HotCity Theatre Presents INTELLIGENT LIFE 4/29-5/14

HotCity Theatre, a professional theatre company with a focus on contemporary programming and new play development announces the opening of Intelligent Life, by New Mexico-based playwright Lauren Dusek Albonico. Intelligent Life was a finalist for the 2009 Greenhouse New Play Festival and will make its professional world premiere with HotCity. Originally from St. Louis and alumnus of Washington University, Lauren Dusek Albonico considers it to be a quirky comedy that deals seriously with issues of faith, and was inspired by her experiences coming into womanhood as a Conservative Catholic in a secular learning environment. HotCity is proud to present Intelligent Life this spring. Annamaria Pileggi directs.

When: April. 29th - May 14th, with a preview April 28th. Performances are on Thursdays, Fridays - 8pm, Saturdays - 3pm and 8pm*, Sundays - 7pm.

*There is no 3:00pm matinee performance on opening weekend (April 30th).

Where: The Kranzberg Arts Center, 501 N. Grand in the Big Brothers Big Sisters Building, just south of the Fox Theatre.

Ticket Info: General Admission tickets are $25 for adults and $20 for seniors (62+). $15 Student Rush Tickets available 10 minutes before show time. Preview tickets on Thursday, April 28thare $15. Group discounts are available.

About The Show: Set in the basement of a tenant house in Utah, Intelligent Life tells the farcical tale of extraterrestrial, peyote-driven enthusiasts, self-titled "Utah Alien Chasers." This ramshackle group discovers a mud-stained little boy in a dinosaur costume who may or may not be an alien. What is certain is that the boy has a genius level IQ and telekinetic powers that are beyond this world!  Intelligent Life is a comedic exploration about faith and what it means to believe.

Playwright's Bio: Lauren Dusek Albonico is a playwright, director, designer, actor, and educator. She has worked in her hometown of St. Louis, in Chicago, and now currently in New Mexico. She received her B.A. in drama from Washington University in St. Louis and is now completing her M.A. in Theatre Education and Outreach from the University of New Mexico. She is the Director of UNM's Saturday Theatre Classes Program as well as the Director of the site-specific outreach project "Shakespeare on the Rail" which takes Shakespeare scenes out of the context of their plays and thrusts them into the context of the cars of the New Mexico Rail Runner. For her work in theatre education and outreach, she received this year the national American Alliance for Theatre and Education (AATE) Doyle Fellowship Recognition award at the conference in San Francisco. She continues to write and is currently focusing on writing for young audiences in addition to working on another full-length called "Boogie."

Cast: Jessie - Emily Fisher, Gary - Kevin Beyer, Terrence - Alan McClintock, Robin - Aarya Sara Locker*, Beau - Scott Schneider, Aethen - Parker S. Donovan

Crew: Director - Annamaria Pileggi, Stage Manager - Kate Koch*, Set Designer - Otis Sweezey, Lighting Designer - Michael Sullivan, Costume Designer - Jane Sullivan, Sound Designer - Matt Koch.

* indicates member of Actors' Equity, the association of professional actors and stage managers in the United States.

HotCity Theatre operates under a Small Professional Theatre contract with Actors Equity, the union of professional actors and Stage Managers in the United States, and receives funding from the Regional Arts Commission, The Whitaker Foundation, The Arts and Education Council, The Greater St. Louis Community Foundation, The Missouri Arts Council, The Fox Performing Arts Charitable Foundation, The John R. Goodall Charitable Trust and the William A. Kerr Foundation, as well as generous individuals in the community.

For more information, contact Allyson Ditchey at allyson@hotcitytheatre.org.

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