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Amber "the A.I. therapist" makes her debut in Eliza Gibson's solo show BRAVO 25: Your A.I. Therapist Will See You Now at The Marsh San Francisco. Gibson draws on her real-life experience as a social worker and therapist, sharing a story full of broken hearts and addicts in recovery, from a polyamorous lesbian awaiting the arrival of Superintelligence, to a grieving savant who likes donuts.
Gibson brings to life all the characters, including an A.I. avatar and six support group members in BRAVO 25: Your A.I. Therapist Will See You Now, presented September 20-October 27, 2018 (press opening: September 27) with performances 8:00pm Thursdays and 5:00pm Saturdays at The Marsh San Francisco, 1062 Valencia St., San Francisco. For tickets ($20-$35 sliding scale, $55-$100 reserved) or more information, the public may visit www.themarsh.org or call The Marsh Box office at 415-282-3055 (open Monday through Friday, 1pm-4pm).
Winner of the ENCORE! Producers' Award 2017 at the Hollywood Fringe Festival and named "Best Bet" by Theatre Is Easy, BRAVO 25 has been acclaimed as "a sure bet! Futuristic, yet believable" (Hi! Drama). Culture Catch hailed Gibson's ability as she "effortlessly fills the stage with her presence, adeptly generating pathos and comedy" while the Fresno Bee adds "Gibson's characters are well articulated and her stage presence is stellar." BRAVO 25 premiered at the Rogue Festival in Fresno in March 2017, had an extended run at the Hollywood Fringe Festival in July 2017, and a run at FRIGID New York in February 2018. An excerpt of BRAVO 25 was selected to compete in San Francisco's PianoFight's ShortLived competition in February 2016, and in January 2018 the show was selected for a Marsh Rising performance at The Marsh San Francisco.
Eliza Gibson (Playwright/Performer) is a writer and solo performer based in San Francisco. Trained as a classical pianist and a drummer, Eliza wrote and performed her first solo show, Dialogues with Madwomen, in 1995 after returning to the United States from Yugoslavia where she had been a humanitarian aid worker. She also wrote the narrative for Memories Do Not Burn, a documentary about war orphans and refugees featuring the voice of Sarah Jessica Parker. A clinical social worker, in 2008 Eliza led the start-up for Clinic by the Bay, a free health clinic for working uninsured adults, where she served as Executive Director until 2015. Eliza currently works at a health technology company, which may or may not have provided inspiration for BRAVO 25. More information on Eliza can be found on her website: elizagibsonperforms.com.
David Ford (Director) has been collaborating on new and unusual theater for three decades and has been associated with The Marsh for most of that time. The San Francisco press has variously called him "the solo performer maven," "the monologue maestro," "the dean of solo performance," and "the solo performer's best friend." Collaborators include Geoff Hoyle, Echo Brown, Brian Copeland, Charlie Varon, Marilyn Pittman, Rebecca Fisher, Wayne Harris, and Marga Gomez. As a director, Mr. Ford has directed both solo and ensemble work regionally at The Public Theater, Second Stage, Theatre for the New City (NY), Highways (LA) and Woolly Mammoth (Washington, DC) as well as at theaters around the Bay Area including Magic Theatre and Marin Theatre Company. He is also a published playwright.
The Marsh is known as "a breeding ground for new performance." It was launched in 1989 by Founder and Artistic Director Stephanie Weisman, and now annually hosts 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."
