The season will kick off with playwright Adam Rapp's new play with music Finer Noble Gases, Sept. 14-Oct. 20. Michael Garces (The Triple Happiness, Light Raise the Roof) — who directed the work at the Humana Festival—returns to stage the Rattlestick run.
Finer Noble Gases follows the isolation of characters lost amid pop culture, pain and early adulthood. The work features a five-member cast that includes Connor Barrett and members of the rock band LESS (Rob Beitzel, Michael Chernus, Ray Rizzo and Paul Sparks). The design team includes Van Santvoord (set), Elizabeth Hope Clancy (costume), Jane Cox (lighting) and Eric Shim (sound).
Playwright Rapp has penned Blackbird, Gompers, Bingo with the Indians, Stone Cold Dead Serious, Trueblinka and Nocturne — many of which cast his brother, Rent's Anthony Rapp.
Lee Silverman will next helm The Killing of Michael Malloy at Rattlestick for a January-February 2005 run. The new play by Erik Jendresen set in 1933 retells the story of urban legend Iron Mike Malloy. The show will feature Frank John Hughes, Rick Gomez, Michael Cudlitz, Richard Speight and James Madio — cast members from the HBO Emmy Award-winning miniseries "Band of Brothers" on which Jendresen was a contributing writer.
Following a workshop at the 2004 Rattlestick Exposure Festival, the musical God Hates the Irish, or The Ballad of Armless Johnny will make its debut at the theatre in April-May of 2005. Will Frears (Omnium Gatherum, Where Were Born) directs the work featuring a book by Shaun Cunningham with music by Michael Friedman that is billed as a political satire "in the vain of Urinetown and Avenue Q, only one step further." New York City's Rattlestick Theatre enjoyed success in the 2003 season with the world premiere staging of Jonathan Tolins' The Last Sunday in June which transferred to an Off-Broadway run at the Century Center. Other recent works include David Folwell's dark comedy Boise and Adam Bock's Five Flights starring Alice Ripley (Side Show).
For more information on the new season at the Rattlestick Playwrights Theater, 224 Waverly Place (between West 11th and Perry St.), call (212) 627-2556 or visit www.rattlestick.org.
