Mixed Blood Theatre's SECONDS Festival of Play Readings Kicks Off Today

With "SECONDS", a Festival of Play Readings, Mixed Blood Artistic Director Jack Reuler has curated a 'can't miss' opportunity to catch a glimpse of what's hot in American theatre!

Staged readings of 3 exciting new plays, recently premiered across North America by playwrights desirous of continued development and subsequent productions, will be presented at the Firehouse. Mixed Blood provides a one-week workshop with a director and professional actors, culminating in two public readings of each play for local audiences and for artistic leaders from around the country. This festival represents Mixed Blood's ongoing commitment to supporting the continued life of new plays in the American Theatre.

Artistic Director Jack Reuler: "There are many regional theatres that excel at the commissioning, development, and production of new plays, but so often that world premiere that wasn't quite done ends its life after its initial run despite authors' belief that the best is yet to come. "SECONDS" is our response to that conundrum, allowing these plays that have had that lone American production to get that further development, be seen by audiences and artistic leaders, and get the chance to become tomorrow's classic. Seeing Octavio Solis and Adam Gwon's CLOUDLANDS in Orange County alerted me to a potential masterpiece that I was anxious to advance, having long enjoyed Drew Hayden Taylor's hilarious comedies I was intrigued by his very personal drama, and the National New Play Network, of which Mixed Blood was a founding member, commissioned my friend and colleague Tom Jones to write a comedy that saw only audiences in Atlanta, but I believe should be enjoyed by audiences across the country!"

CLOUDLANDS

Tonight March 14, 7:30pm AND Sunday March 16, 1:00pm

Artists-in-Residence March 10-16, Octavio Solis & Adam Gwon

OCTAVIO SOLIS: Book & Lyrics

Octavio Solis is a playwright and director living in San Francisco. His works Se Llama Cristina, John Steinbeck's The Pastures of Heaven, Ghosts of the River, Quixote, Lydia, June in a Box, Lethe, Marfa Lights, Gibraltar, The Ballad of Pancho and Lucy', 'The 7 Visions of Encarnación', 'Bethlehem', Dreamlandia, El Otro, Man of the Flesh, Prospect, El Paso Blue, Santos & Santos (produced by Mixed Blood), and La Posada Mágica have been mounted at the Theatre @ Boston Court, California Shakespeare Theatre, Mark Taper Forum, Yale Repertory Theatre, the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, the Denver Center for the Performing Arts, the Dallas Theater Center, the Magic Theatre, South Coast Repertory Theatre, the San Diego Repertory Theatre, the San Jose Repertory Theatre, Latino Chicago Theatre Company, the New York Summer Play Festival, Teatro Vista in Chicago, El Teatro Campesino, Mixed Blood, and Cornerstone Theatre, among many others. He is working on commissions for the Magic Theatre SF and Yale Repertory Theatre.

ADAM GWON: Music & Lyrics

Adam Gwon's musicals Ordinary Days, Cloudlands, and The Boy Detective Fails have been produced at Roundabout Theatre Company, South Coast Repertory, Signature Theatre, and around the world, including in London's West End. His songs have been performed at Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, the Kennedy Center, and more, by such luminaries as Audra McDonald, Kelli O'Hara, and Brian d'Arcy James. Adam's honors include the Kleban, Ebb, and Loewe awards, Second Stage Theatre's Donna Perret Rosen award, the ASCAP Harold Adamson award, and the MAC John Wallowitch award. Adam is currently at work on commissions from Roundabout Theatre Company and Playwrights Horizons.

IN A WORLD CREATED BY A DRUNKEN GOD

Friday March 21, 7:30pm AND Saturday March 22, 4:00pm

Artist-in-Residence March 10-16, Drew Hayden Taylor

DREW HAYDEN TAYLOR: Playwright

Drew Hayden Taylor is an award winning playwright, novelist, journalist and scriptwriter with over 80 theatre productions and 24 published books to his name. Born and raised on the Curve Lake First Nation (Ojibway), Drew has traveled the world spreading the gospel of Native literature. He is proud and delighted to be a part of the Mixed Blood community (being somewhat mixed blood himself).

SHEDDIN'

Friday March 21, 7:30pm AND Saturday March 22, 4:00pm

Artist-in-Residence March 17-23, Thomas W. Jones

THOMAS W. JONES II- Playwright

Thomas W. Jones II has directed, written, and performed in more than 200 plays worldwide. In 1978, Tom founded Jomandi Productions, where, as Co-Artistic Director and Producing Director, Tom led Jomandi to become the third largest African-American theatre company in the United States. His work as writer, director, and actor has been acclaimed nationally and internationally. His work has received 48 Washington DC Helen Hayes Award nominations winning 15 awards, including Best Director for Samm Art Williams' Home and his own Bessie's Blues. He has also received 3 New York Audelco Award nominations, the Dramalogue Award, the San Diego Critics Award, NAACP Phoenix Award, among others. In 2000, Tom and his co-founders left Jomandi to create the entertainment company VIA International Artists, Inc. and subsequently a musical theatre company VIA Theatrical. His works include Three Sistahs, Bricktop, Heart 'n' Soul, Holler Sheddin', Love Johnny, and, produced by Mixed Blood, A Cool Drink A Water, Point of Revue, and Two Queens One Castle, Tom's new musical Cool Papa's Party completed a workshop in New York with Wayne Brady. He is currently working on several exciting projects for 2014.

Pictured: Octavio Solis, Cloudlands Book and Lyrics

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