WaterTower Theatre Announces Details For DETOUR: A Festival Of New Work

WaterTower Theatre Artistic Director, Joanie Schultz, today announced details for the inaugural DETOUR: A Festival of New Work (March 1 - 4, 2018). This year's Festival will consist of four new play readings, three devised works, and two "late nite" performances. Highlights from this year's Festival include a reading from Oregon Shakespeare Festival's "Play On!" initiative commissioning modern adaptations of 39 of Shakespeare's works, three new works from rising company Dark Circles Contemporary Dance, the next installment of Brigham Mosley's laugh-out-loud creation, Movies That Should Be Musicals, and more.

"In an aim to become a more supportive home to artists and an incubator for new, innovative theatre, we are proud to present the first DETOUR: A Festival of New Work," said Joanie Schultz. "Each piece in this Festival is a fresh expression of performance. From the devised theatre of three innovative local companies to the readings of new plays from writers across the country to the exciting late night musical performances, we are thrilled to have these artists working with us in our inaugural Festival."

"The Festival includes readings of new plays from exciting emerging voices in the American theatre-with insightful, humorous, and heartfelt stories about work, family, and faith in our contemporary world. We are also thrilled to be collaborating with three local companies who are creating work that doesn't begin with the written word; from dance, movement theatre, and documentary-style theatre. And it is a great honor to be collaborating with Oregon Shakespeare Festival's "Play on! 36 playwrights translate Shakespeare" project, showcasing a fresh translation by an inspirational playwright.

As artist Mary Kelly said, 'As far as detours are concerned, they're always more interesting than the main road.'"

DETOUR is WaterTower Theatre's renewed investment in the creation and development of new work. A 4-day Festival which will focus on public performances and readings of devised work and new plays created by local and national artists, DETOUR is sure to inspire audiences while fostering opportunities for innovative, daring, and relevant new work.

Performances will take place at the Addison Theatre Centre in the Canterbury Family Main Stage and the Karol Omlor Studio Theatre.

Festival passes and individual tickets are available now!

Festival Pass for WTT Subscriber - $40

Festival Pass for Non-Subscriber - $45

Individual Tickets to Devised Work - $15

Individual Tickets to Late Nite - $10

Individual Tickets to New Play Readings - FREE

DETOUR is sponsored, in part, by Media Sponsor TheaterJones.com.

How/Where to Buy Tickets:

Online: www.watertowertheatre.org

By Phone: 972.450.6232

Or In-person: WaterTower Theatre at the Addison Theatre Centre
15650 Addison Road, Addison, TX 75001

Fax: 972.450.6244
Email: boxoffice@watertowertheatre.org

Box Office Hours

Performance Weeks:
Tuesday-Saturday Noon-6 p.m.
Closed Sunday-Monday

Non-Performance Weeks:
Tuesday-Friday Noon-6 p.m.
Closed Saturday-Monday

Please note: The Box Office opens one hour before show time on performance days and remains open through intermission.

Performance details:

Thursday, March 1st

7:30pm - Wally World by Isaac Gomez (Main Stage)

Friday, March 2nd

8:00pm - Prism Movement Theatre presents As Dreams Are Made On (Studio)

10:00pm - Veteran Children (Studio)

Saturday, March 3rd

2:00pm - Cry Havoc Theatre Company presents Sex Ed (Main Stage)

5:00pm - Origin Story by Nathan Alan Davis (Studio)

8:00pm - Dark Circles Contemporary Dance presents 3 New Creations (Main Stage)

10:00pm - Movies That Should Be Musicals: My Best Friend's Wedding (Studio)

Sunday, March 4th

2:00pm - All's Well That Ends Well, a New American Translation by Virginia Grise (Studio)

5:00pm - Heaven's Gates, Hell's Flames by Janielle Kastner (Main Stage)

NEW PLAY READINGS

Origin Story by Nathan Alan Davis

Saturday, March 3rd, 5:00pm (Karol Omlor Studio Theatre)

About Origin Story

Margaret is working two jobs to pay down her debt. During the day she's wading through office triviality at The Services Corporation, and by night she's working the drive through of The Burg, a 24/7 fast food restaurant. Overtired and ungrounded, and abandoned by her parents at birth, Margaret doesn't know who she is or what she's aiming for. But through co-workers and friends, this existential crisis begins to turn around as connections are found in the most unsuspecting of places. Funny and heartfelt, Origin Story is a contemporary look at the quarter-life crisis and how to connect in an unconnected world.

About Nathan Alan Davis

Nathan Alan Davis is a playwright from Rockford, Illinois, now based in New York. His plays include Nat Turner in Jerusalem (NYTW; New York Magazine Critic's Pick), Dontrell Who Kissed the Sea (NNPN Rolling World Premiere; Steinberg/ATCA New Play Citation, Los Angeles Times Critic's Choice) and The Wind and the Breeze (New Harmony Project Residency, Blue Ink Award, Lorraine Hansberry Award). He is currently working on commissions for The Public Theater, Arena Stage and Williamstown Theatre Festival. Recent work has also been developed with McCarter Theatre, NYTW and The Lark. Nathan is a Usual Suspect at NYTW, a Lecturer in Theater at Princeton University and a 2016 graduate of Juilliard's Lila Acheson Wallace American Playwrights Program. He received his MFA from Indiana University and BFA from the University of Illinois.

All's Well That Ends Well, a new American translation by Virginia Grise

Originally Commissioned by the Oregon Shakespeare Festival

Artistic Director Bill Rauch | Executive Director Cynthia Rider

As a part of "Play on! 36 playwrights translate Shakespeare"

Sunday, March 4th, 2:00pm (Karol Omlor Studio Theatre)

About All's Well That Ends Well, a new American translation

Oregon Shakespeare Festival is commissioning 36 playwrights and pairing them with dramaturgs to translate the 39 plays attributed to Shakespeare into contemporary modern English between now and December 31, 2018. By seeking out a diverse set of playwrights, we hope to bring fresh voices and perspectives to the rigorous work of translation. Each playwright is being asked to put the same pressure and rigor of language as Shakespeare did on his, keeping in mind meter, rhythm, metaphor, image, rhyme, rhetoric and emotional content. All's Well That Ends Well follows the romantic story of Helena, who falls in love with the unloving Bertram, and the great lengths she'll go to make their marriage work.

About Virginia Grise

San Antonio native Virginia Grise is a recipient of the Whiting Writers' Award, the Yale Drama Award, the Princess Grace Award in Theatre Directing, and is an alum of the Women's Project Theatre Lab. Her published work includes Your Healing is Killing Me (Plays Inverse Press), blu (Yale University Press), The Panza Monologues co-written with Irma Mayorga (University of Texas Press), and an edited volume of Zapatista communiqués titled Conversations with Don Durito (Autonomedia Press). She earned her M.F.A. from the California Institute of the Arts and currently lives and writes in the Bronx.

Wally World by Isaac Gomez

Originally commissioned and developed through The Sideshow Theatre Company Freshness Initiative

Thursday, March 1st, 7:30pm (Canterbury Family Main Stage)

About Wally World

It's Christmas Eve and Wally World employees are about to lose it. On the one day of the year this mega department superstore is to close its doors for the holidays, secrets come to life as store manager, Andy, does everything in her power to keep her store in line and her employees in check. But can hard truths from her past ruin everything she's ever worked for? Wally World is a hysterical examination of finding magic in the mundane as eleven employees do everything they can to find purpose in a place that has never seen purpose in them.

About Isaac Gomez

Isaac Gomez is a Chicago-based playwright and educator, originally from El Paso, Texas/Ciudad Juárez, Mexico. His plays include La Ruta (developed at Primary Stages, Steppenwolf Theater Company, Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Goodman Theatre, and Pivot Arts); Wally World (Sideshow Theatre Company Commission); PerKup Elkhorn (developed at Northlight Theatre and Chicago Dramatists); The Way She Spoke: A docu-mythologia (WP: Greenhouse Theater Center, 2016; The VORTEX, 2018); The Displaced (WP: Haven Theatre, 2018); Throwaway Kids (Cunningham Commission for Youth Theatre -- The Theatre School at DePaul University); The Soul of the World (Actors Theatre of Louisville Acting Apprentice New Play Commission). Other companies he's worked with include Victory Gardens Theater, American Theater Company, Teatro Vista, Definition Theater Company, Jackalope Theatre, Broken Nose Theater, Stage Left, and Something Marvelous. He is the recipient of the 2017 Jeffry Melnick New Playwright Award at Primary Stages, an inaugural 3Arts "Make A Wave" grantee, an Elizabeth George Commissioned Playwright at South Coast Repertory, a member of the 2017-18 Goodman Theatre's Playwrights Unit, Co-Creative Director at the Alliance of Latinx Theatre, a Resident Playwright at Chicago Dramatists, an Artistic Associate with Victory Gardens Theater, Ensemble Member with Teatro Vista, Artistic Associate with Pivot Arts, Artistic Curator for Theater on the Lake 2017/2018, a steering committee member of the Latinx Theatre Commons (LTC) and an artistic community member at The Hypocrites in Chicago. He is a Professional Lecturer at The Theatre School at DePaul University and is proudly represented by The Gersh Agency and Circle of Confusion.

Heaven's Gates, Hell's Flames by Janielle Kastner

Sunday, March 4th, 5:00pm (Canterbury Family Main Stage)

About Heaven's Gates, Hell's Flames

Run lines. Test sound cues. Ask the Holy Spirit to move through the audience. The congregation of Living Way Church has devised an original new play that, if done well, will save souls for the Kingdom of God. From set-up, rehearsal, production, to strike, Heaven's Gates, Hell's Flames eavesdrops on a community discovering what it takes to bring heaven to earth. An intimate examination of a faith community behind closed doors, Heaven's Gates... is a big-little play at the intersection of performance and faith, judgment and redemption, and the indignity and dignity of making new things.

About Janielle Kastner

Janielle is a Dallas-based writer and performer. Currently, she is devising a new podcast Untitled Dad Project (Spoke Media), and working on a new play commission from the Dallas Theater Center where she was an inaugural member of the Dallas Playwrights' Workshop with Will Power. Janielle won a 2016 Mastermind Award (Dallas Observer) and was named Best New Playwright in "Dallas Best Of 2016" (Dallas Observer). Her play Ophelia Underwater was selected as one of TheaterJones.com's Best New Plays by Local Writers. Other plays include Feed Me, Heaven's Gates, Hell's Flames, and Sweetpea. Her work has been developed by Dallas Theater Center's "New Play Week," L.I.P. Service Theatre Company, The 1 Minute Play Festival, and The Tribe, a producing and incubation collective of which she was a founding member.

Additionally, she co-runs Dallas cult classics Shakespeare in the Bar and Movies That Should be Musicals, and has performed with Kitchen Dog Theater, Amphibian Stage Productions, The In-Laws, Theatre Three, Cara Mia Theatre, and Shakespeare Dallas. She holds a B.F.A. in Theatre and B.A. in English from Southern Methodist University.

DEVISED WORKS

Cry Havoc Theater Company presents Sex Ed

Saturday, March 3rd, 2:00pm (Canterbury Family Main Stage)

About Sex Ed

In the wake of the #MeToo movement, conversations about sexual impropriety are front and center in our collective consciousness. Yet, we seem to have collective amnesia when it comes to our own teenage years and the value of honest, accurate information about our bodies. How do we as a society frame conversations about healthy relationships and consent with young people when many among us refuse to discuss comprehensive sex education? What kind of effect is "abstinence only" education having on the American psyche?

In Cry Havoc Theater Company's newest devised work, the company discusses the birds and the bees and the flowers and the trees... and how "the talk" has become a divisive topic in our culture.

About Cry Havoc Theater Company

Founded in 2014 by Mara Richards Bim, Cry Havoc Theater Company challenges audience expectations of what youth theatre is. Too often, the material young people are given to work with is simplistic, condescending and uninspiring. And, while numerous "pay to play" performance options exist, there is a scarcity of opportunity for students to be cast purely on their talent rather than on their ability to pay. At Cry Havoc, we are uncompromising in our belief that young people have the intellectual appetite and emotional maturity to tackle complex, provocative material. And we are dedicated to providing serious (and seriously talented) young people the opportunity to create artistically viable theatre under the direction of professional artists, regardless of their financial means.

Dark Circles Contemporary Dance presents 3 New Creations

Saturday, March 3rd, 8:00pm (Canterbury Family Main Stage)

About 3 New Creations

DCCD will present a workshop production of Founder and Artistic Director Joshua L. Peugh's new interpretation of pansori Sugungga (???), based on an ancient Korean folktale about The Dragon King, a turtle, and a rabbit. Los Angeles-based pansori singer June Lee provides live music for the work. The program will also feature a newly commissioned creation choreographed by guest artist and winner of the Princess Grace Award for Choreography, Gabrielle Lamb. A brand-new score for the work has been commissioned from composer and SMU Meadows School of the Arts alumnus Brandon Carson. The program will conclude with another new creation by Peugh influenced by street art and a recent visit to the city of Detroit. Carson has been commissioned to create the music. The work will have its world premiere in May on a program shared with Dallas Black Dance Theatre at Dee & Charles Wyly Theatre in Dallas.

About Dark Circles Contemporary Dance

Dark Circles Contemporary Dance (DCCD) was founded in 2010 in Seoul, South Korea. The Company's newest branch-based in North Texas and lead by internationally award-winning choreographer and Dance Magazine "25 to Watch" breakout star of 2015, Joshua L. Peugh-has been hailed as "the area's most exciting dance company" (Star-Telegram) and as the "Best Dance Company" by D Magazine (2015 & 2016) and Dallas Observer (2016). The young company has been praised as "frequently stunning, and always fascinating" (DFW.com) and commended for innovative combinations of classical technique and modern movement styles. Since its inception, the company has performed nationally and internationally at Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival, Theater am Aegi (Germany), Seoul Arts Center (South Korea), and at the Ailey Citigroup Theater (New York), among others. Repertory includes works by Joshua L. Peugh, Gregory Dolbashian, Mike Esperanza, James Gregg, Gabrielle Lamb, Fabio Liberti and MADBOOTS. DCCD is dedicated to bringing the progressive work of international choreographers and dancers to a worldwide audience.

Prism Movement Theater presents As Dreams Are Made On

Written by Jeff Colangelo

Friday, March 2nd, 8:00pm (Karol Omlor Studio Theatre)

As Dreams are Made On is the wordless take on the prequel to Shakespeare's The Tempest.

About As Dreams Are Made On

This fantastical story follows a lonely and ship-wrecked Prospero as she seeks revenge after being betrayed by her brother, Antonio. While fighting to survive and maintain her sanity, Prospero encounters Sycorax, a woman who can control the forces of nature. While navigating the rules of the island and how to overcome her past, Prospero's pain and despair leads her to become the very monster she never wanted to be.

Through the use of illusion and puppetry, As Dreams are Made On questions the motives of one of Shakespeare's greatest characters while offering a deeper understanding of his most underutilized character.

About Prism Movement Theater

Jeff Colangelo and Katy Tye founded Prism Movement Theater after collaborating on what would become the company's first forays into movement theatre: Prism and Galatea. Jeff, a fight choreographer and director, and Katy, an actress and dancer found that their particular theatrical aesthetics could be combined to create entire narratives without using any words. This partnership blossomed into several more productions until finally Prism Movement Theater was formed.

Prism Movement Theater believes in storytelling through movement. Whether through dance choreography, stage combat, mime, weight sharing, clowning or simple everyday actions, we believe each motion is a piece of text. With this philosophy, we believe we can reach even more beautiful heights of artistic expression and plunge even further into the complex depths of the human subconscious all without uttering a single word.

LATE NITE PERFORMANCES

Brigham Mosley Presents Movies That Should be Musicals: My Best Friend's Wedding

Saturday, March 3rd, 10:00pm (Karol Omlor Studio Theatre)

About My Best Friend's Wedding

Your Wishin' and Hopin' has been ANSWERED! Cultural phenomenon, Movies That Should Be Musicals, is making its way uptown to premiere the latest and greatest musicalized movie yet: My Best Friend's Wedding! So, dust off your childhood marriage pacts, break out your well-worn bridesmaid dresses, and get ready to walk down the aisle with your favorite drag queen spiritual guide for this quint-prob-rom-com (quintessential problematic romantic comedy)! You're never gonna be Jell-O, so you might as well sing an original show tune about it!

About Movies That Should Be Musicals

Movies That Should Be Musicals is a one-of-a-kind night of live music, dance, and ir/reverent commentary. Along with professional dancers and a live band, performer Brigham Mosley constructs an entirely original (off-off-off-off) Broadway production out of cult-classic films.

Veteran Children

Friday, March 2nd, 10:00pm (Karol Omlor Studio Theatre)

About Veteran Children

Veteran Children, a Dallas based band consisting of members Ian Ferguson, Aubrey Ferguson, and Drew Wall - along with additional supporting players - perform original alt-rock music with influences ranging from classic rock, folk, punk, and hymns. Whether telling personal narratives or ones based on other works of fiction told from a personal perspective, it's always within the context that life is a uniting and seamless experience from start to finish. There are no adults; only veteran children.

About WaterTower Theatre

Founded in 1996, WaterTower Theatre (WTT) is one of Texas' leading professional theatre companies and one of the flagship arts institutions in North Texas, having played an important role as a leader in developing new talent and encouraging the growth of the DFW artistic community through its commitment to hiring local artists. Led by Artistic Director Joanie Schultz and Managing Director Nicholas Even, it is consistently recognized for its artistic excellence by the Dallas Theatre League, DFW Theatre Critics Forum, The Dallas Morning News, The Dallas Observer, D Magazine, and The Fort Worth Star-Telegram, among others. WaterTower Theatre has a subscription base of more than 2,000 subscribers and serves an audience of over 24,000 patrons annually.

WaterTower Theatre is 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. WaterTower Theatre relies on its ticket income and generous donations from individuals, corporations, foundations, and government organizations to produce world-class live professional theatre and to offer community engagement and arts education programs. WaterTower Theatre gratefully acknowledges the support of the Town of Addison, Communities Foundation of Texas, Edgerton Foundation, TACA, Texas Commission on the Arts, National Endowment for the Arts, and The Shubert Foundation. WaterTower Theatre is supported, in part, through the generosity of its Producers Circle, including civic, corporate, and foundation donors AMLI Residential, Atmos Energy, FASTSIGNS Carrollton, Frost Bank, Liberty Capital Bank, Mary Kay Inc., Pinnacle Family of Companies, Slalom, Veritex Community Bank, Whole Foods, and individual donors The Canterbury Family, Don and Barbara Daseke, The Bob Downs Family, Stan Graner and Jim McBride, Kathy Messina and Gary Goodwin, Janiece and Jimmy Niemann, Karol Omlor, Paul and Norma Schultz, and Deborah and Craig Sutton.

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