Performance artist Dael Orlandersmith will get a Gimmick at Seattle's A Contemporary Theatre, when she presents her solo play there, beginning July 29 for a run through Aug. 15.

The Gimmick tells of two childhood friends from East Harlem. Together they dream of careers as artists and the elusive "gimmick" that will take them out of their current surrounding into the life they desire. With the help of a kindly librarian, the young girl poet sees a light at the end of the tunnel. Her friend gets his chance through painting, but the siren song of drugs too often pulls him in the wrong direction.

Chris Coleman will direct The Gimmick. Coleman is the artistic director of Atlanta's Actor's Express. He has also worked at Atlanta's Alliance Theater.

Orlandersmith's past works include Monster and Beauty's Daughter.

The Gimmick premiered at New York Theater Workshop on April 16, 1999, also under the direction of Chris Coleman. For information on The Gimmick call (206) 292-7676.

-- By Robert Simonson