Next Door At NYTW Presents ISLANDER From Liza Birkenmeier And Katie Brook

Following their New York Times Critic's Pick production of Dr. Ride's American Beach House, playwright Liza Birkenmeier and director Katie Brook are set to premiere their next collaboration, ISLANDER, as part of Next Door at NYTW. ISLANDER repurposes verbatim NHL commentary from the abysmal 2017-2018 New York Islanders season into a sharp comedy about white male fragility, expressiveness, and shame. Previews begin at the Fourth Street Theatre (83 East 4th St, Manhattan) on March 27, 2020, with an opening set for April 1, for a limited run through April 11, 2020. Tickets are on sale now at nytw.org.

The 2017-2018 NHL season was an embarrassment for the New York Islanders. Displaced from their home rink and in danger of losing their captain, they never made it to the playoffs. ISLANDER packs all of the feeling of the rowdy, deceived, passionate New York Islanders fan base into one man's body. Birkenmeier and Brook explore the crisis of the team as the crisis of white male identity.

ISLANDER centers on one man (David Gould) who is determined to have a season of self-improvement. He knows he deserves to win. He can feel it. But as the weeks wear on, his situation only gets worse, in every way possible. A shadow of his former dominance, his current status is ever-crumbling and increasingly embarrassing. In ISLANDER, the humiliating 2017-18 New York Islanders season becomes a one-man dramedy about rooting for yourself even when you're terrible.

"It goes without saying that we are not straight white men," say Birkenmeier and Brook. "But why are we making this? We see the decentralization of the straight white male identity-and the angst that decentralization is creating-and find it inevitable, amusing, terrifying, and pitiable. We think that this shaky-ground moment can be an interesting one for contemplation and growth for everyone and can be best, or perhaps only, explored through the perspectives of people who have not been privileged by it."

ISLANDER stars David Gould as Man and includes supporting performances by Richard Toth and newcomer Preston Bowman.

The creative team for ISLANDER includes set and lighting designer Josh Smith, choreographer Katie Rose McLaughlin, and sound designer Ben Williams.

Fourteen performances of ISLANDER will take place March 24 - April 11 at the Fourth Street Theatre, located at 83 East 4th St in Manhattan. Critics are welcome as of March 24 for an opening on Wednesday, April 1. Tickets, which are $25 general admission / $35 reserved for previews and $30 general admission / $40 reserved for regular performances, are available online at nytw.org; by phone at 212-460-5475, or in-person at the NYTW Box Office. Standard ticketing fees apply. New York Theatre Workshop members and donors receive discounted tickets for the Next Door at NYTW series.

ISLANDER is produced by Televiolet and was developed through a New Georges Audrey Residency. In its Supported Productions program, New Georges provides resources, mentorship and an institutional platform to its affiliated artists who are producing their work independently.

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