2016 The Fire This Time Festival Play Readings Begin in January

Now in it's seventh season, the Obie Award winning The Fire This Time Festival is pleased to announce the play readings for their 2016 festival, which will run January 18-February 6 at The Kraine Theater (85 East 4th Street between 2nd Avenue and Bowery). In addition to play readings the 2016 festival will also feature 10-minute plays directed by Nicole A. Watson, excerpts of solo shows, excerpts from the plays developed in the inaugural writer's group, and a panel discussion.

Rubin + Booker T: LIVE at the Hard Rock

Written & Directed by Rod Gailes OBC

Tuesday, January 19
Following a string of unsuccessful pregnancies and living in the shadow of his celebrity girlfriend, Booker gains attention he quietly craves in an unlikely friendship with aspiring art photographer, Rubin. Basketball, photo shoots, and good weed bind this classic odd couple struggling toward real connection in post 9/11 Manhattan.

Hotel Harare

Written by Daaimah Mubashshir; Music and Lyrics by Tanyaradzwa Tawengwa

Wednesday, January 20

An a cappella opera set in the famous Hotel Harare, in the middle of the capital city of Zimbabwe. The audience lounges in the parlor of the hotel and singers surround the audience, filling the space with their voices. The opera, with a libretto in Shona (the native language of Zimbabwe), depicts the daughter of a wealthy family who suddenly forces the family into new and dangerous territory, putting everything for which they've worked at risk.

Glass

Written by Azure D. Osborne-Lee; Directed by Stevie Walker-Webb

Monday, January 25

Two figures meet at a crossroads and strike a bargain. Lightning splits the ground between them, and a handful of witnesses creep forward to claim pieces of lightning-forged glass. Elsewhere, in Mississippi, Early May tends to his deeply depressed wife as he watches the roads leading into town.

blks.
Written by Aziza Barnes; Directed by Dennis A. Allen II

Tuesday, January 26
On a June Day in 2015 gentrified Brooklyn, 3 blk women make the ludicrous decision to go outside. All manner of shit descends upon them.

Where Dreams Deferred Tread

Written by Julienne Hairston; Directed by Tiffany Nichole Green

Wednesday, January 27

With her military father dead and her mother remarried, Amanda's life has become chaotic. Finding herself the target of her Stepfather's unwanted attention, she hatches a plan to escape and live on her own in her town's abandoned train tunnels. Amanda soon finds out that life on the street is not only more chaotic, but extremely dangerous.

The Daddy Issue

Written by Larry Powell

Tuesday, February 2

Sonny gets the Super Straight Sexy Older Guy he just met at a gay bar to come over to his apartment for a nightcap. Unfortunately, the guy really only wants a night cap, but Sonny wants so much more. The Older Guy Resists while Sonny Insists on crossing the line. Now, why would Sonny Boy do that?

Stewart and Lamb

Written by James A. Tyler; Directed by Charlotte Brathwaite

Thursday, February 4
In 1994 in Las Vegas, Nevada, Zack Lawson, a 63-year-old African American man works at Primary Video, a VHS movie rental store. Zack's supervisor is the owner's 25-year-old white son Ian Philipps. Coverage of the O.J. Simpson murder case grips the nation and also causes racial tension at Primary Video.

THE FIRE THIS TIME FESTIVAL Playwright Kelley Nicole Girod founded the festival in 2009 to provide rising playwrights of African and African American descent a platform to write and develop new work. The festival was conceived as an opportunity for playwrights to write and produce material that reflects diverse perspectives as 21st Century Theater artists.

With ongoing momentum, TFTT has quickly become a destination for diverse audiences, producers, and artists seeking new possibilities and opportunities in contemporary theater. The festival has previously featured the work of notable playwrights such as Katori Hall (The Mountaintop, Hurt Village), Dominique Morrisseau(Detroit '67), Marcus Gardley (The Box), Radha Blank (Seed) and Zoey Martinson (Ndebele Funeral).