Emerging Artists Theatres New Work Series Returns To TADA Theater, October 4

Emerging Artists Theatre has announced the return of their biannual New Work Series which runs October 4 - 24, 2021 at TADA Theater in the Flatiron District.

The series will showcase over 150 artists and feature 23 new shows (in various stages of development), including musicals, dance pieces, solo shows, and plays. The diverse line up includes a wide range of pieces including the musical comedy Mother Goose: A Drag Comic Chamber Opera, the jazzy dance piece Wildflowers, and the full-length play Doris Day: My Secret Love which will feature some of Doris Day's most popular songs.

After a year and half hiatus due to COVID, Artistic Director Paul Adams shared his thoughts on the return to live theatre. "After such a long absence of an audience, Emerging Artists is thrilled to open our doors and once again have the necessary aspect of an audience. The energy exchange between artists and audience completes the process of developing new work."

Tickets range between $10 - $20 and are available at www.newworkseries.com. All performances take place at TADA Theater, 15 West 28th Street (between Broadway and 5th Avenue), 2nd Floor, New York, NY 10001. Subways: N/R/1/2 to 28th Street, B/D/F/W to 34th Street.

Visit the theater any evening during Emerging Artists Theatre's New Work Series and you will find yourself transported in a number of surprising ways: by a single performer embodying a whole host of characters; by a company showcasing traditional and non-traditional dance from another country; by a cozy two-person show exploring relationships; or perhaps by a bouncy new musical that will have you humming.

In accordance with the CDC and the City of New York, to attend a performance at the New Work Series, audience members and performers must be fully vaccinated with an FDA or WHO authorized vaccine and must show proof of vaccination along with a valid ID at their time of entry into the theatre. Masks are required for audience members while in the theatre.

NEW WORK SERIES LINE-UP

WEEK ONE SHOWS

Monday, October 4th at 7pm

The True Story of Judith
Writer/Performer: Kathryn Markey

One woman's exploration of love, grief, and what happens when you have to kill a man.

*Additional performance will be held on Monday, October 11th at 7pm.

Tuesday, October 5th at 7pm and Wednesday, October 6th at 7pm

Mother Goose: A Drag Comic Chamber Opera
Composer/Librettist: Felix Jarrar
Director: Bea Goodwin
Performers: Joanie Brittingham, Victoria Davis, Andrew Dwan, Stephanie Feigenbaum, Eugenia Forteza, Allison Gish, Marques Hollie & Mikayla Petrilla.

Leonora Goosling, the innkeeper of the Mother Goose Inn and Suites, stops at nothing to record her guests' tales and their happy endings. She is renowned throughout the land of Happily Ever After for her tales, which have led her to become colloquially known as Mother Goose. Her latest quest becomes complicated when the evil witch, Gnat, seeks revenge. With the help of the Fairy Godmother, Oscar the fox, and Princess Todger Dodger, she hopes to rescue Princess Talia, AKA Sleeping Beauty. Madness, murder, disguises, and the debut of Ugly Duckling, the lands newest pop star, threaten their journey.

Thursday, October 7th at 7pm

To Terms
Choreographer/Performer: Audrey Stevens

This piece is a short representation of someone struggling to come to terms with themselves, who they are, and how that might limit them in life. However hard we try, we can only change so much about ourselves and we must learn to accept rather than hate the aspects of our personalities that set us apart.

*Additional performances will be held on Thursday, October 14th at 7pm.

Wildflowers
Choreographer: Carly Cherone
Dancers: Andrea Ansale, Carly Cherone, Darcy Guariglia, Melanie Molina, David Morales & Haley Ostir

Velvet City Dance presents Wildflowers, a jazz dance piece celebrating friendships, relationships, and the joy of human connection.

Grocery Run
Writer/Director: Brandice Peltier
Performers: Jessica Fontaine, Phaedra Foreman & Andrea Woodbridge

On a nice quiet day in the suburbs, a white rookie cop stops a young black college student on the street. What was supposed to be a simple grocery run becomes an intimate and challenging conversation that questions the power structure of race in America. When things get heated, will they both be able to survive the truth?

Friday, October 8th at 7pm

DEADLY STAGES
Writer: Marc Castle & Mark Finley
Director Mark Finley
Performers: Christopher Borg, Marc Castle, Sean Chandler, Steven Hauck, David Leeper, Ellen Reilly & Karen Stanion

Legendary stage star Veronica Traymore desperately needs a hit, but with a killer stalking her Broadway-bound production, will opening night be her final bow? DEADLY STAGES is a gender-bending homage to the backstage mystery movies of the '40s and '50s, presented here as a developmental staged reading.

Saturday, October 9th at 7pm

Several Miles from Nowhere
Writer: Marissa Alaniz
Director: Korey Caron
Performers: Rosie Dean & Jon Noto

In a bar somewhere between Taos and Flagstaff, two strangers meet. They soon learn that they have far more in common than either of them ever planned.

Letters to no one
Choreographer: Chloe Kastner
Dancers: Sara Grassi, Emma Iredale & Haley Morgan Miller

Letters to no one is a deep dive into the very personal lives of three strangers. Danced to spoken word poetry written by Chloe Kastner as well as spoken word artists Hotel Books and Tanner Olsen. Get submerged into the lives of completely different points of view. Everyone is struggling in their own way. You never know the battle the stranger on the subway is fighting. Be kind to everyone.

Owning the Space
Choreographer: Erica Isakower
Dancers: Jade Lord, Cassidy Reed & Audrey Stevens

This dance explores the territorial nature and confidence needed to allow yourself to take up space, in both physical and metaphorical capacities.

WEEK TWO SHOWS

Sunday, October 10th at 2pm

TRANQUILA MAMI: AN UPPER WESTSIDE STORY
Writer/Director/Producer: Daisy Rivera
Performers: Irene Barcelo, Steven Croft, Maria Grande, Michael Polanco, Daisy Rivera & James Rosiello

Set in a Manhattan housing project apartment between 2003 and 2007, TRANQUILA MAMI: AN UPPER WESTSIDE STORY, is an autobiographical play about a Puerto-Rican family that explores the relationship between the adult daughter/caregiver, her mother, and her son. This production is being performed during Hispanic Heritage Month.

Monday, October 11th at 7pm

The True Story of Judith
**Please see the listing above.

Tuesday, October 12th at 7pm

BURNING DOWN THE HOUSE
Writer: Pamela Weiler Grayson
Director: Quinn Vogt-Welch

What happens when your 54-year-old husband's Early Onset Alzheimer's Disease forces you to re-examine everything you thought you believed about commitment and love?

Thursday, October 14th at 7pm

The Interrogation
Writer/Director: Patrick McEvoy
Performers: Julian Guzman Abril, Andrew Hes, Mia Kavensky, Danika St. Denis, & Nina Camden Schafer

Information. Bax wants to know why he ended up in a mysterious room that seems used for interrogations. Greta and Alan want to know some information regarding Bax. It's just why and to what purpose that is unknown. They face off and try to get what they're looking for.

To Terms
**Please see the listing above.

Friday, October 15th at 7pm

In Emily's Words
Book, Music & Lyrics: Jessy Tomsko
Creative team: Combustion Collective; Avital Asuleen (Artistic Director), Rachel Lauren James (Associate Artistic Director)
Performers: Bebe Browning, Chloë Campbell, Sara Cuozzo-Gonzalez, Rachel Lauren James, Nicholas Leung, Claire Lilley, Mary Malaney, Conor Ryan, Alanna Saunders, Esteban Suero, Douglas Tholedo & Brian Veith.

IN EMILY'S WORDS is a musical that follows the journey of English novelist Emily Brontë as she is writing her magnum opus: Wuthering Heights. The story of Cathy and Heathcliff comes to life in Emily's eyes, the characters jumping off the page as she is writing them, and Emily herself becoming more immersed in her tale as the musical progresses.

Saturday, October 16th at 7pm

Tick Tock
Writer: Jeremy Kehoe
Director: Laurence C. Schwartz
Performers: Candice Carr & Joshua Pyne

Chris struggles mightily to suss out what gives humans humanity as he attempts to forge skin-to-skin connections with his girlfriend, June, while she slides blissfully into the abyss of virtual reality awash in a sea of Alexas, Siris, Doordashes and Instagram selfies. What is the meaning of life? Does what we do here matter, or are we simply here because we are matter?

23 Minutes For Candy The Cheerleader
Writer: Jocelyn Druyan
Director: Bryan Songy
Performers: Jocelyn Druyan & Otto Sanchez

Sarah juggles the roles of mother, wife, hotel concierge, struggling actress and phone sex operator. Late for work, she hails a cab where her past collides with the present.

WEEK THREE SHOWS

Sunday, October 17th at 2pm 

SEPARATION ANXIETY
Writer: Mark Alvarado
Director: Kim M. Jones
Performers: Linda Blackstock, Danny Leonard, Alison Preece & Glenn Quentin

A man and a woman, from completely different backgrounds and generations, form a unique bond while being victims of a faulty healthcare system.This seemingly absurd comedy-drama is a realistic example of the problems the underserved, disabled population of our country face.

Time Biter
Writer: Caroline Dunaway
Director: Laura Colleluori
Performers: Emily Bronner, Caroline Dunaway, Jorge Franco, Melissa McIntosh, Ryan Molloy & Henry Raber

What if you were forced to relive the worst day of your twenties? Could you do it without wine? Academy Award-winner Stella Howard finds herself in this very predicament when she accidentally travels forty-eight years back in time to present-day New York City. Forced to face the ghosts of her past, Stella must reckon with her mistakes throughout the day that changed her life forever.

Sunday, October 17th at 6pm

GRIEF ENCOUNTERS: Finding Andrew / Dad's Home
Writer: Bambi Everson
Director: Job Ethan Christenson
Performers: Matt Corry, Bambi Everson, Anthony Goss, Leo Kettells, Michelle Kuchuk & Ava Wanko

FINDING ANDREW - Twelve-year-old Virginia's peculiar connection to Andrew is met with uncertainty and doubt by her best friend, Max.

DAD'S HOME - Paul is home from the office. Something is terribly wrong, and everybody knows but him.

Monday, October 18th at 7pm

Doris Day: My Secret Love
Writer: Paul Adams
Director: Melissa Attebery
Musical Director/Arranger: Ben Boecker
Performers: Tiffan Borelli & Mike Spara

Doris Day led a fascinating life that was fueled by both a drive to make people happy and a desire to find someone who truly cared for her. Her husbands dictated the terms and path of her career until finally she was able to realize that she could take back that control. Her voice and lyrical stylings made her a unique and ever-present comfort to an America needing that winning smile and wholesomeness that were her trademarks. Featuring 13 of her most famous songs. A Benefit for Emerging Artists Theatre

*Additional performances will be held on Thursday, October 21st at 7pm, and on Sunday, October 24th at 2pm.

Tuesday, October 19th at 7pm

Porter's Will
Writer: Monica Bauer
Director: John Fitzgibbon
Performers: John DiMino, John Fico & Bailey Newman

May of 2020, a mysterious billionaire hires two young actors from a famous acting studio to live in his mansion and provide him with performances. He's dying of cancer, not COVID; but he knows he will die before lockdowns end. He needs to come to terms with death, and requests specific scenes to help him, both dramatic and comic. The young genius actor, Jimmy, is trying desperately to make his leading lady in this venture fall for him. She is trying to decide between an uncomfortable life in the theater, or making another path. Old wounds and new wounds collide as they all make their way towards a moment of grace and understanding.

Wednesday, October 20th at 7pm

THE MOTLEY'S & RETURN
Writer: Andrea Alton
Director: Marshall Mays
Creative team: Anthony Catanzaro & Irwin Kroot
Performers: Andrea Alton, David Leeper & Allen Warnock 

THE MOTLEY'S - Frank & Rita had a nice boring middle-class life in Minnesota when they decided to go on a once in a lifetime adventure. Leaving their gnome collection and two kids that were in their 20s behind, they head to Lake Superior where they don't exactly find what they were expecting.

RETURN - What happens when quarantine ends and you have to return to the world? April hasn't left her apartment or talked to someone face to face in over 15 months. The only company she's had is her passive aggressive cat who is out to kill her. Sammy was forced to return to her job at Frugal Frocks for Fashionistas, after being trapped in an apartment with her chirpy super optimistic girlfriend for over a year. A new comedy about coming to terms with our new normal.

*An additional performance will be held on Saturday, October 23 at 7pm.

Thursday, October 21st at 7pm

Doris Day: My Secret Love
**Please see the listing above.

Friday, October 22nd at 7pm

THE VILLAGE CIDIOT
Writer/Performer: Lauren Letellier

Having lost her job and her youngest brother to cancer, a NYC business woman moves to a rural upstate town where everything she worked so hard to acquire -- from her corporate wardrobe to  her urban identity -- is useless. Grieving her losses, she battles marauding bears, Black Ice, and suspicious locals to build meaning in a life she never wanted. The hilarious and the heartbreaking are found in equal measure in THE VILLAGE CIDIOT.

Saturday, October 23rd at 7pm

THE MOTLEY'S & RETURN
**Please see the listing above.

Sunday, October 24th at 2pm

Doris Day: My Secret Love
**Please see the listing above.

Sunday, October 24th at 6pm

Betwixt & Between
Book: Kate Hanenberg & Paul Ginsburg
Music: Ned Paul Ginsburg & Mary Lloyd-Butler; additional music: Kate Hanenberg
Lyrics: Kate Hanenberg; additional lyrics: Ned Paul Ginsburg
Director: Karen Lynn Carpenter

It is 1652, and the Widdison family has moved from London to the countryside in the aftermath of the English Civil Wars in search of a peaceful place to work out the complicated relationships of a recent second marriage. They are surprised to find that the abandoned Widford Manor is actually inhabited - by the unseen spirit Hobberdy Dick - whose pagan practice of powerful folk traditions is threatened by the arrival of these Puritan strangers. He realizes he must intervene in the lives of each member of the family in order for his beloved house to thrive. A family-friendly musical.

ABOUT EMERGING ARTISTS THEATRE'S NEW WORK SERIES

Emerging Artists Theatre (EAT) New Works Series (NWS) began in 2006 and focuses on new works, new talents, and new voices. Since its inception, numerous productions that were workshopped at the series have gone on to have full productions at the NYMF, FringeNYC & Encores, Edinburgh Fringe, Off-Broadway, as well as National and International productions. Paul Adams, Andrea Alton, and Vanessa Shealy serve as curators for the NWS series. 

 

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