R CULTURE Begins Off-Broadway Run Tonight at IRT Theatre

R CULTURE, the edgy and darkly funny new play that satirically examines how modern American culture and rape culture collide and overlap, written by playwright Cecilia Copeland ("Light of Night," Indie Theatre Now's 2013 Person of the Year) and directed by Emily Lerer ("In the Air Tonight") will be presented Off-Broadway at IRT Theatre (154 Christopher Street) with preview performances beginning tonight, November 7 prior to an official press opening of November 9.

Throw together an androgynous ringmaster, a couple clowns, football players, bridezillas, red carpet interviews and some sexy birds selling tree houses and you've got a biting look at Modern American culture. R CULTURE invites its audience on an adventure through a series of vignettes of three women in a traveling circus. Along the way, the women slowly unveil the startling truth about rape culture within our society.

R CULTURE was commissioned by director/producer and survivor Emily Lerer, to raise awareness and open a platform for discussion of Rape Culture in Our Culture.

The producers of R CULTURE have partnered with Safe Horizons, Crime Victims Treatment Center, Beth Israel Medical Center: Rape Crisis and Domestic Violence Intervention Center, and We End Violence. Representatives of these organizations will participate in a facilitated talkback - details TBA.

The cast of R CULTURE will feature Jennifer Harder (NY Innovative Theater Award for Outstanding Actress in a Featured Role for "MilkMilkLemonade"), Emily Tuckman (Jackie-O in "House of Yes" Edinburgh Fringe Festival), and Romy Nordlinger (Steven Fechter's "Lancelot").

The design team for R CULTURE includes Anna Grossman (sound designer) and G. Warren Stiles (set designer), costume designer and lighting designer will be announced at a later date.

Cecilia Copeland is a playwright and Founding Artistic Director of New York Madness. Named Indie Theater Now's "Person of the Year," her plays have been presented at the Culture Project, Cherry Lane, Ensemble Studios Theatre, HERE Arts Center, The Anarchist Theatre Festival of Montreal, Venus Theatre, The Chain Theatre, and IATI Theatre among others. She has developed work with the Lark Play Development Center and terraNOVA. She was awarded a Special Effects Grant from Metro Screen Australia for her screenplay, "Amusement Bomber." Copeland is the winner of a Fine Arts Grant at Ohio University and the Lennis J. Holm Playwriting Scholarship from University of Iowa Writers Workshop, a semifinalist for The O'Neill Playwrights Conference and the David Callichio Emerging Playwrights Prize. Copeland is a Kilroy's List Nominee, finalist for Mabou Mines Residency, and a member of The League of Professional Theatre Women. "Copeland's writing is sharp and effective... an inspiration to playwrights everywhere" -5 Stars DC Theatre Scene.

EMILY LERER is an Ohio native and graduate of Ohio University. Recent Projects include: "In the Air Tonight" (Director), "And All of Us Fell Down" (Director/Producer), an adaptation of "Julius Caesar," and "Unseen and Unnoticed" (Asst. Director). Emily is a member of New York Madness Directing Company. She has worked for the Soho Playhouse, Rattlestick Playwrights Theater and The New Ohio Theatre.

Scheduled November 7 through November 23, R CULTURE will have a performance schedule of Fridays through Sundays at 8pm and added performances on Monday, November 17 at 8pm and Thursday, November 20 at 8pm. General Admission tickets are $18 and can be purchased online at www.irttheater.org/3b-development-series/r-culture/.

For more information about R CULTURE, visit www.rculturetheplay.com.

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