Talkback Series Set for Filloux's 'Killing The Boss;' Opens Feb.12

Select performances of Catherine Filloux's Killing The Boss – a new dark comedy about an altruistic woman's unexpected transformation into a vigilante, opening February 12 at The Studio at Cherry Lane Theatre (38 Commerce Street) – will be followed by talkbacks.

"A thought-provoking comedy with tragic twists, Killing The Boss follows Eve – a typically peaceful American playwright with a grant to work in a nuthouse of a country – as she plots to assassinate the country's head of state a.k.a. 'The Boss,' out of fury, frustration and addiction to her fight against social injustice," state press notes.

On Saturday, February 9, Jayne E. Fleming will speak briefly after the 7PM show. In recognition of her human-rights work on behalf of women, Ms. Fleming was recently named one of the "50 Most Influential Women in America" by the National Law Journal.

Following the opening-night performance on Tuesday, February 12, will be a panel discussion on politics and playwriting. Leading the discussion will be Filloux, whose Off-Broadway play about genocide, Lemkin's House, won the 2006 Peace Writing Award from the OMNI Center for Peace. Joining her will be Kia Corthron, author of Light Raise The Roof and Force Continuum; Lynn Nottage, author of Intimate Apparel and Fabulation; and moderator Carol Martin, essayist and editor of the book series "In Performance."

On Wednesday, February 13, Rutgers University's Director of the Center of the Study of Genocide and Human Rights Alex Hinton will speak about genocide and the lack of rule of law.

On Friday, February 15, Human Rights Leader Isha Yema Wright is scheduled to discuss Sierra Leone and gender issues. Ms. Wright is a consultant for the International Human Rights Law Group on outreach and gender issues, with a focus on women's inheritance rights.

Following the evening performance on Saturday, February 16, Jessica Posner will speak on the topic of Kenya Theatre. Ms. Posner is the artistic director of Kuamini and director of the ensemble play "The Face Behind the Mask: A Real Play About Real Poverty," which was presented at Kenya's National Theatre in Nairobi.

On Tuesday, February 19, filmmaker Sharon Greytak discusses her documentary Losing It, about the aspirations and realities of people throughout the world living with physical disability, which The Los Angeles Times called "engrossing… and provocative."

On Wednesday, February 20, there will be a post-show discussion with Ruth Brenner and Dr. David Snyder. Ms. Brenner is the President of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society. Dr. Synder is Medical Director of the MS Care Center at New York Hospital's Medical Center in Queens.

Documentary filmmakers Obie Benz (Americas in Transition) and Deborah Shaffer (From the Ashes - Epilogue) join Ms. Filloux on Thursday, February 21 to discuss "Film and Theater Addressing Social Justice."

Following the matinee on Saturday, February 23, Criminal Justice Liaison Anthony McFadden heads a talkback regarding The Doe Fund's Leadership Alliance.

The Talkback series concludes following the evening performance on Saturday, February 23 with "Through the Politics of Power: Considering the Legacy of the Armenian Genocide," a discussion lead by Sossi Essajanian, Editorial Assistant of Oxford University Press English Language Teaching Division and Dr. David Kazanjian, Professor of English, University of Pennsylvania.

Killing The Boss runs approximately 80 minutes, with the hour-long talkbacks to follow.

Directed by Jean Randich, Killing The Boss co-stars Sue Cremin as Eve and Drama Desk-nominee Orville Mendoza as The Boss. The ensemble of Killing The Boss also includes Alexis Camins, Edward Hajj, Mercedes Herrero, Dale Soules and John Daggett.

The production has set design by Sandra Goldmark, lighting design by Matthew E. Adelson, costume design by Camille Assaf, sound design by Jane Shaw, and fight choreography/movement by Felix Ivanov.

Performances of Killing The Boss run through February 23 at The Studio at Cherry Lane Theatre (38 Commerce Street, near 7th Avenue, between Bedford and Barrow Streets) Tuesdays-Saturdays at 7pm, with matinees Saturdays at 1pm (with the following exception: no 1pm matinee on Saturday, February 16). Tickets are $18. For reservations, call 212-239-6200 or visit www.Telecharge.com.

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