THE GOODBYE ROOM to Premiere at The Bridge Theatre, 3/3-19

Following their NYITA-nominated inaugural production, Happy Few Theatre Company presents the world premiere of the goodbye room, a thoughtful family drama, written by the company's co-artistic director Eric Gilde. Fourteen performances will be staged from March 3-19, 2016 at The Bridge Theatre at Shetler Studios, 244 West 54th Street, New York, NY 10019.

Eric Gilde directs a cast of four, including Ellen Adair* (TV: recurring roles on NBC's "The Slap," HBO's "Veep," and ABC's upcoming drama "The Family") and Sarah Killough* (Bway: upcoming Long Day's Journey Into Night; Off-Bway: Once Upon a Mattress with Transport Group), Michael Selkirk* (multiple productions as company member at WorkShop and Titan Theatre companies), and Geoffrey Murphy* (Bway: The Nance, War Horse; TV: "Orange is the New Black," "The Blacklist").

Set in a quiet Midwestern town, the goodbye room follows the relationship between two estranged sisters, reunited to bury the dead. The sisters are joined by their father and a long-time family friend who each have a story to tell. With heartfelt simplicity, the play explores what we hide, what we share, and the individual nature of response to this most universal of human experiences. This timeless problem receives a delicate examination through a contemporary lens. Are grieving and moving forward two sides of the same coin?

"Our goal as a company is to create actor-driven theatre, which makes this play a great choice for our second production," says Ellen Adair, co-Artistic Director of the company. "We always wanted our mission to include classical plays, new plays, and everything in between, but to tell those stories in ways that are dynamic and fresh, that are both timeless and have to do with where we are now-a 'we' that includes both the actors and the audience. the goodbye room is understated, but utterly true-to-life, sometimes sad, sometimes a little funny, but it's really about family, about community, and what holds us together. We found a great collaborative way of working on our As You Like It, and we're excited to bring that energy to a new play."

Performances for the goodbye room will be staged Wednesdays-Saturdays at 8pm and Sundays at 3pm. Plus, Tuesday, March 15th at 8pm.

Tickets for the goodbye room are $18, $15 for students and can be purchased by visiting Artful.ly.

The runtime is 90 minutes with no intermission.

the goodbye room is presented by Happy Few Theatre Company. Director: Eric Gilde; Lighting Designer: Jennifer Wilcox; Sound Designer: Jacob Subotnick; Stage Manager: Sarah Lahue; Production Manager: Brittany Crowell; Press Representative: Paul Siebold/Off Off PR.