The Amoralists Stage RANTOUL AND DIE, Now thru 7/20

Having earned a reputation as one of New York's most daring young theater companies, The Amoralists continue to grow in size, ambition and audacity. In the seven years since its founding, the Company has successfully produced 16 productions of ten plays, including nine world premieres, and has quickly moved from basement theaters to Off-Broadway. On the heels of these accomplishments, The Amoralists will kick off "The Summer of The Amoralists" season with the New York premiere of Mark Roberts' Rantoul and Die, directed by Jay Stull and featuring performances by Derek Ahonen, Sarah Lemp,Matthew Pilieci and Vanessa Vaché - all members of The Amoralists' 50-member ensemble.

Performances of Rantoul and Die will take place tonight, June 12 - July 20 (see schedule above) at the Cherry Lane Theatre. Critics are welcome as of Thursday, June 20 for an official opening of Monday, June 24 at 8pm. The running time is 90 minutes with one intermission. The Cherry Lane Theatre is located at 38 Commerce Street in New York City. Tickets are $50 and can be purchased by visiting theamoralists.com or calling 866.811.4111.

In Rantoul and Die, Rallis and Debbie's marriage has reached its expiration date. In fact, it's soured and stuck to the bottom of the carton. She wants him to pack his stuff and hit the bricks, but he's clinging to the past like a cat on a screen door. How far will a man go to hang onto his lady? It's a thin line between love and hate, between a kiss and a punch, between an ice cream cone and a beer bottle to the back of the head.

The creative team includes Alfred Schatz (Sets), Evan Roby (Lighting), Jaime Torres (Costumes), Jeanne Travis (Sound) and Nick Trotta (Associate Director).

Mark Roberts (playwright) is an actor, writer, producer, director and stand-up comedian. As a stand-up comedian he has appeared several times on "The Tonight Show" with Jay Leno. As an actor he appeared on many TV shows, including "Friends," "Seinfeld" and "The Larry Sanders Show." As a playwright his other works include Welcome To Tolono, Parasite Drag, Where The Great Ones Run, Couples Counseling Killed Katie and Whitey. He is also the Creator of "Mike And Molly" on CBS.

Jay Stull (director) is a Brooklyn-based playwright, director, and dramaturg. He is the Literary Manager of The Amoralists and curates the Company's Amoralab and Amoralfest. He is a member of the Steering Committee of the Literary Wing at the Lark Play Development Center. His play Strange Heart was developed in the IMPACT 2012 Festival at The Culture Project; his play The Capables was a semi-finalist for the O'Neill in 2013 and will be produced this year by Neighborhood Productions and the GYM at Judson. Recent New York directing credits include Fever! Three Plays by Tennessee Williams (Girl In Red Productions), Neil LaBute's The Shape of Things (Red Lipped Rebellion), Michael Rabe's The Future Is Not What It Was (Kindling), Annah Feinberg'sThe Beautiful, Beautiful Sea Next Door (EBE Ensemble), and Kenneth Lonergan's This Is Our Youth (11B). He studied acting at the William Esper Studio, clown at The Barrow Group and ensemble work at the LAByrinth Theater. A.B. Bowdoin College.

Derek Ahonen (performer) is the Co-Founder, Resident Playwright and Associate Artistic Director of The Amoralists. Ahonen is the author of the following full-length plays: The Cheaters Club (2013), The Bad and the Better (2012), Pink Knees on Pale Skin (2011), Happy in the Poorhouse (2010), The Pied Pipers of the Lower East Side (2009), Amerissiah (2008), Pokin' the Bears in a Zoo (2008), Bring Us the Head of Your Daughter (2008), and While Chasing the Fantastic (2007). Ahonen is also a guest director at his alma mater, The American Academy of Dramatic Arts in NYC, where he has directed the post-graduate company's productions of Happy in the Poorhouse (2012), No Exit (2011) and Escape From Happiness (2010). His work is often included on various New York theater best lists and he has been featured in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The New York Post, The New Yorker, Daily News, Backstage and Time Out New York, amongst others. He was named a 2012 NYtheatre.com Person of the Year. His plays have been performed internationally and translated into Spanish, Swedish and Bulgarian. Ahonen plays are published by Indie Theatre Now and Playscripts, Inc.

Sarah Lemp (performer) is appearing in her sixth production with The Amoralists in Rantoul and Die. New York theatre credits include: The Bad and the Better (The Amoralists), Hypnotik: The Seer Will Doctor You Now (NSTC/TNC) and HotelMotel: Pink Knees on Pale Skin (The Amoralists). Other work with The Amoralists include: The Pied Pipers of the Lower East Side, Happy in the Poorhouse, Ghosts in the Cottonwoods (Adam Rapp, dir.), and Amerissiah(Theatre 80 St. Mark's). Other credits: The Hallway Trilogy (Rattlestick Playwrights Theatre); Oh, Those Beautiful Weimar Girls! (New Stage Theatre/LaMaMa, ETC). Recent film credits include: Regretting Fish (Cadillac Films) and Turtle Hill, Brooklyn (Ryan Gielen, dir.). Sarah is a member of The Amoralists' Artistic Ensemble and a graduate of The American Academy of Dramatic Arts.

Matthew Pilieci (performer) is the Co-Founder and Associate Artistic Director of The Amoralists. He is a graduate and company member of The American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York City. Theater credits include Through The Yellow Hour (Rattlestick Theater); Laws of Motion (PS 122); and, with The Amoralists: HotelMotel (Gershwin Hotel), Ghosts in the Cottonwoods (Theatre 80 St. Mark's), Happy in the Poorhouse (Theatre 80 St. Mark's), The Pied Pipers of the Lower East Side (PS 122) and Amerissiah (Theatre 80 St. Mark's). Film and commercial credits include Regretting Fish (Cadillac Films) andGravity (Charlie Chu Productions).

Vanessa Vaché (performer) is appearing in her third production with The Amoralists in Rantoul and Die. Previous works include The Bad and The Better(The Peter Jay Sharp at Playwrights Horizons, dir. Daniel Aukin) and HotelMotel (Gershwin Hotel, dir. Derek Ahonen). She is a graduate of The American Academy of Dramatic Arts, where she was a Lawrence Langner Award recipient as well as a member of the 2010-2011 Academy Company. She also holds a Bachelor's degree from Northern Arizona University, where she studied Theatre Performance and Psychology.

The Amoralists are a theater company that produces work of no moral judgment. Dedicated to an honest expression of the American condition, the company explores complex characters of moral ambiguity. Leaving no stone unturned, The Amoralists plumb the depths of the social, political, spiritual and sexual characteristics of human nature. Since its founding in 2007, the Company has produced 16 productions of ten plays, nine of which were world premieres.

The vision of The Amoralists has garnered critical acclaim. The New York Times said, "Every few years, a scrappy, artistically ambitious company bursts onto the scene with a skewed but surprisingly coherent new aesthetic." Time Out New York enthused, "Nobody else weds old-fashioned realist structure to working-class-hero lunacy quite this way." Paper Magazine exclaimed, "Like good punk rock, The Amoralists come on strong; they're hard, fast and loud," while The New York Post declared, "The Amoralists' shows are like no other. A distinctive mix of hyper-realism, satire, brash violence and unexpected tenderness." Variety captured the spirit of the company best when it warned, "One of these days, The Amoralists are going to get arrested."

Cherry Lane provides a nurturing community for playwrights and theater artists, both seasoned and emerging, to work together in revealing the social consciousness of a changed world. Visit cherrylanetheatre.org for more information.

The Amoralists, by Special Arrangement with the Cherry Lane Theatre, present Rantoul and Die, written by Mark Roberts, directed by Jay Stull and featuring Derek Ahonen, Sarah Lemp, Matthew Pilieci and Vanessa Vaché.

Preview Performances: June 12-15, 17, 19-22 at 7pm; June 16, 23 at 2pm. Opening: Monday, June 24 at 8pm. Regular Performances: June 26-29, July 1, 3, 5, 6, 8, 10-13, 15, 17-20 at 7pm; July 7, 14 at 2pm at the Cherry Lane Theatre (38 Commerce Street, NYC). Tickets: $50; theamoralists.com; 866.811.4111. 90 minutes with one intermission.

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