A DRINKING GAME NYC Celebrates 10 Years Of Staging Iconic Films

'A Drinking Game NYC' celebrates 10 years staging iconic films like "The Princess Bride" and "Mean Girls"

New York City is home to countless theatre and comedy hopefuls, but not all of them find their audiences. A Drinking Game NYC (ADGNYC) is a comedy troupe that lovingly reenacts iconic films as live, theatrical events/drinking games. They are delighted to announce reaching their 10-year anniversary - thanks to their dedicated fans! ADGNYC will be celebrating with a performance of "Back to the Future," one of their first-ever shows, on Saturday, January 20, 2024 at 7pm at The Bell House in Brooklyn.

This marks ADGNYC's 151st production, reaching an estimated 15,000 audience members since its 2014 founding by Laura Perez. They are known for their send-up celebrations of films like: "The Princess Bride," "Clue," "Ferris Bueller's Day Off," "Hocus Pocus" and "Mean Girls," among dozens of others. Productions include homemade props, thrifted costumes, cheeky, original narration, and raucous audience participation - all with the goal of creating "professional-ass theatre."

Featured in this "Back to the Future" cast are: Meghan Ballback, Lucky Gretzinger, Christian "Chopper" Jacobs, Lindley Key, Brent Lomas, Stephanie Marrow, Dave May, Mike Murray, Lucy Myrtue, and Bryce Wood. The production crew includes: David Hernandez III, Cali Daby, Becca May, Laura Perez, and Hanley Smith.

The night will be commemorated by a special Costume Contest, complete with prizes. Audience members are encouraged to dress up as their favorite character from an 80's-00's film - bonus points if it is from a past ADGNYC production! There will also be new ADGNYC merchandise for sale and a DJ dance party after the show.

Laura Perez founded the company after being inspired by the work of A Drinking Game LA. "I was so nervous to put on this show," she reveals. "I had just moved to NYC and didn't know that many people. I booked a small basement theater in the East Village, Under St. Marks, and ended up finding the perfect group of actors for that first performance. That was the easy part! I had never produced before so there were a lot of things that I had to figure out. But the week of the performance, everything came together and we ended up selling out that little 45-seat theater. That's when I knew that this amazing thing was going to work."

ADGNYC made its debut with "The Princess Bride'' on January 27, 2014, playing to a small but enthusiastic crowd. Since then, the company has enjoyed residencies at some of NYC's favorite venues, from Union Hall to Littlefield to Caveat - hopping across the pond for a sold-out run at the Edinburgh Fridge Festival in 2017 - and finally finding its current home at The Bell House in January of 2018. There, ADGNYC has enjoyed many sold-out shows and a raucous, loyal fanbase, both in-person and online.

ADGNYC credits its perseverance to its methodical approach to forming a board of producers and a performance company, with intentional DEI bylaws and protections, inclusive and stereotype-defying casting, community events, outreach and collaboration efforts, and a unique, new way to tell beloved, "old" stories. There is nothing quite like taking a cinematic moment and finding the most ridiculous, creative way to reinvent it on stage, tickling that nostalgic funny bone while also challenging preconceived notions through representation and humor.

Brent Lomas (they/them) has been with the company since that inaugural production. "The most beautiful part of my time with this company has been the way we've reimagined the rules of who gets to play what," says Lomas, aka drag performer Ruby Powers. "With purposeful show selection and 'gender expansive' casting, I've gotten to tackle roles like Albert in 'The Birdcage' and even a non-drag Princess Buttercup in 'The Princess Bride.' Baby, I was born to be a princess!"

Co-Producer Hanley Smith (she/her) remembers one of her favorite moments of improvised stagecraft. "In one of our productions of 'Jurassic Park,' we had one actor, Lucky Gretzinger, playing all of the dinosaurs. When it came time for the death-by-dilophosaurus scene, I fluttered two fans behind Lucky's head, while our castmate Chopper Jacobs shook an egg shaker. Lucky then took a big, ol' swig of beer and blew it all over Nedry's face, played gamely by Dave Klasko, who threw red streamers into the air as Lucky 'attacked.' It was such a delightful way to theatrically present that iconic film moment."

This February will usher in an exciting collaboration with The Movement Theatre Company, which ADGNYC company member Eric Lockley and his partners founded to create an artistic, social movement by developing and producing works by artists of color. Together, ADGNYC and TMTC will present "Coming to America" on February 16th at 8pm. The remaining season will include four brand-new-to-ADGNYC shows, three audience favorites, and one mega-musical! It promises to be some of the most fun audience (and performers) have ever had in a theater.

So come on out to the ADGNYC Sandlot for an Inconceivably good time with the Great-Scottiest of Goonies who never say die, because life moves pretty fast, and if you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it, and that would be so not fetch.

Tickets Available at: www.adrinkinggamenyc.com ($20-$25; 21+)

A Drinking Game NYC (est. 2014) is a comedy troupe that lovingly reenacts iconic films as live theatrical productions with a twist: the performances are also drinking games! Every time a buzz word is spoken, the narrator dings a bell and everyone drinks their beverage of choice, actors and audience alike.

The performers juggle scripts, homemade props and costumes, beers, and mishaps with as much gusto as they can throughout the night, a nostalgia lovefest and laughfest for all movie-lovers to enjoy.

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