grant from the NYC Women's Fund in 2022 to produce How to Melt ICE, a new script developed in the LAB by Amalia Oliva Rojas. The play was produced in collaboration with Boundless Theatre Company in February 2023, directed by Elena Araoz. Other notable Women's Work scripts include: Exhibit #9 by Tracy Scott Wilson (Audelco Award); Jihad, The Play by Ann Chamberlain (OOBR Award for Excellence); Anatomy of a Love Affair by Deirdre Hollman (Optioned by Essence Entertainment); MOTHER OF GOD! by Michele Miller (Princess Grace Foundation Finalist). Founded in 1991, the Company's mission is to develop and produce new plays and playwrights, especially women and people of color; to present classic plays in a style that addresses contemporary issues; and to extend the benefits of theatre to young people and communities in need. Our aim is not to exclude but to cast a wider net.

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