Photo Flash: The Representatives Present PRIVATE MANNING GOES TO WASHINGTON
By: A.A. Cristi Nov. 30, 2016
The Representatives are presenting the world premiere of a newly revised and expanded production of "Private Manning Goes To Washington" by Stan Richardson. Performances begin Tonight, Tuesday, November 29th for a limited run, with the Opening on Sunday, December 4th. This timely play will be performed at the Studio at 345 (345 West 13th Street - west of 8th Avenue) NYC. The production is co-directed by Stan Richardson & Matt Steiner, with design by Paul Hudson and dramaturgy by Jordan Schildcrout. Tickets are only $40 and $20 for students. The price includes the show and the After Party sponsored by Brooklyn Brewery with wine, beer & spirits provided and the opportunity to discuss with the creators and audience members. Talk Backs will soon be announced.
The play, which imagines a secret meeting between Army whistleblower Chelsea Manning and US President Barack Obama. This summer an earlier and shorter version of the play was presented at the 2016 Edinburgh Festival Fringe. It received 5 Stars (British Theatre Guide) and 4 Star(s) from Broadway Baby, and EdFringe Review. The Guardian said of the production, "This intelligent, thoughtful play couldn't be more urgent."
In December 2010, before his federal indictment for data theft, internet activist Aaron Swartz requested information from the American government regarding the treatment of Chelsea Manning, the soldier who would be found guilty of leaking classified documents to Wikileaks. Playwright Richardson uses this fact as a springboard to imagine Swartz creating a piece of theatrical activism intended to free Manning. Private Manning GoesTo Washington is a timely and trenchant new play about the power of theatre to create empathy, understanding, and justice in an age of virtual realities and manufactured truths.
"In both Aaron and Chelsea we see a strong belief in the power of knowledge and the necessity of sharing information for the good of society. Our play draws attention not only to these two people, who I fear have largely been forgotten by the general public, but to the very concept of "freedom of information" in the twenty-first century", stated Schildcrout.
The Representatives is the collaboration of playwright Stan Richardson and actor Matt Steiner. Since 2012, they have presented 15 original works, ranging from their signature apartment plays to larger site-specific productions; on subject matter ranging from the global financial crisis to mass shootings in the US. They have been performed in apartments, churches, restaurants and other alternative venues as well as in theatres and festivals. TDF Stages dubbed The Representatives "an underground theatre sensation" and they were also recognized as one of the "Top 10 Theater Experiences" by BroadwayWorld.com Their production of Stan Richardson's VERITAS, the tragic true story of a secret gay witch-hunt at Harvard in 1920, was featured in the American Theatre Magazine's "Deaf Talent, Seen and Heard" and was praised as "agonizingly vivid" by The New York Times.
Performances are at 8:00pm with previews on Tuesday 11/29 & Wednesday 11/30; then Thursday through Monday. To buy tickets and for more information , visit therepresentatives.org.
Photo credit: Jan Wandrag
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