Pocket Universe will present a new, all-female production of William Shakespeare's Julius Caesar, starring Alyssa May Gold (Arcadia on Broadway, Middle of the Night) as Brutus, Déa Julien (West Side Story 1st Nat'l Tour, Blueprint Specials) as Julius Caesar, Violeta Picayo (BEDLAM's Sense & Sensibility, RadioBABEL) as Mark Antony, Madeline Wolf (Fun Home on Broadway, Normativity) as Cassius, Miranda Cornell (Alter Ego, #Blessed) as Casca, and Amie Tedesco (Lemon Sky, Any Day Now) as Lucius. All other roles will be played by members of the company. The production will run from June 21 to July 8, 2017 at the Access Theater Gallery Space. Opening night is set for Friday, June 23.
Conceived by Alyssa May Gold and directed by Katie Young (BEDLAM), this epic story of jealousy and betrayal is given a modern day setting at an all-girls high school, where psychological warfare is unyielding. Six young women will play all roles in this coming-of-age story that follows a group of teenagers through their first tastes of power, the desire to seize it, and the life and death battle to keep it. Les Dickert (Isaac's Eye, Women of Will) joins Alyssa & Katie on the production design team. Completing the creative team are Production Stage Manager Taylor Elise Keller (The Woodsman, The Total Bent) and production assistant Megan Thomas Quick.
Pocket Universe is a New York City-based theater and film Production Company founded by Alyssa May Gold dedicated to reconsidering and reimagining classic stories and conventions.
Tickets for William Shakespeare's Julius Caesar are now on sale at www.caesarbeware.com. The regular performance schedule is as follows: Wednesday - Saturday at 7:30pm. Additional performances have been added on Saturday June 24 & July 8 at 2:00pm, Tuesday June 27 at 7:30pm, and Sunday July 2 at 7:30pm.
ABOUT THE ARTISTS:
Alyssa May Gold* (Producer/Brutus) is the founder and President of Pocket Universe as well as Associate Producer for the critically acclaimed theater company BEDLAM. Her credits as an actor include the Tony-nominated revival of Arcadia, Keen Company's revivals of Middle of the Night and Lemon Sky, the films Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood, Taking Woodstock, Rebel in the Rye, and multiple episodes of "Law and Order: SVU." Her other producing credits include the web series "You Made It Worse" (which she wrote and directed) and the indie feature Dream Years. Alyssa holds a multi-disciplinary BA from NYU Gallatin and an MA in Classical Acting from the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art.
Déa Julien* (Julius Caesar): West Side Story 1st Nat'l Tour (Rosalia / dir. Arthur Laurents & David Saint). New York: Blueprint Specials (Public Theater UTR / Tom Ridgely), STET (Abingdon Theatre / Tony Speciale), Intimacy (The New Group / Scott Elliott), Lawnpeople (Cherry Lane / Elena Araoz), Abraham's Daughters and The Seven Little Foys (Fringe NYC), Suzan Lori Parks' 365 Days/365 Plays (Public Theater). Metropolitan Opera Children's Chorus. Film: Cut In Half (dir. Susan Seidelman), Public Speaking, Fan Girl. Glamour Magazine's Top Ten College Women. www.deajulien.com
Violeta Picayo* (Mark Antony) Off-Broadway: Sense & Sensibility (Bedlam). New York: RadioBABEL (SITI Lab), This Is How I Don't Know How to Dance (Siti Company), Taming of the Shrew (Tale Told), Las Meninas (New Brooklyn Theatre), Double Falsehood (Unbound). International: American Blues, The Importance of Being Earnest (Edinburgh Fringe), Thyestes (OYL). Violeta is a company member at BEDLAM and a proud graduate of the SITI Conservatory, the National Theater Institute, and Vassar College. www.VioletaPicayo.com
Madeline Wolf* (Cassius): is thrilled to be joining this magnificent company! Broadway: Fun Home. TV: "Outsiders" (WGN). Other theatre credits: Normativity (NYMF), No Exit (BubblePGH), Twelfth Night (BADA), Trojan Women 2.0 (CMU), Passion Play (Circuit Theatre Co.). BFA: Carnegie Mellon University. Many thanks to the Wolf/Schulman family, FZ, MK, and the cast and crew of Julius Caesar!
Miranda Cornell (Casca) is an actor, director, and producer born and bred in Brooklyn, and is incredibly excited to be working with this team on Julius Caesar! Selected theater: Dewey Dell in As I Lay Dying, 4.48 Psychosis, Park Closes After Dusk (Vassar College), and Alter Ego (Prospect Theatre Company/Theatre Row). Film: "Louder Than Bombs" (Motlys/Joachim Trier). She is the founding Artistic Director of Semicolon Theatre Company, where she directs and produces, most recently #Blessed at FringeNYC 2016. She is currently pursuing BAs in Drama and Education from Vassar College, and is an alumna of the Powerhouse Apprentice Program. www.semicolontheatre.com
Amie Tedesco* (Lucius/Titinius) Amie is thrilled to be working with Pocket Universe! She is a Brooklyn-based actor that has worked in theatre, film and TV, and the interwebs. Off Broadway: Lemon Sky (Keen Company), Any Day Now (Primary Stages), Round She Goes (Primary Stages). Regional: Circle Mirror Transformation (Tangent Theatre Company; Member). Film/ TV/Web: "Law and Order, SVU" (NBC), VMA Promo (MTV), "Too Soon?" (Coney Island Lager). In addition, Amie has been involved in the development of new works with The Shelter, Mason Holdings, and various theatre companies. She has also made several sketch comedy appearances at UCB Theatre. Many thanks to Alyssa & Katie!
Katie Young (Director) is a New York based director & stage manager originally from Seattle, Washington. As a stage manager, she is a frequent collaborator with the renowned BEDLAM Theater Company and has worked on stage management teams for Hamilton, School of Rock, Something Rotten, Amazing Grace, Once, and RENT.??Katie is a graduate of NYU's Gallatin School of Individualized Study where she studied theater production, business, and genocide studies.
*Appearing Courtesy of Actors Equity Association
Photo Credit: Ashley Garrett
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