Staying true to its mission to present 'retro theater,' Retro Productions is proud to announce its 2009 - 2010 season! Retro's 5th Birthday season kicks off with their fall production: the depression-era tale Holy Days by Sally Nemeth. In spring 2010, Retro Productions will present the classic 1950's office comedy William Marchant's The Desk Set. The 2009 - 2010 season marks Retro's third season in residence at The Spoon Theater.
In April 1936, Kansas is plagued with drought and decay in the wake of The Great Depression. America migrates toward work but one family is rooted to their barren farm, haunted by loss and a once-prosperous life. As another spring approaches with no sign of renewal they begin to adapt to the inevitable, eroding with their surroundings even as they learn to accept their fate. The Los Angeles Times said of the original production: "Sally Nemeth's Holy Days is a stage poem. It is uncommonly affecting, an elegy for the lost souls in the dying plains who clung to their blighted homesteads like bees to a poisoned hive," by the Los Angeles Times. Directed by
Peter Zinn (Rumpspringa, Bleecker Street Theater), Holy Days runs November 6 -21, 2009.
Then, in May 2010, Retro Productions invites you to meet The Desk Set: Bunny Watson, head librarian of the reference department at the Federal Broadcasting Company, and her team of librarians. Besides being equipped with an encyclopedic knowledge and whip-smart wit, these hilarious working girls know how to have a good time while getting the job done in 1950's Manhattan. But when an efficiency expert installs a new electric brain into the office and rumors of pink slips fill the air, Bunny and the girls fear they may have met their match. Directed by Tim Errickson (Artistic Director, Boomerang Theatre Company), The Desk Set comes to The Spoon Theater May 7 - 22, 2010.
Dedicated to their mission of producing ‘retro theater,' Retro Productions strives to tell good theatrical stories that have an historical perspective. This remains evident not in only their choice of programming, but also in its company of actors and design team dedicated to detailed research and utilizing classic theatrical techniques that bring the era to life - on an Off-Off Broadway dime. "I love when the season programming just happens to focus on modern parallels," says Artistic Director Heather Cunningham," It's interesting how our current economic climate points to the relevance of both the great depression and technology altering the workplace. The 2009-2010 season also marks a milestone for Retro Productions, in that producing The Desk Set has always been a dream of mine. I definitely had this play in mind when crafting Retro's mission statement. It's the largest production we've taken on, and I can't wait to get started!"
Tickets to all Retro Productions are $18, $15 Students and seniors with valid ID. Season passes are $26 and include one ticket to each Retro Production. Tickets and season passes can be purchased online at
www.retroproductions.org, or by calling Theatermania at 212.352.3101. The theater box office accepts cash only and opens one half hour prior to show time. There is no late seating to any performance. There is a $5 student rush with valid ID, based on availability. TDF vouchers are accepted. For group rates, inquire to retroprods@gmail.com.
All Retro Productions performances take place at the Spoon Theater, located at 38 West 38th Street on the 5th Floor, New York, NY 10018. The Spoon Theater is air conditioned and fully handicapped accessible. Take the 7, B, D, F or V to 5th Ave/Bryant Park, or the B, D, F, V, N, R, W, Q to Herald Square. Lot parking available nearby.
Retro received recognition from their first two productions of Catholic School Girls and Mrs. California (as River Heights Productions) then gathered momentum in their second season with the Retro production of Still Life. Directed by Ric Sechrest, Still Life received accolades from playwright
Emily Mann: "Your production got it...Every aspect of the experience was first rate. Retro is clearly a company dedicated to creating impeccable work that truly matters." Additionally, Heather E. Cunningham's performance was honored as one of Backstage's ‘2007 Performances to Remember'. Retro Productions put themselves on the map in their third season producing Sally Nemeth's Mill Fire and What I Did Last Summer, called "...first-rate: brisk, sweet and occasionally quite moving," by playwright
A.R. Gurney. This, their first season in residence at The Spoon Theater, garnered six 2008 New York Innovative Theatre Award nominations: two for performance and four for design, a
New York Magazine ‘Off-off Broadway pick' and the growing reputation of ‘the finished effect of a Retro Production' (The Fab Marquee, Mill Fire). Retro's fourth season included The Tender Trap, called "a powerful display of New York's dramatic talent," (offoffonline) and When You Comin' Back Red Ryder?, of which
Leonard Jacobs exclaimed, "...sepia hues are not the way Red Ryder drives drama... It's a play about the rich core of fear; how the simple folk who symbolize America's goodness are so easily made vulnerable by the guileful and crafty. Ric Sechrest's production puts all of this across wonderfully." Retro productions also presents retro-themed fundraising parties throughout their season, and re-sells their vintage set pieces and props to support future productions. For more information, visit www.retroproductions.org.
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