In a press statement, artistic director Christopher Haydon commented, "These American Lives is comprised of three award winning plays from the US; each one takes an acerbic, political and highly entertaining look at the different ways we make a living. For many people, a job is far more than a way of warding off the bailiffs and filling the hours between nine and five. It becomes an integral part of our identity – driving and shaping our whole life. So at a time when financial meltdown has caused unemployment to soar, it feels right to take a closer look at the answers we give when asked that perennial question: so what do you do?"
George Brant's Grounded will begin performances Aug. 28 prior to an official opening Aug. 29, for a run through Sept. 21, following a season at Edinburgh's Traverse Theatre as part of the Edinburgh Fringe, running there Aug. 1-25. It will also play pre-Edinburgh previews at the Gate June 24-25.
Winner of the Smith Prize, it is described as a "visceral and absorbing look at the life of a pregnant female fighter pilot who switches from flying F16 Jets to piloting remote-controlled Reaper Drones over Pakistan from a trailer in Las Vegas." The Gate's Christopher Haydon directs Lucy Ellinson in the play.
Brant's other plays include Elephant's Graveyard, The Mourners’ Bench, Salvage, Three Voyages of the Lobotomobile, Grizzly Mama, Any Other Name, Defiant, Dark Room, Miracle: A Tragedy, Good on Paper, Ashes, NOK, The Lonesome Hoboes, One Hand Clapping, The Royal Historian of Oz, Lovely Letters, Three Men in a Boat, Borglum! The Mount Rushmore Musical, Tights on a Wire and Night of the Mime.
Ethan Lipton's No Place to Go will begin performances Nov. 15 prior to an official opening Nov. 18, for a run through Dec. 14. Originally produced by New York's Public Theater at Joe's Pub, it was originally directed by Leigh Silverman, and is co-produced in London by the Gate in association with ArKtype. Combining music, song and the spoken word, this Obie Award-winning production tells of the story of a man who loses his job after his office is relocated to Mars. The production has toured around America, and now comes to the Gate after debuting in the U.K. at the ATP Festival in East Sussex.
Dan O'Brien's The Body of an American will begin performances Jan. 16, 2014, for a run through Feb. 1. Winner of the inaugural Edward M. Kennedy Award for Drama, it looks at the real-life story of Pulitzer Prize-winning photojournalist Paul Watson and asks the question: How do you stay sane when every day it is your job to witness and record the horrors of the warzone?
O'Brien's other plays include The Dear Boy, The Voyage of the Carcass, The Cherry Sisters Revisited, Moving Picture, Am Lit, The House in Hydesville, Key West and Lamarck.
To book tickets, contact the box office on 020 7229 0706, or visit www.gatetheatre.co.uk for more details.
