PITY + FEAR Opens in May at Grapefruit Lab

Pity+Fear (a travesty), the latest original show from Grapefruit Lab, is an intimate and darkly-comic modern Greek tragedy, exploring what it means to be alive, to tell the truth, and to change over time. Written and performed by Miriam Suzanne (JANE/EYRE, 10 Myths on the Proper Application of Beauty Products) with original live music by Josie Cool (An Antiquated Bluff, The Better Selfs), the story interweaves the three incompatible myths of a Greek princess Agraulos with personal stories from the two performers.

"I've been trying to write about Agraulos since I first encountered her myths in 2010," says Miriam Suzanne. The character has become a sort of worry stone for Suzanne, according to director and Grapefruit Lab collaborator Julie Rada. "This piece wrestles with both the mythical character and also Miriam's ongoing obsession with her three lives and three deaths." Those stories are framed by the two performers, who use the myths as a starting point to reflect on their own lives as queer and trans women through song and direct address.

Pity+Fear premiers on Friday, May 13, at Buntport Theater (717 Lipan St) in Denver, and runs for three weekends with shows every Friday and Saturday at 7:30pm. In order to make this production accessible, regardless of ability to pay, tickets are all name-your-price. "Buntport has been kind enough to lend us the space, and we want to pass along that generosity, especially as we're still in the middle of a pandemic," says Kenny Storms, the third member of Grapefruit Lab.

Grapefruit Lab is a performance company founded by long-term collaborators Suzanne and Rada, along with Kenny Storms, a sound designer for theaters around Denver. The three met in 2009, working on a LIDA Project production. Since then, they've collaborated under various names - finally forming Grapefruit Lab with a vision for mixed-media shows that engage the community. "We want to make art without assumptions," Rada says, "Art that humanizes, and entertains, and challenges, and brings you into conversation."