Polaris North to Present Staged Reading of RUSHMORE: THE FIFTH MAN This Fall

Rushmore: The Fifth Man, a play by Rose-Marie Brandwein will be presented in staged reading format on Thursday November 3rd at Polaris North (245 W. 29th Street) starting at 7PM.

J.K. Musser directs a cast that includes Ange Berneau*, Damian Bosco*, Jean Brookner*, Allan Brown, Elizabeth Caruso, Paul Hummel* Emil G. Keller*, Cam Kornman*, James Pyecka*and John Sannuto. *(Member of Actor's Equity)

Rushmore: The Fifth Man is the story of the egocentric, flamboyant, alternately bigoted and noble American sculptor Gutzon Borglum who despite nearly insurmountable obstacles found the determination to see through the building of America's greatest sculpture-Mount Rushmore. Following his doomed attempt at constructing a grandiose monument to American Confederacy known as Stone Mountain, Borglum, yearning for artistic redemption and critical success, acquiesces to a proposal made by South Dakota historian Doane Robinson and senator Peter Norbeck to carve the likenesses of western heroes in the Black Hills region of that state for the promotion of tourism. Taking charge, Borglum rejects their ideas for the monument in favor of four iconic American presidents, choosing the site of Mount Rushmore for its durable granite and exposure to sunlight. What ensues is a protracted battle beset by financial issues, demands of special interest groups and the manipulation of public opinion inspired by a relentless press. Rushmore: The Fifth Man is the timeless story of an artistic genius who defies the system against staggering odds.

Rose-Marie Brandwein received her M.F.A. in professional writing from the University of Southern California where she studied playwriting and screenwriting. She studied playwriting with Larry Carr, Jack Gelber, David Scott Milton and Walter Hadler at Roundabout Conservatory Theatre's Playwriting Unit and with directors Andrew Leynse and Tyler Marchant of Primary Stages. Her full length play Expiration Date was first performed as a staged reading at Stage Left Studio's Women at Work Festival in 2012 before going onto productions in the East of Edinburgh Festival at 59E59 Theaters and the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in 2013. Readings of her plays The Good Life and The Audience Play were presented at Polaris North last year. Her Perspectives of Love, A Staged Reading of Three Short Plays was performed at Polaris North this September. She is a member of the Dramatists Guild.

J.K. Musser has an MFA in Directing from Brooklyn College. He has directed New York productions, workshops and readings at The Culture Project and IRT Theater, among others, and has worked as an Associate Director for productions at Primary Stages, Signature Theatre, the Wallis Annenberg Center and Alley Theater. He has held directing fellowships at Westport Country Playhouse and Asolo Repertory Theatre, and is an associate member of SDC. He is currently the Associate Director of Horton Foote's The Roads to Home at the Cherry Lane Theatre and is the director of the upcoming Primary Stages Gala: Honoring Horton Foote.

Rushmore: The Fifth Man will be presented on Thursday November 3rd at Polaris North (245 W. 29th Street, between 7th and 8th Avenues, 4th Floor) at 7PM with a reception to follow. Admission is free.

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