La MaMa Experimental Theatre Club to Present Romana Soutus' HYENA, 3/18-27

La MaMa Experimental Theatre Club will present the World Premiere of Romana Soutus' solo show HYENA, directed by Rachel Levens for a limited engagementMarch 18-27 at The Club at La MaMa (74A East 4th Street between 2nd Avenue and Bowery) with performances on Friday and Saturday at 10pm and Sunday at 6pm. Tickets ($18/$13 students & seniors) are available online at www.lamama.org or by calling 646-430-5374. The show runs approximately 75 minutes, with no intermission

Hyena is an interactive and visceral solo show about the beast within. Hy examines questions of intimacy, femininity and vulnerability as she attempts to find ways to navigate the painful world in which we live, while toeing the line between her public and private self. Join her as she discovers the darkest parts of herself.

The production team will include Costume Design by Lizzie Donelan, Lighting Design by Cecilia Durbin, Music by Gareth Hobbs, and Set Design by Joey Mendoza and Associate Set Designer Vincent Gunn with Production Manager Amy R. Surratt and Stage Manager Kathryn Meister.

ROMANA SOUTUS (Playwright/Performer) is a New York based actress, playwright & producer. She graduated in May 2014 cum laude from Fordham University's prestigious Theatre Program with a focus on Performance. Romana has performed and produced in New York at the experimental theatre institution La MaMa ETC for the past 3 years; serving as a member of the Steering Committee of La MaMa's Junior Committee, presenting both her own work and with the resident theatre company Yara Arts Group and participating in workshops with the Great Jones Repertory Company. In the summer of 2014 she traveled with La MaMa to Spoleto, Italy for La MaMa's International Director's Symposium where she worked with Belarus Free Theatre, Theatre MOTUS, Dijana Miloševi? of DAH Theatre and playwright Catherine Filloux.

RACHEL LEVENS (Director) is a graduate of Cornish College of the Arts in Seattle, WA where she received her BFA in Theater with an emphasis in Original Works. Rachel is a new play director, divisor, dramaturg, and teaching artist. In New York she directed Madigan and the Magic Box written and performed by Lindsey Leonard (Dixon Place) and served as an assistant director on various premiere productions including Selma '65 by Catherine Filloux (La MaMa) and 16 Words or less by Peggy Stafford (Clubbed Thumb). In Seattle she assistant directed with The Satori Group on reWilding and This Land is Always Known. Rachel served as the dramaturg for the literature performance piece Philadelphia and Other Stories by writer Paul Rome and composer Roarke Menzies (The Bushwick Starr) and was the assistant dramaturg on the world premiere of Stuck (Washington Ensemble Theater). Currently, Rachel volunteers as a supporting artist at CO/LAB Theater Group.

ABOUT LA MAMA An integral part of New York City's cultural landscape, La MaMa has a worldwide reputation for producing daring work in theatre, dance, performance art, and music that defies form and transcends boundaries of language, race, and culture. Founded in 1961 by theatre pioneer and legend Ellen Stewart, La MaMa is a global organization with creative partners and dedicated audiences around the La MaMa presents an average of 60-70 productions annually, most of which are world premieres. To date, over 3,500 productions have been presented at La MaMa with artists from more than 70 nations.

Photo credit: Katelyn Rose Landis