Rising Sun's CHILD'S PLAY to Make NYC Premiere at the Kraine This Spring

Rising Sun Performance Company and Founding Artistic Director Akia present Child's Play by Kevin D. Ferguson, directed by Brock H. Hill. Child's Play opens April 13th for a strictly limited run, with only 9 performances at the storied Kraine Theatre (85 East 4th Street NYC).

Production Stage Manager is Millie Wells*. Assistant Director is Anna Hogan. Dramaturg is Maggie Kissinger.

Coming off their critically acclaimed, award winning season that included "Sprucehaven B" at the FRIGID Festival and "Helvetica" at Planet Connections Theatre Festivity, Rising Sun Performance Company returns to the Kraine Theatre to present "Child's Play". 2017 Marks Rising Sun's 16th Season of producing Independent theatre in New York City and surrounding areas. This is the first full production of the Rising Sun 2017 season, which has a focused effort to feature female protagonists and gender parity.

The play centers around Vera, an over-worked child therapist who struggles to peel back the layers of mistrust surrounding a traumatized child who has stopped speaking. She enters the internal world of this little girl to help her confront the dragon that has stolen her voice and threatens to completely destroy her.

"Child's Play" will feature the talents of RSP's critically acclaimed ensemble: Andrew Gonzales, Ashleigh Herndon, Christian Victoria Allen, Crystal Edn*, Katie Esswein, Mercedes Vasequez, Michael Pichardo, Raine Cantisano & Ronald Kitts.

On the creative/production team are Jaz Okura-Youtsey, Rachel Langley, Tammy Gibbens, Ian Werhle and Zachary Goin.

Performance Schedule:
Thursday April 13th 7:30PM
Friday April 14th 7:30PM
Saturday April 15th 7:30PM
Sunday April 16th 2PM
Wednesday April 19th 7:30PM
Friday April 21st 7:30PM
Saturday April 22nd 3PM
Saturday April 22nd 7:30PM
Sunday April 23rd 2PM

Tickets: $12 Students/Seniors with Valid ID; $20 in Advance; $25 at the Door. Visit www.risingsunnyc.com for details. All performances will be at The Kraine Theatre 85 East 4th Street, New York, NY 10003 (between Bowery & 2nd Avenue; close to the 6 Train -Bleeker St Stop, N,R to Broadway/8th St, or F Train to 2nd Avenue). Venue is not wheelchair accessible. Run Time: 90 Minutes. *Childs Play is an Equity Showcase production.

ABOUT THE ARTISTS:

Rising Sun Performance Company is a vital part of the Off-Off Broadway landscape; being one of the longest running ensemble companies at our producing level in NYC. Founded in September of 2001, RISING SUN PERFORMANCE COMPANY (RSP) is dedicated to producing ensemble-based work. It is run by artists for artists to allow them to create their own opportunities instead of their opportunities creating them. RSP is the full time artistic home for a wide range of theatre artists, including actors, writers, directors, designers, singers, and dancers. 2016 marks the beginning of RSP's 15th producing season, culminating in 100 plus productions and events. This includes the development of countless NYC and World debut plays, over 70 One Act Plays as part our annual series, 3 musical cabaret series, free outdoor performances, children's theatre, immersive themed theatrical experiences and its trademark revivals, including sold out critically acclaimed hits: Goodnight Lovin' Trail, The Shape of Things, An Adult Evening of Shel Silverstein, Hellcab The Last Supper, Fool For Love, Bug and Brilliant Traces. RSP has been Artist in Residence at Horse TRADE Theater Group, The Field's Far Space, Hosteling International and Space on White. RSP has received 7 New York Innovative Theatre Award Nominations, 23 PCTF Nominations and 6 Awards from Planet Connections Theatre Festivity and is a 5 time FRIGID NY Festival Award Winner. Check out our website www.risinsunnyc.com for more information about us.

Kevin D. Ferguson (Playwright) is Playwright-in-Residence at Atlantic Stage in Myrtle Beach, SC, where his plays Child's Play, Spinning Jenny, and A Thing With Feathers as well as his adaptation of Dickens' A Christmas Carol premiered. Child's Play is his first New York production. Spinning Jenny is being produced in St. Louis next season at the Tesseract Theatre. Kevin is a Teaching Associate in the Theatre Department at Coastal Carolina University and received an MFA in Playwriting with a Concentration in Dramaturgy from Hollins University's Playwrights Lab. He is a member of the Dramatists Guild of America and the Literary Managers and Dramaturgs of the Americas.

Brock H. Hill (Director) is a New York based director and arts administrator. He is the Producing Artistic Director of the Planet Connections Festivity and Artistic Director of the Altruistic Theatre Company. He is known for ensemble based, organic work and dislike of long transitions. Selected projects include: Helvetica (Rising Sun, Planet Connections); Mistakes Madeline Made, Humans Anonymous (Tongue in Cheek Prod); Books on Tape (Tongue in Cheek, FringeNYC); Civilization! (Planet Connections Festivity); Choose Your Grown Adventure, Wardrobe of the Living Dead (Altruistic Theatre); Invoice (Leela Theatre Festival); In Transit (Articulate Theatre). For more information, visit Brockhhill.com.

Akia, Producer & Founding Artistic Director is an active member of the flourishing Off-Off/Indie & Off Broadway theatre communities having produced, directed, and performed with numerous NYC companies for over 19 years. She is the Company Manager for the international sensation, Blue Man Group at the Astor Place Theater. She has received critical praise for her direction of RSP long running hits such as "Hellcab", "Goodnight Lovin' Trail", "The Last Supper", "Crapshoot", "Bug" and most recently "Sprucehaven B". She served as an advisory Board Member for The Paul Butterfield Fund & Society, and is the Company Manager & Producer for The New York Innovative Theatre Awards & Foundation, where she serves on their honorary awards committee as Sub-Committee Chairman and as an At-Large Judge. Past notable credits include working on staff at Horse Trade Theatre Group, serving as General Manager for FRIGID New York's inaugural year, and returning as Volunteer Coordinator in 2009, and House Manager for subsequent years since. She also served as Production Coordinator for nationally acclaimed Puerto Rican Traveling Theatre, overseeing the Playwrights Unit and INSIGHT 13 production series. She is a recipient of the New York Innovative Theatre Awards "Founders Award" for her contributions to the organization and Off Off Broadway Community. She was awarded the Congeniality Award in both 2014 & 2015 Planet Connections Theatre Festivity for RSP's productions of Donkey & the Firebird.

Pictured: Christian Victoria Allen, Katie Esswein, Raine Cantisano. Photo by N-K Photography.

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