Famed Hollywood Publicist Pens Drama About Homeless LGBTQ Youth Adrift in L.A.

Theater for the New City (Crystal Field Executive Artistic Director) will present the World Premiere of WINK, a new play by Neil Koenigsberg, directed by Ron Beverly. Previews begin Thursday, April 13 with opening night set for Wednesday, April 19.

WINK, a homeless and traumatized gender questioning teenager, and Dario Villanova, an ex-A list actor doing B movies, are down on their luck in Los Angeles.
Their kindred spirits bond over music and a death in Dario's extended family to forge a heartfelt and unconventional love story of surrogate father and child.

WINK stars (in alphabetical order) Joshua De Jesus ("Runaways" at City Center Encores!), Joe Isenberg (2013 Helen Hayes winner in his NY debut), Joe Maruzzo ("The Cherry Orchard" at Actors Studio with Ellen Burstyn, "Henry V" with Kevin Kline at the Public), Jose Joaquin Perez (Drama Desk nominee for "My Manana Comes") and Nikole Williams. The General Management Company for WINK is 22Q Entertainment helmed by Robert Levinstein and Alan Wager.

The play comes out of a successful development at The Actors Studio Playwright/Directors Unit where Koenigsberg and Beverly first met. Subsequent readings in July 2016 under the auspices of Woodie King Jr. and his New Federal Theater have now led to this production.

Playwright Neil Koenigsberg's "Off the King's Road" had a world premiere three years ago at the Theater for the New City; that play went on to productions at the Odyssey Theater in Los Angeles (2015) and the Jermyn Street Theater in London (2016). Off-Broadway, he also had two one-act plays "On A Bench" and "Fit" in the Summer Shorts Festivals at 59 East 59 St. Theater. The playwright has had a fertile career in the entertainment business as a publicist (the "K" in powerhouse agency PMK), talent manager and film producer in addition to writing plays. A member of The Actors Studio PD Unit, New Dramatists Guild and the Motion Picture Academy, he was on the Board of Directors and a volunteer for five years at the NY based Ali Forney Center serving Homeless LGBTQ youth.

Ron Beverly has directed Tony Award Nominee and Drama Desk Award Winner Anthony Chisholm (Broadway: Jitney, Radio Golf, Gem of the Ocean), Angelica Page (Broadway: Gore Vidal's The Best Man, Side Man, Anna Christie) and two-time Emmy Award winner and Tony Award nominee, Keith David as Paul Robeson in The Actors Studio Workshop Productions of his play, "Paul Robeson: To Live In Freedom", which is scheduled to have its World Premiere Spring 2019. He is directing the revival of his Audelco Award nominated farce, "Driving While Black & Other Felonious Funk", this October, produced by Woodie King Jr.'s New Federal Theater. He is a Lifetime Member of the famed Actors Studio and on the Playwrights/Directors Unit (PDU) Committee with PDU Director Lyle Kessler and a PDU Moderator with John Patrick Shanley, Chazz Palminteri and Michael Weller.

WINK runs April 13 - May 7. Performances are Thursday - Saturday at 8pm and Sunday at 3pm with an additional performance on Wednesday, April 19 at 8pm. Theater for the New City is located at 155 First Avenue at 10th Street -- accessible from the L at 14th Street, F at 2nd Avenue, 6 at Astor Place or N/R at 8th Street. Tickets are $18 at 212-868-4444 or www.theaterforthenewcity.net.

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