Parallel 45 Theatre and The MITTEN Lab Announce 2020 Residency Partnership

Parallel 45 Theatre (Kit McKay, Artistic Director and Erin Anderson Whiting, Executive Director) and The MITTEN Lab (Katherine M. Carter and Rachel Sussman, Co-Founding Artistic Directors) are proud to expand their partnership this summer by hosting P45's inaugural commissioned playwright and MITTEN Lab alumna, Jacqueline Goldfinger, in residency at the Lab from July 10 - 19, 2020 to develop a new play with director Katherine M. Carter. In light of the coronavirus pandemic, Parallel 45's 2020 Summer Theatre Festival and the 2020 MITTEN Lab have been canceled, however the two organizations are still committed to creating a safe, creative space to collaborate and support artists this year. The July residency will culminate in a staged reading via live stream in mid-July followed by a talkback with Goldfinger and Carter. Throughout the week, MITTEN Lab will offer rare insight into Goldfinger's development process with virtual fireside chats hosted on their social media platforms (Twitter/Instagram: @themittenlab and @p45theatre).

"In these strange and uncertain times, I am excited to find ways to share new theatrical stories with a community I love" said director and MITTEN Lab co-founder Carter in a statement. "Bringing MITTEN alum, and my longtime collaborator, Jacqueline Goldfinger to Northern Michigan to continue developing our new play is a critical step in navigating the theatre industry's new landscape. Rachel and I are also honored to continue building our relationship with our longstanding partner and friend, Parallel 45 Theatre."

"The most vital way theatre can respond in this moment is to deepen our commitment to the development of new work" said Kit McKay, Artistic Director of Parallel 45, "and to that end, P45 is thrilled to strengthen on our partnership with The MITTEN Lab. If we cannot gather in person, we still must create. Organizations like The MITTEN Lab are, and always will be, the key to our resiliency and relevance as an industry."

Information on the live stream will be released in the coming weeks. Visit www.themittenlab.org/2020-residency for more details.

BIOS:

Jacqueline Goldfinger (she/they) is a playwright and librettist who grew up in the rural South and is best known for her work in the Southern Gothic genre. She won the Yale Drama Prize, Smith Prize, Generations Award, Brown Martin Award, Barrymore Award, and Philadelphia Critics Award. Her plays have been on The Kilroy's List. She's been nominated for the Weissberger Award, Blackburn Prize, and Foote Prize. Her book, Bottle Fly, published by Yale Press, was a finalist at the International Book Awards. Her plays have been developed at theaters including: New Georges/Off-Broadway, The National Theatre/London, The Kennedy Center, La MaMa, Disquiet/Lisbon, McCarter Theater, Alabama Shakespeare Festival, The Barrow Group/Off-Broadway, and Kansas City Rep. Her plays have been produced at theaters including: Perseverance Theatre, The Court Theatre/New Zealand, Contemporary American Theatre Festival (upcoming), Capital Stage Company, Hangar Theatre (upcoming), The Seattle Public, Theatre Exile, Unicorn Theatre, The Vortex, and the NYC International Fringe Festival. Her work is published by Yale Press, Samuel French/Concord Theatricals, Playscripts, and Smith & Krause. Her work has been supported by YADDO, Opera America, National Endowment for the Arts, The Millay Colony, The Lark's Playwrights Week, Audrey Residency, Drama League, and The Mitten Lab, among others. She is currently working on a new opera with composer Melissa Dunphy which will world premiere at Oberlin Opera in 2023, and is currently commissioned by P45, The Wilma Theatre, The Kennedy Center, and Florida Studio Theater. www.jacquelinegoldfinger.com

Katherine M. Carter (Director / MITTEN Lab Co-Founding Artistic Director) is a New York based director of opera and theatre. Recent: Rice Shepard School of Music (La Clemeza Di Tito), On Site Opera (Das Barbecu), Carnegie Mellon University (Rinaldo), Santa Fe Opera (2019 Apprentice Scenes), Parallel 45 Theatre (Little Bunny Foo Foo), Canadian Opera Company (La Boheme), Houston Grand Opera (La Boheme). Previous: New School for Drama, Joe's Pub, Houston Grand Opera, Westport Country Playhouse, Boston Lyric Opera, Wellfleet Harbor Actors Theatre, New York Musical Festival, The Little Orchestra Society, 3LD, New York University, and Wolf Trap Opera. Fellowships: New Georges, The Drama League, and Playwrights Horizons. 2019 Honored Finalist for Women in the Arts & Media Coalition with playwright Jacqueline Goldfinger. Broadway Women's Fund, 2020 Women to Watch List. www.KatherineMCarter.com

Parallel 45 Theatre is a non-profit professional theatre that produces cutting-edge interpretations of classic plays, giving familiar stories new life - and fresh relevance - for our northwest Michigan audience. By producing a repertory of reinvented classics, new works, and imaginative adaptations, we seek to entertain, encourage critical thought, and inspire conversation in our community. www.parallel45.org

The MITTEN Lab (A Michigan Incubator for Theatre Talent Emerging Now) is an artist residency program located in Northern Michigan that provides early career theatre artists with the time, space, and support to develop new theatrical works and engage with the local community. Co-founded in 2015 by Katherine M. Carter and Rachel Sussman, the Lab has provided artists the opportunity to generate and showcase work in an encouraging environment as well as play a part in expanding and strengthening the development of new theatre in Michigan. The MITTEN Lab will not host a regular Lab in 2020, but looks forward to offering additional opportunities in 2021. The Lab's ultimate aim is to provide Michigan theatre organizations with the chance to encounter diverse, dynamic talent and work, leading to meaningful collaboration with emerging artists and meaningful partnerships with neighboring organizations. www.themittenlab.org

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