Trademark Theater Announces Season Five Programming

Trademark Theater announces its 2021-2022 season: a virtual reading of 5, JuCoby Johnson's newly commissioned play, in partnership with Playwrights' Center; Stone Baby, a rock music show and storytelling experience presented by Kiss the Tiger at Icehouse; a staged reading of Associate Artistic Director Tyler Mills and Artistic Director Tyler Michaels King's contemporary comedy, The Reunion: A Murder Mystery.

"This season, we wanted to keep our mission moving forward by creating, developing, and producing boundary-breaking new works, while telling stories with voices from our generation," says Artistic Director Tyler Michaels King. "I think we've managed to put together a surprising and unexpected season once again."

Trademark Theater worked for one year alongside playwright JuCoby Johnson on a commissioned piece exploring gentrification, racial tensions and friendships, and the collapse of a community. 5 is an interpersonal comedy/drama telling the story of two best friends who run a convenience store in a rapidly changing neighborhood. The play is a 2021 O'Neill NPC Finalist and Seven Devils Finalist. The first workshop reading will be presented digitally in partnership with Playwrights' Center this November.

Just after the new year, Trademark Theater and local rock band Kiss the Tiger will present STONE BABY, a live rock show at Icehouse in Minneapolis in a limited run. "We've known KTT for years," states Mills. "Meghan Kreidler, the lead singer, is not only an established theater artist, but an amazing vocalist and musician. She, Michael Anderson, and the band inspired us to push the boundaries on what both theater and live music could do, and we wanted to give them the space to create something that incorporates the best parts of both but is a rock and roll show at its heart. Kiss the Tiger is the perfect group to get up on stage and break the rules on what live performance is supposed to be." STONE BABY will run each Wednesday night in January.

In 2021, Associate Artistic Director Tyler Mills and Artistic Director Tyler Michaels King were thinking about what they enjoy most and miss most about theater. "Comedy is in our blood," shares Michaels King. "Mills and I have been creating improv comedy for nearly a decade outside of the company. In reflecting on the past 18 months, we really wanted to make something laugh-out-loud funny by bringing our comedy chops to the table at Trademark." This will be Trademark's first fully comedic production. Mashing up a classic genre with today's point of view is driving the creative team. "Re-imagining a classic murder mystery for a modern audience has been on our list of ideas for a few years," states Mills. "The genre is so full of classic tropes, and yet we haven't seen a piece of theater that brings those familiar ideas into a modern setting. We wanted to explore what a murder mystery is for our generation and maybe create some tropes of our own along the way." The first staged reading of THE REUNION: A MURDER MYSTERY will take place in May of 2022.

The company is also continuing commissioned projects behind the scenes: WHAT YOU CAN'T KEEP, Pt. 2 (by Harrison David Rivers), FOUR MEASURES (book by Kira Obolensky, music & lyrics by David Darrow) and OUTLAWS (book, music, & lyrics by Keith Hovis).

For more information, visit www.trademarktheater.org.

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