Dan Hoyle Returns To Marsh SF With TALK TO YOUR PEOPLE New Work Ignited By Pandemic

Award-winning actor and playwright Dan Hoyle makes a much-anticipated return to live performances at The Marsh San Francisco, where he will premiere his latest work, Talk To Your People.

A comic, nuanced, and thought-provoking inquiry into some of the most-talked-about issues of this era, Talk To Your People was developed with and directed by Charlie Varon, with directing consultant Erin Gilley, and additional consulting from Mark Kenward, Wayne Harris, and Molly Rose-Williams.

Pending any future pandemic restrictions, Talk To Your People will begin previews January 22 and continue through March 26, 2022 (press opening: February 12) with performances at 7:00pm Fridays and 5:00pm Saturdays at The Marsh San Francisco, 1062 Valencia St., San Francisco. For tickets ($25-$35 sliding scale; $50 and $100 reserved) or more information, the public may visit www.themarsh.org.

This new solo show was sparked during month four of the COVID-19 crisis, June 2020, when protests over the death of George Floyd were being held across the country and a pandemic shell-shocked America was confronting issues related to race, privilege, masculinity, and power. Stuck at home in Oakland, Hoyle spoke to a Black theater colleague in New York who suggested that he consider delving into how liberal white folks were dealing with these reckonings. "Go talk to your people," she urged. This seemed impossible at first given COVID, but Hoyle cautiously started meeting strangers in parks and beaches, and talked to neighbors, old friends, and people he'd met throughout his travels. A show began to emerge: a comedy, an inquiry, a meditation on how society got to this moment, and how humanity might move forward. Talk To Your People showcases a portfolio of characters that are unique, funny, and searching - all brought to the stage in Hoyle's signature style. Together, they illuminate and juxtapose a varied slice of white liberal America. The show is punctuated by songs that explore Hoyle's thoughts on these issues, and by video footage shot by Hoyle in Oakland and the Bay Area during the pandemic.

The Marsh is known as "a breeding ground for new performance." It was launched in 1989 by Founder and Artistic Director Stephanie Weisman, and pre-COVID hosted more than 600 performances of 175 shows across the company's two venues in San Francisco and Berkeley. A leading outlet for solo performers, The Marsh's specialty has been hailed by the San Francisco Chronicle as "solo performances that celebrate the power of storytelling at its simplest and purest." The East Bay Times named The Marsh one of Bay Area's best intimate theaters, calling it "one of the most thriving solo theaters in the nation. The live theatrical energy is simply irresistible." Since its launch in April 2020, the theatre's digital platform MarshStream has garnered more than 100,000 viewers.

Notable MarshStream moments include the debut of MarshStream International Solo Fest, The Marsh's first- ever digital festival, and the U.S. premiere of The Invisible Line, a new documentary about one of the world's most famous social experiments gone wrong. Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic MarshStream has hosted over 500 LIVE streams, providing some 300 performers a platform to continue developing and producing art. The Marsh will continue to offer digital content on MarshStream, as well as in-person performances.