FREED Receives NYC Premiere at Americas Off Broadway, Opens 6/16

59E59 Theaters (Elysabeth Kleinhans, Artistic Director; Peter Tear, Executive Producer) welcomes Penguin Rep Theatre, in association with Chase Mishkin, to AMERICAS OFF BROADWAY with the New York City premiere of FREED, written by Charles Smith and directed by Joe Brancato. FREED begins previews on Friday, June 11 for a limited engagement through Saturday, July 3. Press opening is Wednesday, June 16 at 7:00 PM. The performance schedule is Tuesday - Wednesday at 7:00 PM; Thursday - Friday at 8:00 PM; Saturday at 2:00 PM and 8:00 PM; and Sunday at 3:00 PM. Tickets are $35 ($24.50 for 59E59 Members). To purchase tickets, call Ticket Central at (212) 279-4200 or go to www.ticketcentral.com. For more information, visit www.59e59.org.

In 1824, on the edge of the frontier, a college president, his wife and a former slave explore the limits of their freedom. Based on the true story of John Newton Templeton, the first African-American to attend college in the Midwest -- 40 years before the Emancipation Proclamation.

The story of John Newton Templeton is extraordinary. He was the first African American man to attend and graduate from college in the mid-west (Ohio University), and the fourth to do so in the entire country. He went on to become the first teacher, and later Principal, of the African School in Pittsburgh, the first school for African American children in the city. A relentless political activist, he was also co-editor of The Mystery, a newspaper "dedicated to the fight for freedom and political emancipation."

The cast of FREED includes Sheldon Best (Vampire Cowboy's Soul Samurai) as John Newton Templeton, Emma O'Donnell (The Hairy Ape at Irish Rep) as Jane Wilson and Christopher McCann (Charles Mee's Paradise Park at The Signature Theater; Buried Child on Broadway) as Robert Wilson.

Charles Smith (playwright) is playwright in residence at the Tony award-winning Victory Gardens Theater in Chicago. His plays include Pudd'nhead Wilson, Takunda, City of Gold, Freefall, Knock Me a Kiss, Les Trois Dumas, The Sutherland, Sister Carrie, Black Star Line, Jelly Belly, Young Richard, and Cane, and have been produced Off-Broadway and around the country by theaters such as Victory Gardens, The Acting Company, Indiana Repertory Theatre, People's Light & Theatre Company, The Goodman Theatre, Penumbra, St. Louis Black Rep, New Federal Theatre, Seattle Repertory Theatre and Berkeley Repertory Theater. He is an alumnus of New Dramatists and has taught playwriting at Northwestern University. He is currently head of the Professional Playwriting Program at Ohio University in Athens, Ohio, where he lives with his wife, Lisa, and daughter, Elyssa.

Joe Brancato (director) has been hailed by the New York Times as "one of America's most insightful directors," Joe's New York Off Broadway credits include: Tryst (Outer Critics nomination for Best Play) starring Maxwell Caulfield and produced by Morton Wolkowitz and Barbara Freitag at The Promenade Theatre, Cobb (Drama Desk winner) produced by Kevin Spacey at the Lucille Lortel Theatre and later co-produced by Mr. Spacey and Garry Marshall at the Falcon Theatre in Los Angeles; From Door To Door at The Westside Theatre, produced by Mr Wolkowitz and Chase Mishkin; One Shot, One Kill at Primary Stages; The Devil's Music: The Life and Blues of Bessie Smith and Cobb at the Melting Pot Company; Two and a Half Jews; My Italy Story; Ricky Ian Gordon's The Matter of Minutes; Escape from Happiness (starring Marsha Mason), The Big Swing (starring Madeline Kahn, Sarah Jessica Parker, Matthew Broderick, Marisa Tomei) and Dr. Valentine's Waltz (starring John Turturro, Laura Linney, Gina Gershon, Jane Alexander) at Naked Angels; Hold the Wedding, produced by Joseph Papp. Regional credits: George Street Playhouse, Seattle Rep, Williamstown Theatre Festival, Houston's Alley Theatre (Sylvia, Stones in His Pockets, Mere Mortals, Tryst), Hartford Stage Company, Westport Playhouse, Capital Rep, Boston's New Rep, Hartford Theatreworks, The Cape Playhouse and Florida Stage. Joe has staged premieres of works by such writers as Arthur Laurents, Ronald Harwood, Warren Leight, William Mastrosimone, Angelo Parra, Staci Swedeen, Tom Dudzick, and Richard Vetere. He commissioned and originally directed the play The Man Who Was Peter Pan, which is the basis for the Oscar-nominated film Finding Neverland starring Johnny Depp. As playwright, he has written the comedy Drop Dead Perfect and the book for the musical Mae West at the Club El Fey. Joe has staged concerts and cabaret performances for internationally acclaimed jazz violinist Regina Carter, and for Robert Klein, Lainie Kazan, and Jane Olivor, among others. He is the recipient of the Rockland County Executive's Award for artistic excellence.

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