Untitled Theater Company #61 Hosts Free the Androids Benefit Fundraiser, 12/4

Untitled Theater Company #61 (UTC61) will host a benefit for the Free the Androids movement, a movement devoted to the plight of the enslaved androids on Mars, on Saturday, December 4, 2010. UTC61's production of Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, a stage adaption of the Philip K Dick novel, which will run at 3-Legged Dog November 18 through December 12, was the inspiration for the fundraiser. Proceeds may also be used to help benefit the theater company.

When asked what first led him to consider the plight of Artificial Intelligence, Artistic Director Edward Einhorn said, "The more I dug into the material, the more aware I became of the plight of androids on Mars. We on Earth know only those androids who have escaped and gone rogue--driven rogue, I should say, by their enslavement. Mercer teaches us empathy for sheep, but what of electric sheep? What of electric humans? Empathy should extend to all." When asked to comment on the rumor that Buster Friendly himself would leave his studio to appear at the event, Einhorn declined to respond but did note that "This will be a bounty hunter free zone. Androids can feel free to attend with an assurance of their own safety." All androids and sympathizers are welcome to come dressed for the occasion.

The fundraiser will take place following the December 4 performance of the production at 3-Legged Dog located at 80 Greenwich Street, New York, NY. Tickets for the fundraiser are $40; a limited number of theater-fundraiser tickets are available for $50. Tickets may be purchased at www.untitledtheater.com or from 212-352-3101.

UTC61 is a Theater of Ideas: scientific, political, philosophical, and above all theatrical. UTC61 previous productions and events have included Cat's Cradle, a calypso musical based on the book by Vonnegut; The Václav Havel Festival; the NEUROfest (plays about neurology); the Off-Broadway production of Fairy Tales of the Absurd; and The Velvet Oratorio, which premiered last year at the Walter Bruno Theater at Lincoln Center.