PUSH Physical Theatre Opens Off-Broadway Next Month With GENERIC MALE

This past September, Rochester's internationally renowned PUSH Physical Theatre's Generic Male: Just What We Need, Another Show About Men received the International Fringe Encore Series Award from NYC's SoHo Playhouse. The award gives PUSH its first Off-Broadway run during the theatre's 16th prestigious International Fringe Encore Series next month. Generic Male will run for eight performances: Sunday, Dec. 11 @ 5 pm; Monday, Dec. 12 @ 7 pm; Wednesday, Dec. 14 @ 7 pm; Thursday, Dec. 15 @ 9 pm; Friday, Dec. 16 @ 7 pm; Saturday, Dec. 17 @ 9 pm; Monday, Dec 19 @ 7 pm; and Tuesday, Dec. 20 @ 9 pm at 15 Vandam St., New York, NY 10013. Tickets start at $36 and are available here.

"We are thrilled to be one of only fourteen shows chosen from thousands of productions at fringe festivals all over the world for this incredible opportunity," exclaims PUSH Founding Artistic Co-Director Darren Stevenson, who is one of the show's two cast members.

"Of our 16 Encore Series, this is the strongest season we have ever presented. Award-winning shows from Adelaide, Hollywood, Edinburgh, Edmonton, Orlando, Cincinnati, and Milan Fringes all are coming here," says SoHo Playhouse Artistic Director Darren Lee Cole. "As we resurrect and regain our footing in the live arts, it seems the perfect time to bring the world together to experience the best of this year's emerging theatre through these amazing productions."

Additionally, a panel of New York theater professionals will review all the shows from the Encore Series and choose an "Outstanding Production" winner based on artistic merit, production value, and overall excellence. The SoHo Playhouse will then produce a solo Off-Broadway run of that show in 2023.

"I think we could win, yes," admits Stevenson, "but just being a part of this series has helped many artists achieve further success, including English actor and screenwriter Phoebe Mary Waller-Bridge (Fleabag) and Australian comedian, writer, and actor Hanna Gadsby (Nanette)."

The long Generic Male journey began as an idea of PUSH Creative Director and co-cast member Ashley Jones in 2019, with COVID presenting many challenges to creating the masculinity satire along the way. Like all of PUSH's work, it started with improvisation.

"Our entire process is collaborative rather than the more common practice of a choreographer "setting" their work on a company," explains Jones, who - like Stevenson - hails from the U.K., where physical theatre is much more prevalent. "Getting feedback from audiences is also a very important part of our creative process."

The comic but moving show made its world premiere to rave reviews at the 2021 Rochester Fringe Festival. Stevenson and Jones then kept refining Generic Male before and during their whirlwind 2022 summer tour that included Orlando, Ottawa, Winnipeg, and Edmonton Fringes. Along the way, they scooped up armfuls of "best of" awards in addition to being scouted by SoHo Playhouse. The show returned in its current, polished state to the Rochester Fringe this past September.

"We are so grateful to everyone who has helped with the evolution of this show - we couldn't have done it without them," adds Stevenson. "Our hope is that it will empower people speak up and begin to have the conversation that our characters can't quite seem to engage in."

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