NAKED BRAZILIAN Comes to FringeNYC in Time for 2016 Olympics in Rio

Just in time for the upcoming 2016 Olympics in Rio, the hilarious & heartwarming solo show Naked Brazilian, which tells the story of a young man's journey from Rio de Janeiro to New York City (and Harvard University) in pursuit of his dream, will run at FringeNYC August 12-21 at 64E4 Mainstage.

Written & performed by Gustavo Pace, recipient of the Fulbright Scholarship for Theater/Acting & a MFA in Acting from Harvard University, the show is directed by Stephen Brown-Fried (Awake and Sing! at The Public Theatre and recipient of the Obie Award for Best Leading Performance), the play was developed with Emmy Award-winning writer and teacher Matt Hoverman and also with Lou Liberatore (Tony, Drama Desk, Outer Critics Award nominee for Burn This).

In Naked Brazilian solo performer Gustavo Pace takes the audience on a hilarious and heart-warming trip to the land of Carnaval, caipirinhas, Carmen Miranda & the upcoming Olympics -- a place where men aspire to be macho, and where a boy who wants nothing more than to entertain others finds it impossible to fit in -- especially once he starts noticing his feelings for his male classmates. Along the way, this sexually-confused boy meets a series of colorful characters including a sex therapist, a homicidal New York landlord, and even his own father as he faces many obstacles including sleeping in Central Park while struggling to find a home, almost dying by drug dealers in Rio, having to visit dangerous prisons in Rio & living with an alcoholic father.

Performances of Naked Brazilian are on FRI 8/12 at 5:15pm, SUN 8/14 at 12:15pm, WED 8/17 at 9:30pm, FRI 8/19 at 9:15pm & SUN 8/21 at 8:30pm. Tickets are $18.00 and are available online at www.fringenyc.org / www.nakedbrazilianshow.com.

Gustavo Pace graduated with MFA in Acting from Harvard University's professional acting program at the American Repertory Theater. He was awarded a Fulbright Scholarship for Theater/Acting. Previously, he attended the American Musical and Dramatic Academy in New York. He graduated in Law from the Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro. He received the Brazilian International Press Award in 2013 for his achievement in Theater in the United States and 2015 the Portuguese-Brazilian Award for Achievement in Theater, Film and Television, presented at Lincoln Center. In ??????4 he appeared in Russia both in "The Idiot", at the Moscow Art Theatre under the direction of Marina Brusnikina and as Ivanov in an adaptation of "Ivanov and Uncle Vanya" entitled "By Chekhov" directed by Igor Zolotovitsky, which was part of a play festival held at Melikhovo, in the house that Chekhov wrote many of his most famous plays. He appeared in Shakespeare's "Much Ado About Nothing", directed by Anya Saffir at the American Repertory Theater and recently performed his solo show "Discovery" at the Abingdon Theatre, as part of an All for One Theater Production. His last appearance in New York City was in the Shakespeare's "Much Ado About Nothing" in the Riverside Park (www.gustavopace.com).

Stephen Brown-Fried directed the recent National Asian American Theatre Company (NAATCO) production of Awake and Sing! at The Public Theatre, which won an Obie for best-leading performance (Mia Katigbak) and was nominated for a Drama League Award. He also directed at theaters and training programs across the country including The Shakespeare Theatre Company, Ensemble Studio Theatre, The Working Theatre, The Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey, Milwaukee Shakespeare, Illinois Shakespeare Festival, and was a 2008 Sundance Theatre Fellow. He is also Head of Directing at The New School College of Performing Arts, and a Lecturer in Directing at The Yale School of Drama (www.stephenbrownfried.com).