INVISIBLE to Make US Premiere At Boston College

"Invisible"--a "play that puts the flesh and bones on the statistics about transnational migration," (The Guardian, 2012)--launches the Boston College Theatre Department fall season with its United States premiere.

Its acclaimed playwright Tena Štivi?i?--a Croatian-born writer--will be on campus for the production's opening night on October 18, and will take part that afternoon in an event on migration. [More below.] She is a winner of the prestigious Susan Smith Blackburn Prize, which recognizes women who have written works of outstanding quality for the English-speaking theater.

"The students involved in the production of 'Invisible' can't wait to meet her," said director Patricia Riggin, a Theatre Department Associate Professor of the Practice. "They have that rare opportunity to work on a play that explores a topic that is both timely and urgent: the displacement of 65 million people in our world today,"

Described as "a funny, moving and topical portrayal of the world in flux, 'Invisible' explores the many sides of migration. Amid the world of visas and wind turbines, commuter flights and nightclubs, fairy tales and tabloid press, a chance meeting drives disparate lives towards a chilling point of no return."

"The entire artistic effort on the part of the students is the personification of the BC ideal, men and women for others," according to Riggin. "The student actors who embody the characters in this play are especially aware of their responsibility to honor the lives of these refugees. The entire company's passion and dedication to the work has been heightened by the absolute necessity that these stories be heard immediately."

"Invisible," presented by special arrangement with Curtis Brown Group Limited, will run through October 21. Štivi?i? be at Boston College from October 17-19. She will visit theater classes and participate in a public conversation about migration, moderated by BCSSW Associate Professor and Immigrant Integration Lab Director Westy Egmont. The free event, presented by BC's Winston Center for Leadership and Ethics with the Theatre Department, will take place at October 18 at 4 p.m. in Robsham Theater. More at: https://tinyurl.com/ybv3zryw

Štivi?i?, who also writes for film and television, was born in Zagreb and studied there at the Academy of Drama Art, then completed a master's degree in writing for performance at Goldsmiths College, University of London. She has taken part in such theater events as Future Perfect, the Paines Plough Young Writers Programme and the Royal Court's 50th Anniversary season. Štivi?i? has written plays both in her native Croatian and in English. In addition to "Invisible," which she is adapting into a feature film, her major works in English include: "Can't Escape Sundays," "Perceval," "Psssst," "Two of Us," "Goldoni Terminus," "Fragile!," and "Fireflies." Štivi?i? lives in London and is married to Scottish actor Douglas Henshall.

The production of "Invisible" will be on Robsham Theater Arts Center's Main Stage. Ticket prices (which include a service fee) for these productions are $17 for adults nd $12 for senior citizens. For more information, including performance times, visit http://www.bc.edu/offices/robsham/tickets

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