New Works by SIGNIFICANT OTHER Playwright and More Slated for Roundabout's 2017-18 Off-Broadway Season
By: BWW News Desk Jan. 29, 2017
Roundabout Theatre Company has announced a line-up of all new work Off-Broadway, including two Roundabout commissions by Roundabout Underground alumni Lindsey Ferrentino (Ugly Lies the Bone) and Joshua Harmon (Bad Jews, Significant Other).
As part of the Underground's mission, each participating playwright receives a commission for a new play, demonstrating a level of commitment to writers' careers and the future of theatre in New York that is unparalleled.
The 2017-2018 Off-Broadway season at the Laura Pels Theatre in the Harold & Miriam Steinberg Center for Theatre will feature the New York premiere of The Last Match by Anna Ziegler, directed by Gaye Taylor Upchurch; Amy and the Orphans by Lindsey Ferrentino, directed by Scott Ellis; and Skintight by Joshua Harmon, directed by Daniel Aukin. Roundabout's Underground two-play 2017-2018 season will include Too Heavy for Your Pocket by Jiréh Breon Holder, recipient of the 2017 Laurents / Hatcher Foundation Award.
Playwrights Lindsey Ferrentino and Joshua Harmon return to the Steinberg Center following their critically acclaimed productions as part of Roundabout Underground. Ferrentino's Ugly Lies the Bone starred Mamie Gummer in the Black Box Theatre last season, will be produced by the National Theatre in London next month, and is the recipient of The Laurents / Hatcher Foundation's Special Citation of Excellence and the Joseph Kesselring Prize. Harmon's hit play Bad Jews was the first Underground play to transfer to the Laura Pels Theatre. His play Significant Other, which premiered at the Laura Pels Theatre in 2015, will be the second play by an Underground playwright to transfer to Broadway, following Stephen Karam's The Humans last season.
ABOUT THE PLAYS:
THE LAST MATCH
Anna Ziegler's The Last Match will begin preview performances on September 28, 2017 and open officially on October 24, 2017 at the Laura Pels Theatre at the Harold and Miriam Steinberg Center for Theatre. This is a limited engagement Off-Broadway through December 24, 2017.
It's the semifinals of the U.S. Open, and two tennis greats are facing off in the match of their lives. Tim Porter, the aging all-American favorite, wants to prove to the world, his wife and himself that he's still a champion. Hot- headed rising star Sergei Sergeyev struggles to believe he truly deserves to beat his lifelong hero. Set against the high-stakes backdrop of professional sports, this New York premiere, directed by Gaye Taylor Upchurch, serves up a richly theatrical look at what keeps us striving and why.
AMY AND THE ORPHANS
Lindsey Ferrentino's Amy and the Orphans will begin preview performances on February 1, 2018 and open officially on March 1, 2018 at the Laura Pels Theatre at the Harold and Miriam Steinberg Center for Theatre. This is a limited engagement Off-Broadway through April 22, 2018.
After their father's death, two unhinged siblings reunite with Amy, their movie-loving sister who has Down syndrome. Together, they careen down the Great American Long Island Expressway, navigating strip malls, traffic jams and some serious (and not-so-serious) family drama. An unexpected turn reveals the moment that changed their lives...and the fact that Amy may be the only one who knows her own mind. Written by Lindsey Ferrentino, who made her New York debut at Roundabout with the world premiere of Ugly Lies the Bone, and directed by Scott Ellis (The Elephant Man, She Loves Me), Amy and the Orphans is a rollicking ride that proves it's never too late to follow a new road.
SKINTIGHT
Joshua Harmon's Skintight will begin preview performances on May 24, 2018 and open officially on June 21, 2018 at the Laura Pels Theatre at the Harold and Miriam Steinberg Center for Theatre. This is a limited engagement Off- Broadway through August 26, 2018.
Roundabout reunites writer Joshua Harmon (Bad Jews, Significant Other) and director Daniel Aukin (Bad Jews) for Skintight, a scorching examination of beauty, youth and sex. Reeling from her ex-husband's engagement to a much younger woman, Jodi Isaac turns to her famous fashion-designer dad for support. Instead, she finds him wrapped up in his West Village townhouse with Trey. Who's 20. And not necessarily gay. But probably an adult film star. At least, according to Jodi's son. Who's also 20. And definitely gay. Skintight assays the nature of love, the power of attraction, and the ways in which a superficial culture persists in teaching its children that all that matters is what's on the inside.
TOO HEAVY FOR YOUR POCKET
Jiréh Breon Holder's Too Heavy For Your Pocket is the first new play of Roundabout Underground's two-play 2017- 2018 season. The performance schedule in Roundabout's Black Box Theatre will be announced at a later date.
Roundabout Underground hosts the premiere of 2016 Yale School of Drama graduate Jiréh Breon Holder's award- winning work. Tennessee-born Holder takes us back to Nashville in the summer of 1961. The Freedom Riders are embarking on a courageous journey into the Deep South. When 20-year-old Bowzie Brandon gives up a life-changing college scholarship to join the movement, he'll have to convince his loved ones-and himself-that shaping his country's future might be worth jeopardizing his own.
Note: One additional Roundabout Underground play and more information for these productions will be announced in the near future.
The Last Match, Amy and the Orphans, Skintight and Too Heavy For Your Pocket are first made available to subscribers and donors. Whether you are interested in the best value or VIP experiences, Roundabout has a package option for you. Visit roundabouttheatre.org or call 212-719-1300 for more info. Sign up for Roundabout's email club at roundabouttheatre.org to be notified when tickets go on sale to the public.
ABOUT THE ARTISTS:
Anna Ziegler (Playwright, The Last Match). Anna's plays include Photograph 51 (directed on the West End by Michael Grandage and starring Nicole Kidman; winner of London's WhatsOnStage Award for Best New Play; previously produced at Ensemble Studio Theatre and Seattle Repertory Theatre, among others), Actually (upcoming at The Geffen Playhouse and The Williamstown Theatre Festival), The Last Match (The Old Globe Theatre; City Theatre); Boy (Keen Company/Ensemble Studio Theatre; Outer Critics Circle John Gassner Award nominee), A Delicate Ship (The Playwrights Realm; Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park) and Another Way Home (Theater J; The Magic Theatre). Anna has been commissioned by The Manhattan Theatre Club, The Geffen Playhouse, Seattle Repertory Theatre, The Old Globe Theatre, Ensemble Studio Theatre, Virginia Stage Company and New Georges. Her plays have been developed at The Sundance Theatre Lab, The O'Neill National Playwrights Conference, The Williamstown Theatre Festival, Cape Cod Theatre Project, New York Stage and Film, The Araca Group, Old Vic New Voices and Soho Rep's Writer/Director Lab, among others, and are published by Dramatists Play Service. A collection entitled Anna Ziegler: Plays One is published by Oberon Books. Anna is a graduate of Yale College and holds an M.F.A. in dramatic writing from the Tisch School of the Arts.
Lindsey Ferrentino (Playwright, Amy and the Orphans) is a New York-based playwright originally from Florida. Lindsey's critically acclaimed Ugly Lies the Bone premiered at Roundabout Theatre Company in the Underground and is about to open on the Main Stage at The National Theatre in London (Lyttleton Stage) and has been produced at theaters across the country. Lindsey's full length plays include Ugly Lies the Bone, Amy and the Orphans, Kokomo, Moonlight on the Bayou, Magic Man and Paradise Bar and Grill. They have been developed at Atlantic Theater Company, Rattlestick Playwrights Theater, New York Theatre Workshop, Playwrights Horizons, MCC, The O'Neill National Playwrights Conference, Premiere Stages, Florida Studio Theater, The Great Plains Theater Conference, 3LD Art and Technology Center, Manhattan Repertory Theater, and The Marilyn Monroe Theater in New York. Her work has been seen regionally at The Kennedy Center in DC, The Alliance Theater in Georgia, The Blank Theater in LA, and The Institute of Contemporary Arts in London. Ferrentino is a recipient of the Edward Albee Playwriting Fellowship and Residency as well as Blue Ridge Playwriting Fellowship. Her short stories have been published in New York Magazine and Aaduna Literary Magazine. She is the recipient of the National Art Club's Kesserling Prize, Laurents/Hatcher Citation of Excellence, ASCAP Cole Porter Playwriting Prize, Holland New Voices Playwriting Award, Paul Newman Drama Award, made the 2015 Kilroys List, finalist for the Susan Smith Blackburn, nominated for the Outer Critics Circle John Gassner Award, and is the only two time finalist for the Kendeda Playwriting Prize. Lindsey is currently under commission for new plays from: Roundabout Theatre Company, The Public, The Tricycle, The Geffen, South Coast Repertory, The National Theatre, and a television series for Big Beach Films/TV. She holds a BFA from New York University and two MFA's in playwriting from Hunter College and the Yale School of Drama.
Joshua Harmon (Playwright, Skintight). Joshua's play Significant Other opens on Broadway this spring, following its world premiere at Roundabout in June 2015. His play Bad Jews had its world premiere at Roundabout Underground, was the first play to transfer to the Roundabout's Laura Pels Theatre, and has since become one of the most produced plays in the United States. International productions include Australia, Canada, Germany, Israel, South Africa and London's West End, following sell-out runs at Theatre Royal Bath and the St. James. Fellowships from MacDowell, Atlantic Center for the Arts and NNPN. He is a graduate of Juilliard and under commission from Roundabout, Manhattan Theatre Club, and Lincoln Center Theater.
JIRÉH BREON HOLDER (Playwright, Too Heavy For Your Pocket) holds an MFA from Yale School of Drama's playwriting program. His sharp and often political plays frequently include wild visual metaphors and address the magic of everyday life in the South. From 2012-2013, he served as the Kenny Leon Fellow at the Tony Award-winning ALLIANCE THEATRE where he worked alongside Susan V. Booth, Lynne Meadow, Pearl Cleage, Alfred Uhry, and Stephen King. He graduated from Morehouse College where he served as the artistic director of Spelman College Playwrights' Workshop. His plays have received productions or readings at the Yale School of Drama, Yale Cabaret, the ALLIANCE THEATRE, Roundabout Theatre Company, Manhattan Theatre Club, the Old Globe Theatre, Theater Emory and the Spelman College Department of Drama and Dance. He is the 2016 Winner of the Kendeda Prize from the Alliance Theater for his play Too Heavy for Your Pocket. He is under commission with Roundabout Theatre Company, Manhattan Theatre Club and the ALLIANCE THEATRE.
ABOUT THE NEW PLAY INITIATIVE:
Through the New Play Initiative, Roundabout proves its devotion to the development and production of new works by significant writers and artists. The Roundabout Underground program in particular, provides substantial artistic and financial resources to emerging playwrights to stage their debut productions in New York and on Roundabout's stages. In addition to producing their first play, writers receive a commission for a future play, showing a level of commitment to writers' careers and the future of theatre in New York that is unparalleled. The New Play Initiative has discovered and brought audiences some of the most important new voices in theatre and is dedicated to creating a diverse canon for the future of theatre. To learn more about Roundabout's commitment to the development of new work, visit NPI VIDEO.
Roundabout Theatre Company is committed to producing the highest quality theatre with the finest artists, sharing stories that endure, and providing accessibility to all audiences. A not-for-profit company, Roundabout fulfills its mission each season through the production of classic plays and musicals; development and production of new works by established and emerging writers; educational initiatives that enrich the lives of children and adults; and a subscription model and audience outreach programs that cultivate and engage all audiences.
Roundabout Theatre Company presents a variety of plays, musicals, and new works on its five stages, each of which is specifically designed to enhance the needs of Roundabout's mission. Off-Broadway, the Harold and Miriam Steinberg Center for Theatre, which houses the Laura Pels Theatre and Black Box Theatre, with its simple sophisticated design, is perfectly suited to showcasing new works. The grandeur of its Broadway home on 42nd Street, American Airlines Theatre, sets the ideal stage for the classics. Roundabout's Studio 54 provides an exciting and intimate Broadway venue for its musical and special event productions. The Stephen Sondheim Theatre offers a state of the art LEED certified Broadway theatre in which to stage major large-scale musical revivals. Together these distinctive homes serve to enhance Roundabout's work on each of its stages.
Roundabout's season in 2017 will include Arthur Miller's The Price, directed by Terry Kinney; If I Forget by Steven Levenson, directed by Daniel Sullivan; Marvin's Room by Scott McPherson, directed by Anne Kauffman; Napoli, Brooklyn by Meghan Kennedy, directed by Gordon Edelstein. The spring 2017 Roundabout Underground production is On the Exhale, a new play by Martín Zimmerman, directed by Leigh Silverman.
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