NEXT Announces Casting Notice, 12/12

In NEXT, a mobile whorehouse is brought to an American army encampment in Europe during WWII. It's presence brings to the surface issues of racism, sexuality, and the fear of impending death.

Currently seeking the following male roles to begin rehearsal in January:

The Lieutenant - Mid 20's, a white southerner, slightly effeminate and predatory.

Bobby -19, a Brooklyn Boy, good looking, a "big brother" character, white or Hispanic. Must be comfortable with partial nudity.

Sye -From Portland, 21, of Jewish faith, sarcastic.

Mathias -Short, 17/18, mid-western, white.

Jimmy -Similar to Bobby, but with an average look, a bit naive. Must be comfortable with partial nudity.

Stan -Early 20's, west coast, white, smart and funny but cutting.

NEXT:
written by Stephen Gracia
directed by Michael LoPorto
at the HERE Arts Center in February 2011 to benefit On Behalf of a Grateful Nation, Inc.

AEA showcase approval pending. NYC auditions to be held 12/12/10 from noon to 4pm. Location TBD. For consideration please email kendra_leigh_landon@hotmail.com with picture, resume and a brief cover letter. Please indicate in the subject line: FRIEND OF ABRAXAS, NEXT submission, and the name of the role you wish to be considered for.

Stay tuned for further announcements including cast and crew updates, our not to be missed fundraising events, the launch of our brand spanking new website, and more.

Stephen Gracia is a graduate of Brooklyn College's MFA Poetry program. His first play, Complete Control, was produced at the DUMBO Theater Exchange in Brooklyn, NY. Subsequent plays include: Subway Series and Fast Food Strategies (Producers Club, Manhattan), Waving and Drowning (DUMBO Theater Exchange), The Hunger Arts (Makor Theatre at the 92nd Street Y, Manhattan), Next! workshop production (American Theater of Actors, The Sargent Theatre, Manhattan), and A Wig Full of Spiders (HarroGate Theatre and The World's End Pub, Yorkshire, England, and a staged reading of Mohammad's Radio (Bleecker Street Theatre.) His poetry has been published in Riverrun, The Brooklyn Review, and Slipstream, and he has read at the St. Mark's Poetry Project and ABC No Rio. He has published "Other People in Perfect Cities", a book of poetry and "No Art But Theft" a collection of lectures. His short story "Eat Junk, Become Junk" was featured on the "Telling of Tales" website. Stephen also records electronic music under the name Rhythm & Detonation and contributed an original score to a revival of Jeffrey M. Jones's Crazy Plays at BRIC Studio and original songs to the Off-Broadway production of CJ Thom's Eightballs at the Lafayette Theatre. Stephen is currently Literary Manager of the Barefoot Theatre Company.

Micheal LoPorto's selected directing credits: One Night Only: A Benefit for Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS featuring Lea DeLaria (The Loews Theatre, New Jersey), the off-Broadway production of CJ Thom's Eightballs: A Cocaine Comedy (The Lafayette Theatre), Fiddler On The Roof (2004), South Pacific (2005), Grease (2007) and Annie Get Your Gun (2010) ( all at Park Playhouse, Albany NY), the world premier of six of the nine plays that make up Israel Horovitz's New Shorts featuring Lynn Cohen (The Studio Theatre at Theatre Row Theatres), Birds In Church & Dirty Talk by Joe Pintauro (The Pantheon Theatre), Tongues by Sam Shepard (BRIC Studio), the 35th anniversary production of The Indian Wants The Bronx by Israel Horovitz (Gloucester Stage Company), the first New York revival of Does A Tiger Wear A Necktie? by Don Peterson (The Looking Glass Theatre), a staged reading of Joseph Sousa's Teeth of the Sons featuring Anna Chlumsky(Bleecker Street Theatre), and the world premier of Complete Control (DUMBO Theatre eXchange), the workshop production of Next! (The American Theatre of Actors), a production of an abridged version of The Hunger Arts (The 92nd Street Y), and a staged reading of Mohammad's Radio (Bleecker Street Theatre), all written by Stephen Gracia. BFA in Acting from Brooklyn College, 2004. Michael is a founding member and the Associate Director of Barefoot Theatre Company and an associate member of the Stage Directors and Choreographers Society.

This production is being presented through HEREstay, HERE's curated rental program, which provides artists with subsidized space and equipment, as well as technical and administrative support. Since 1993, the OBIE-winning HERE has been a premier arts organization in NYC and a leader in the field of new, hybrid performance work. Offering a comfortable, eclectic setting for artists and audiences alike, HERE features a cafe and two state-of-the-art performance spaces. Under leadership of Founding Artistic Director Kristin Marting and Producing Director Kim Whitener, HERE has served over 12,000 emerging to mid-career artists developing work that does not fit a conventional programming agenda. Work presented at HERE has garnered 16 OBIE awards, including the 2009 Ross Wetzsteon Award, three Drama Desk nominations, four NY Innovative Theatre awards, an Edwin Booth Award and a Pulitzer Prize nomination. HERE proudly supports artists at all stages in their careers through full productions, artist residency programs, festivals and subsidized performance and rehearsal space. HERE's Artist Residency Program (HARP) provides development, commissions and full productions for 15-18 artists over one-to-three years.