BLACK BEAUTY Makes US Premiere at The New Victory

Saddle up and jump headlong into a tale where loneliness gives way to hope, friends become heroes and courage saves the day! Following two wins for Best Design and Best Production for Children, and five nominations including Best Director and Best New Play by the Critics' Awards for Theatre in Scotland, Black Beauty is a fun-filled twist on Anna Sewell's classic. With storytelling at its finest by Andy Manley and Andy Cannon and a versatile set full of surprises designed by Shona Reppe, Black Beauty canters onto the New Victory stage for its U.S. Premiere from March 16-25, 2018.

Brothers and "purveyors of fine equestrian illusions," Andy McCuddy and Andy McCuddy (it's a family thing) have fallen on hard times. After all, it's hard to get a gig these days when you're the front and back of a theatrical pantomime horse! When the McCuddy brothers discover their beloved copy of Black Beauty in the cozy horse trailer they call home, they take the bit firmly between their teeth and reenact portions of the page-turning adventure to lift their spirits.

"We've looked at the essential elements of the Black Beauty story--not just the scenes but the emotions--to devise this work," says Cannon. Manley adds, "We tried to find the most exciting way to move the action forward in whatever form that might be, so you'll see a bit of puppetry, storytelling and object theater to evoke the story."

The team behind Black Beauty is considered "some of the U.K.'s best specialists in theater for children and family audiences" (The Guardian). Between them they have created a range of highly respected and internationally renowned work for young audiences including New Vic favorites White (2015, 2011), The Ballad of Pondlife McGurk (2014), Kappa (2014), Potato Needs a Bath (2011) and Cinderella (2010).

Black Beauty, produced by Red Bridge Arts and Traverse Theatre Company, opened at The Traverse Theatre in Edinburgh for the 2016 holiday season, and toured throughout Scotland in 2017.

Black Beauty is by Andy Cannon (Co-Creator, Co-Writer and Performer), Andy Manley (Co-Creator, Co-Writer and Performer) and Shona Reppe (Co-Creator, Designer). The creative team also includes Ian Cameron (Creative Collaborator), Dave Trouton (Composer, Sound Designer), Simon Wilkinson (Lighting Designer), Kevin McCallum and Suzie Normand (Production Managers), Renny Robertson (Technical Manager), Gemma Turner (Stage Manager), Alice McGrath and Jennifer Cummins (Producers).

Red Bridge Arts is a producing company with a focus on creating work for young audiences and supporting artists' development. Led by Alice McGrath, who has held creative development roles at Imaginate, Macrobert Arts Centre and the Scottish Dance Theatre, Red Bridge recently toured to The Kennedy Center with Titus by Oliver Emanuel.

Formed in 1963, Edinburgh's Traverse Theatre Company, under Artistic Director Orla O'Loughlin, nurtures emerging talent, produces award-winning new plays and presents year-round seasons of theater, dance, performance, music and spoken word. The Traverse has launched the careers of some of the U.K.'s most celebrated writers, including David Greig, David Harrower and Zinnie Harris, and holds an iconic status as the theatrical heart of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe.

The New Victory Theater presentation of Black Beauty is supported, in part, by the National Endowment for the Arts.

Learn more about Black Beauty at NewVictory.org.

Public Performance Schedule:

• Friday, March 16 at 7pm
• Saturday, March 17 at 11am / 3pm
• Sunday, March 18 at 11am / 3pm*
• Friday, March 23 at 7pm
• Saturday, March 24 at 11am** / 3pm***
• Sunday, March 25 at 11am / 3pm

* autism-friendly performance
**sign-interpreted performance
***audio-described performance

Black Beauty has a running time of 90 minutes including one intermission, and is recommended for ages 6 and up.

Ticket Information

Full-price tickets for Black Beauty start at $16. Tickets are available online (http://www.newvictory.org/boxoffice) and by phone (646.223.3010).

To purchase tickets in person, the New Victory box office is located at 209 West 42nd Street (between 7th / 8th Avenues). Box office hours are Sunday & Monday from 11am-5pm and Tuesday through Saturday from 12pm-7pm.

About The New Victory Theater
The New Victory Theater brings kids to the arts and the arts to kids. Created in 1995 on iconic 42nd Street, this nonprofit theater has become a standard-bearer of quality performing arts for young audiences in the United States. Reflecting and serving the diverse city it calls home, The New Victory is committed to arts access for all students, teachers, kids, families and communities of New York to experience and engage with the exemplary international programming of theater, dance, circus, puppetry and more on its stages. A leader in arts education, youth employment and audience engagement, The New Victory Theater has been honored by the President's Committee on the Arts and the Humanities with the 2014 National Arts and Humanities Youth Program Award, by Americans for the Arts with a National Arts Education Award, and by the Drama Desk for "providing enchanting, sophisticated children's theater that appeals to the child in all of us, and for nurturing a love of theater in young people."

About The New 42nd Street
Founded in 1990, The New 42nd Street is an independent nonprofit organization charged with the continuous cultural revival of 42nd Street between 7th and 8th Avenues, building on the foundation of seven historic theaters to make extraordinary performing arts and cultural engagement part of everyone's life. The New 42nd Street fulfills this purpose by ensuring the ongoing vibrancy of 42nd Street's historic theaters; supporting performing artists in the creation of their work at the New 42nd Street Studios and The Duke on 42nd Street; creating arts access and education at The New Victory Theater, New York's premier theater for kids and families; and through the New 42nd Street Youth Corps, its model youth development initiative, which pairs life skills workshops and mentorship with paid employment in the arts for NYC youth. Inspired by the city it serves, The New 42nd Street is committed to the transformational power of the arts.

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