FAMILY OF STRANGERS Begins 2/27 at Roy Arias Stage II

Fresh off Want and Need, Maria Riboli will direct John Pastore's explosive new family drama, Family of Strangers. Previews begin February 27th before an opening March 1st. Performances run through March 16th at Roy Arias Stage II, formerly the Turtle Shell Theater, at 300 West 43rd Street, 4th Floor.

Can the truth really set you free? Siblings Evan and Jessica clash over the need to know the facts about a tragic and traumatizing event in their childhood. With their mother deceased and their father on his deathbed, time is running out. Evan tries to get their old man to reveal exactly what happened, but Jessica blocks him at every turn. The family's history and survival is on the line in this world premiere play.

Adam Pagdon (Want and Need, head puppeteer for Broadway's The Pee Wee Herman Show) and Jessica Knutson (Shadowlands, Isle of Shoals) star as battling siblings Evan and Jessica, respectively, with Tom Cappadona (The Dreamer Examines His Pillow) as their dying father, and Vito Leanza (National Tour: Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat) as his doctor.

Previews are February 27th and 28th with opening March 1st and performances through March 16th. The performance schedule of Family of Strangers is Wednesday and Thursday at 7:00 pm, Friday and Saturday at 8:00 pm and Sunday at 3:30 pm at Roy Arias Stage II (300 West 43rd Street, 4th Floor, between 8th and 9th Avenue, Subway: A/C/E or 1/2/3 or N/R to 42nd Street/Times Square). Tickets are $18 and may be purchased in advance at www.SmartTix.com or by calling 212.868.4444. For more information, visit www.family-of-strangers.com.

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John Pastore (Playwright) was born and raised in Brooklyn, NY. At just 24 years old, he began teaching English on a college level at two different CUNY schools. In 2005, he had his first full-length production titled Death Party, a tragicomedy about the angst of a twenty-five year-old who objects to the antics at his father's funeral, which to him seems more like a prom than an outlet for grief. His short comedy, The Calendar, was produced in 2007 about a UPS delivery gone wrong. In the Fall/Winter of 2010, he acted as dramaturg in a production of The Weeping Game, a classic Serbian comedy directed by Sanja Bestic. He then wrote the highly successful dark comedy Sidetracked in Fall 2011, also directed by Sanja Bestic, which debuted to a sold out crowd at the Abingdon Theatre.

Maria Riboli (Director) was born and raised in Italy. She has directed numerous plays both in Europe and in the United States. Most recently was Want and Need in November 2012 at Roy Arias Stage II. In 2007 she co-directed (with Stefano Genovese) BAAAHHH!!! At the New York Fringe Festival, an extended run at the Payan Theater in New York and the following year in London at the Pleasance Theater. Maria currently teaches in her own acting studio, Maria Riboli Acting Studio.