What We're Seeing: The Pool

Through December 16, The Pool is taking over The Flea Theater downtown. What is The Pool you ask? Well technically it's a temporary consortium formed by playwrights Lynn Rosen, Peter Gil-Sheridan & Susan Bernfield to drive their own processes and produce their ready-to-go plays. More personally, it's a big ol' group of artists we love coming together to make three awesome plays. Back in the Summer of 2014 we workshopped Washed Up On The Potomac with Lynn Rosen. You may also recognize Juan Arturo (The Oregon Trail), Crystal Finn (playwright of The Faire) and Adam Green (workshops of Bernhard and Washed Up On The Potomac). Behind the scenes, Kaila Galinat, our assistant stage manager for The Oregon Trail, is stage managing Washed Up On The Potomac. A last but certainly not least, our fearless leader Aaron Rossini is the line producer for the whole operation. That's at least six really good reasons to check out these shows!

November 15 - December 16, 2017
The Flea Theater
20 Thomas Street
New York, NY 10007

A Little About The Shows

TANIA IN THE GETAWAY VAN

It’s 1975 in the San Francisco Bay Area, and Laura’s mom is going back to school. Diane is discovering liberation, openness, possibility! But that doesn’t mean eleven-year-old Laura has to play along, no way. She’s in the hall closet, pretending to be Patty Hearst. Fast forward to 2012. Successful Laura looks like a model product of the women’s movement… or is she just the byproduct of Diane’s expectations?

Cast:

• Annie McNamara
• Caitlin Morris
• Courtney G. Williams
• Madeline Wise

Creative:

• Written by Susan Bernfield
• Directed by Portia Krieger

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WASHED UP ON THE POTOMAC

Order is the name of the game in this D.C. proofreading office, but things are all off today. It’s 90 degrees in October, an error has been made on a major account, and someone is going to be fired. As three proofreaders ponder their futures, they become haunted and inspired by memories of a coworker whose body may have washed up on the Potomac today. Who is the next to go? Or are they already gone? A dark comedy about the ways in which we try to stay afloat.

Cast:

• Austin Blunk
• Crystal Finn
• Adam Green
• Jennifer Morris
• Debargo Sanyal
• Jacque Emord-Netzley

Creative:

• Written by Lynn Rosen
• Directed by José Zayas

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THE RAFA PLAY

Peter Gil, a legendary but retired playwright, has been whisked away to Mallorca to a fantasy life by his husband, tennis superstar Rafael Nadal. When he returns to New York to let his friends know just how successful his life has become, he finds them (actress Eva Patton and casting director John Ort, CSA) in disarray at a posh New York City restaurant. When Rafa himself comes to retrieve his love, Peter is transported back to Mallorca to do battle with the realities of Rafa’s life, family, and career.

Cast:

• Juan Arturo
• Olli Haaskivi
• Tommy Heleringer
• Annie Henk
• Megan Hill
• Tommy Russell

Creative:

• Written by Peter Gil-Sheridan
• Directed by Morgan Gould

Amazon Smile

Did you know you can support Fault Line Theatre simply by shopping online? It's easy, just go to www.Smile.Amazon.com, select Fault Line Theatre as your charity of choice, and you can shop Amazon exactly how you always have. Nothing changes, but the AmazonSmile Foundation will donate 0.5% of the purchase to Fault Line Theatre. That may not sound like much, but all those 0.5 percents add up. 

Enjoy Cyber Monday and support new plays at the exact same time! 

What We're Seeing: Up/Down Here/There

If you've been to one of our Irons in the Fire projects, you've likely met Caroline Smith wearing a Fault Line Theatre t-shirt and keeping the event running smoothly. This weekend, you can catch her on stage in Up/Down Here/There, the inaugural production of Best Intention Theater Company's second season. There are only two chances to catch this new play, so don't procrastinate!

The Mark O'Donnell Theater at the Actors Fund Arts Center
160 Schermerhorn Street
Brooklyn, NY 11201

A Little About The Show

Up/Down Here/There examines the hopes, dreams, pasts, and futures of those who can’t stop wondering about what happens beyond Earth. Told through interweaving strands, it's a ensemble play about home, Mars, and how to tell the difference

Cast:

• Maddie Browning
• Bailey Hawthorne
• Katherine Freel
• Nell Kessler
• Jonathan Young
• Sam Richardson
• Felix Birdie
• Caroline Smith
• Sam Krapels

Creative:

• Written by Jonathan Young
• Directed by Joseph Kevin Coles

The Fitzgeralds Of St. Paul

Last weekend, we invited a small group of friends and collaborators to take a look behind the scenes with writer Christie Baugher and director Danny Mefford (Dear Evan Hanson, Fun Home) in an open rehearsal we hosted of their musical-in-progress The Fitzgeralds of St. Paul. In the new year, we will be back in the room with Christie and Danny to further develop this exciting new show! 

The Fitzgeralds of St. Paul is a two-person, one act full-length chamber musical about F. Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald, celebrated literary figures of the Jazz Age. Part memory play, part gin-soaked vaudeville, The Fitzgeralds of St. Paul is a fictionalized, hyper-theatrical imagining of the lives and adventures of F. Scott Fitzgerald and his wife Zelda – an evening in which two tragic, larger-than-life icons of a bygone era finally get to tell their story.

Round Table at Hex & Co.

Thank you so much to everyone who came out to hear Round Table by Liba Vaynberg at Hex and Company last weekend! This work-in-progress was directed by Geordie Broadwater and marked the second project of our Irons in the Fire reading series. After hearing the play, we headed to the beautiful rooftop patio of The Heights Bar & Grill. 

If you were able to attend, it was our pleasure to share this play and enjoy the first few days of Fall with you. If not, we hope to see you at the next one in the new year!

All photos by Katherine Oostman.

What We're Seeing: Macbeth

Our friends at The Backroom Shakespeare Project are doing Halloween right! Don't miss their production of Macbeth... ahem.... The Scottish Play featuring Ali Rose Dachis (The Wedge Horse). This all goes down at Radegast Hall, which is quite honestly one of the best bars the city has to offer. In keeping with the season, there is also a costume contest, tarot card readings, and plenty of other Halloween goodness. Best of all, there's no cover! Just show up and enjoy some beers, sausages, and theatre.

October 30, 2017
Radegast Hall and Biergarten
113 N. 3rd St.
Brooklyn, NY 11211

A Little About The Show

Doors at 6:30pm
Play starts at 7:30pm

Shakespeare's actors had no director. They rehearsed only the fights and dances. They got their lines and their cues, they grabbed their balls and tried to tell the truth. When they failed, they probably really bit it. 

Hell of a legend, right? 

The Back Room Shakespeare Project takes as much of it as seems useful. We read the play once, we memorize our parts, and we rehearse it once. We have no director, and we perform in bars, for free. For you! An unruly bunch of drunks! 

Cast:

• Victoria Blad
• Emily Shai
• Shannon Matesk
• Emily Case
• Caitlin Costell
• Miriam Mint
• Katie Melb
• Sean McIntyre
• Celine Dirke
• Blake-Briana McKa
• Nowani Rattra
• Ali Rose Dachis
• Jesse Thursto

What We're Seeing: The Mecca Tales

Almost a year ago, we sat down with playwright/director Kareem Fahmy to workshop his play A Face in the Clouds. Ever since, we've become huge fans. 3/Fifths was a spectacular immersive carnival and cabaret through a dystopian ehtno-theme park. Not My Monster was a children's play at The Flea (written by our buddy Nick Gandiello). Regardless of subject matter or genre, his work is reliably incredible. That's why this month we can't wait to catch his latest directorial effort The Mecca Tales written by Rohina Malik at the Sheen Center in association with Voyage Theater Company.

October 20 - November 4, 2017
Sheen Center, Black Box Theater
18 Bleecker St
New York, NY 10012

A Little About The Show

THE MECCA TALES tells the story of five Muslim women on the pilgrimage known as the Hajj. When their bus is stopped miles short of their destination, tempers flare and the women are tested in unexpected ways. They share their personal stories in an attempt to move forward in their lives and find meaning in a spiritual journey seemingly gone awry.

Cast:

• Cynthia Bastidas
• Kimberly S. Fairbanks
• Mariam Habib
• Gulshan Mia
• Jade Radford
• Louis Sallan

Creative:

• Written by Rohina Malik
• Directed by Kareem Fahmy
• Set Design: David Esler
• Costume Design: Teresa Snider-Stein
• Lighting Design: Devorah Kengmana
• Sound Design: Fan Zhang
• Assistant Costume Design: Karim Rivera-Rosado
• Assistant Lighting Design: Ashley Kok
• Production Stage Management: Keri Landeiro
• Assistant Stage Managers: Kelli McGurk & Tiffany McWilliams
• Choreographer: Theara J. Ward
• Dramaturg: Salma Zohdi

What We're Seeing: Arden/Everywhere: The As You Like It Project

Liba Vaynberg is a busy, busy woman. Earlier this year, she starred in our production of Bekah Brunstetter's The Oregon Trail. Last month her solo show Scheiss Book was remounted at Dixon Place after a sold out run at the United Solo Festival. Now she is appearing in Arden/Everywhere: The "As You Like It" Project, a contemporary reframing of the famous Shakespeare's comedy. Liba is awesome. Shakespeare is awesome. That's too much awesome in a show to miss it!

October 8 -28, 2017
Baruch Performing Arts Center
55 Lexington Avenue
New York, NY 10010

A Little About The Show

A good and gentle leader has been overthrown in a coup. His daughter must run away or be killed. She disguises herself as a man in order to protect herself while she searches for safety. In a world of political instability where brother is plotting to kill brother, people from all walks of life are trying to escape danger and make a life in exile in the woods.

As You Like It is a play redolent with themes of exile, yet often in production they take a backseat to its love story. Still rooted in Shakespeare’s text, the radical shift of “Arden/Everywhere” comes from taking seriously the stakes of the characters’ circumstances and making that the spine of the story. By bringing questions of exile and dislocation to the fore, the project re-imagines this familiar story filled with beloved characters, making it new and essential for a contemporary audience.

Cast:

• Helen Cespedes* (Rosalind)
• Anthony Cason (Orlando)
• Liba Vaynberg* (Celia)
• Dennis Kozee* (Touchstone)
• Tommy Schrider* (Jaques)
• Kambi Gathesha* (Oliver/Silvius/First Lord)
• Kenneth De Abrew* (Charles and Corin)
• Dikran Tulaine* (Dukes)
• Indika Senanayake* (Phebe/La Belle/Adam)
• Alessandra Mesa (Audrey)
• Ali Arkane (Ensemble/William)
• Jorge Pluas (Ensemble)
• Anton Kurdakov (Ensemble)
• Denisse J. Jimenez (Ensemble)
• Murodilla Fatkhullaev (Ensemble)
• George W. Tarr (Ensemble)

Creative:

• Written by William Shakespeare
• Directed by Jessica Bauman

* actors appearing courtesy of Actors' Equity Association

White History at the Bushwick Community Darkroom

Thank you one and all for making our inaugural Irons in the Fire project a massive success! It was a pleasure to share Dave Harris's White History at the Bushwick Community Darkroom with a room full of friends, collaborators, and fans of new plays. The kick-off BBQ following the presentation had hotdogs grilling long into the night and continued conversations beyond the walls of the theatre-space.

Good plays, good company, and good conversations are our favorite things.

We can't wait to celebrate the next one!

Irons in the Fire: White History

Last month we announced our new, year-round, play development initiative Irons in the Fire and this weekend we're extremely excited to get things underway with White History by Dave Harris.

White History was a semi-finalist for the 2016 Relentless Award and a finalist for the O’Neill Playwriting Conference in 2017. We're thrilled to continue the development of this piece with director Whitney White who is the inaugural 2017 Directing Fellow at Roundabout Theatre.

The cast will include Lucy Van Atta, Ralph Adriel Johnson, Nate Miller, Matthew Russell, Courtney Gabrielle Williams, and Amara Brady reading stage directions.

For more info, check out our new Development page on the website.

Poster Art by Sean Devare