Created and produced by Tony-winning producer Arielle Tepper Madover (Mary Stuart, Hair, 33 Variations Frost/Nixon, The Pillowman), SPF 2009 features seven plays and one musical. The festival runs through Aug. 2.
All performances take place in the Anspacher and Martinson Theaters at the Public Theater's Lafayette Street home.
Casting and productions for SPF 2009 follow:
Reborning by Zayd Dohrn. "Art and life become disturbingly interchangeable when a sculptor of baby dolls meets a woman desperate to recreate the past. This dark comedy takes an unsettling look at work, latex, and the power of creation." (July 7-12 in the Anspacher Theater).
Kip Fagan directs the presentation that features Greg Keller (The Seagull, Uncle Vanya), Ally Sheedy ("The Breakfast Club") and Katherine Waterston (Kindness, "The Babysitters"). The Chimes by Kevin Christopher Snipes. "Nick returns to his New England boarding school still haunted by choices he made 40 years ago," according to press notes. "The past overwhelms the present as this thrilling drama flashes back to four young pranksters drawn together by their knack for Shakespeare and ripped apart by the onset of World War II." (July 7-12 in the Martinson Theater).
Adam Immerwahr directs a cast including Elan Moss Bachrach (A Perfect Couple, "Gossip Girl"), Richard Bekins (Love! Valour! Compassion!, "United 93"), Brian C. Johnson (Spring Awakening), Graeme Malcolm (Equus, Translations), John O'Creagh (1776), Andy Phelan (Richard III), Peter Van Wagner ("David & Layla") and Jeff Ward.
The Sacrifices by Alena Smith. "At first glance the family has everything. But once they leave on a Caribbean cruise, the winds change, privilege becomes a prison, and their vacation will be anything but smooth sailing in this touching comedy drama." (July 14-19 in the Martinson Theater).
Sam Gold directs Gabe Ebert, Mimi Lieber (Brooklyn Boy, I’m Not Rappaport), Mackenzie Meehan and John Gould Rubin.
Whore by Rick Viede. "Sara just wants to be interesting, and an unexpected one-night stand propels her into a high stakes relationship with worldly Tim. As they are drawn into the fringes this thriller exposes a world of greed, lies, and fear which threatens to break the rules that hold them together." (July 14-19 in the Anspacher Theater).
Stephen Brackett directs Aya Cash (From Up Here, Offices), Andrew Garman (Salome: The Reading), Matthew Montelongo (The Ritz, The Mineola Twins), Sean T. Parker (The Memoirs of Don Walker) and Mark Setlock (Rent, Fully Committed).
Tender by Nicki Bloom. "A random act of violence leaves a family shattered and searching for a way to be whole again. Amid the ramifications, mystery, memory, and potential murder set the stage for this haunting drama about love, loss, and grief." (July 21-26 in the Anspacher Theater).
Under the direction of Daniella Topol, the cast features Betsy Aidem (Celebration), Kerry Bishé (Pygmalion, "Sex in the City"), Michael Cullen (Dark Matters) and Matt Dellapina.
The Happy Sad by Ken Urban. "Finding love is easy. Defining love is not. New York City provides the backdrop to a contemporary comedy of sex, love, and dating in a city where there are too many options and not enough time." (July 21-26 in the Martinson Theater).
Trip Cullman directs Christopher Abbott (Mouth to Mouth), Ari Graynor (The Little Dog Laughed), Sue Jean Kim (The Drunken City, "Gossip Girl"), Maulik Pancholy (“Weeds”, “30 Rock”), Peter Scanavino (subUrbia, Shining City), Heidi Schreck (The Internationalist, Drum of the Waves of Horikawa) and Eddie Kay Thomas (“Till Death”).
Departure Lounge by Dougal Irvine. "It's the end of vacation as four guys wait for their flight home in this testosterone-driven new musical. With time to kill they recount the hilarious antics of the week, and as secrets tumble out we learn more about the lads than they know about themselves." (July 28-Aug. 2 in the Anspacher Theater).
Tony nominee Christopher Gattelli directs the musical that features Nick Blaemire (The Black Suits, Cry-Baby), Doug Kreeger (Rooms, Thrill Me), Kathleen Monteleone ("Grease-You're the One That I Want”), Alex Tonetta (The History Boys) and Jonathan B. Wright (Spring Awakening).
We Declare You a Terrorist by Tim J. Lord. "Eight hundred civilians are taken hostage during the performance of a hit Moscow musical. In the aftermath, the playwright is plagued by the story of his captor - a young woman willing to die for her cause - in an intense drama where one person's patriotism is another's act of terrorism." (July 28-Aug. 2 in the Martinson Theater).
Niegel Smith stages the work that includes David Bishins (A Mother, a Daughter and a Gun), Keira Keeley (Green Girl, The Thugs) and Katie Sigismund (Opus).
For tickets, priced $10, and more information visit SPFNYC.
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SPF, which operates under the umbrella of Living Room for Artists, has produced over 70 original works, providing writers a financially supported protected environment in which to explore and hone their material with the aid of established professionals.
