RAT BASTARDS Premieres At Dixon Place 6/3-6/7 As Part Of Fest Of Jewish Theater
By: Gabrielle Sierra Jun. 03, 2009
Tutti Stronzi Productions presents the premiere of Rat Bastards (Tutti Stronzi), a commedia dell'arte style farce about the persecution of Jews and Muslims in Venice during the great plague of 1630, which begins performances tonight as part of the Festival of Jewish Theater and Ideas at Dixon Place (running through June 7).
Rat Bastards is written by Julia Pearlstein, an alumna of Charles Ludlam's Ridiculous Theatrical Company, and will feature original scenery designed and painted by her father, the painter Philip Pearlstein. The play, which was inspired by American human rights violations at Abu Ghraib, was first developed during a 2007-2008 Mabou Mines/Suite Residency under the guidance of Ruth Maleczech.The production is being directed by Eureka (another "Ridiculous" alum). Other Ridiculous veterans participating in the production include costume designer Ramona Ponce, and actor Grant Neale. The cast also includes Jenny Lee Mitchell. David Berent, Gregory Couba, Carol Lee Sirugo, Charles Geyer, Brian Mott, Cory Antiel, Kennedy Wiltshire. Music and sound design is by Aldo Perez, and lighting design is by Meagan Miller-McKeever.Julia Pearlstein began acting with Charles Ludlam when she was 17, in The Enchanted Pig, which starred Everett Quinton-who decades later starred in her play PLINKO, or, The Goddess of Static Cling with John Fleck. Ms. Pearlstein has received fellowships from MacDowell and Yaddo, graduated from Yale and the ART Institute at Harvard (under Robert Brustein), and trained in commedia dell'arte with Dario Fo.Videos