SPF To Announce Summer Lineup 5/1

 The selection of plays for the 2008 Summer Play Festival (SPF) is underway with an announcement of the final slate planned for May 1.
 
For its upcoming fifth anniversary season, SPF will for the first time be in residence at The Public Theater.  SPF 2008 is scheduled for July 1 to July 27 and, as in years past, is expected to serve as a highlight of the summer theatre season by showcasing a line-up of new and remarkable talent.
 
More than in any prior year, over one thousand play and musical submissions have been received from Australia, Brazil, Canada, England, Germany, Ireland, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Scotland and the USA.
 
"As festival planning continues we are constantly reminded of how fortunate we are to have created a partnership with The Public Theater," said SPF founder Arielle Tepper Madover, continuing, "Between the vision of Oskar Eustis, the entire dedicated staff at The Public and the committed and hard working Summer Play Festival team, it is clear that the impact that we can have on the lives and careers of emerging writers and artists is endless."
 
Oskar Eustis, Artistic Director of The Public said, "the Summer Play Festival is a wonderful and inspiring institution; we are proud to join forces in pursing our joint mission: Supporting writers who can make the American Theater a more exciting place."

Playwrights who participated in SPF in past seasons who are currently active in New York, represented on and off Broadway include:

Quiara Alegria Hughes' (SPF 2005) wrote the book for In The Heights now at the
Richard Rodgers Theatre on Broadway.

John Bucchino's (SPF 2004) A Catered Affair opens at the Walter Kerr Theatre on April
17.

Beau Willimon's (SPF 2007) Farragut North, is expected to open on Broadway later this
Year.  Lower Ninth recently played at the Flea Theater.
 
Anton Dudley (SPF 2004) whose play Substitution will be playing at the SoHo Playhouse from April 26.

Peter Nachtrieb's (SPF 2004) Boom recently played a run at Ars Nova.

Catherine Trieschmann's (SPF 2005) Crooked will open soon at the Julia Miles Theatre.

Brooke Berman's (SPF 2004) Hunting and Gathering, presented by Primary Stages, ran at 59E59 earlier this year.

Founded in 2004 by Broadway producer Arielle Tepper Madover (Monty Python's SPAMALOT, Frost/Nixon, The Pillowman and A Raisin in the Sun), the Summer Play Festival (SPF) stages original new plays and musicals by emerging writers during the summer months in New York City. A year later in 2005, the not-for-profit The Living Room for Artists, Inc. was formed to ensure that the Festival perpetuates its goals and whose central mission is to both fuel the growth of emerging theatre artists and encourage people of all ages to create, attend and work in the theatre.  
 
Since its inception, SPF has produced over 450 performances; provided an opportunity for over 100 writers, directors, designers, actors, and producers to present their material and craft in a protected environment; and sold out its four-week performance schedule by attracting thousands of theatre patrons with its low ticket price of $10!  For more information visit www.spfnyc.com <http://www.spfnyc.com/> .  
 
The advisory committee for SPF 2008 includes: David Binder, Producer (A Raisin In The Sun; Fuerzabruta), Chris Burney, Associate Artistic Director, Second Stage Theatre, Matthew Byam Shaw, Producer (Frost / Nixon; Noises Off), Lucy Davies, Executive Producer, Donmar Warehouse, Jeremy Dobrish, Director (Election Day; Spain), David Dower, Producing Artistic Associate, Arena Stage, Oskar Eustis, Artistic Director, Public Theater, Daniel Goldstein, Director (Walmartopia; Godspell), Christina Gorman, Playwright (Split Wide Open; Wreckage), Mandy Hackett (Associate Artistic Director, Public Theater), Adam Immerwahr (Producing Associate at the McCarter), Lisa McNulty, Associate Director of Artistic Operations, Manhattan Theatre Club, Pam Mackinnon, Director (Peter and Jerry; All The Wrong Reasons), Sheila Nevins, President, HBO Documentary, Leigh Silverman, Director (Hunting and Gathering; Well), Catherine Trieschmann, Playwright (Crooked; Before The Fire), and John Weidman, Librettist (Pacific Overtures; Assassins).

THE PUBLIC THEATER (Oskar Eustis, Artistic Director; Mara Manus, Executive Director) was founded by Joseph Papp in 1954 as the Shakespeare Workshop and is now one of the nation's preeminent cultural institutions, producing new plays, musicals, productions of Shakespeare, and other classics at its headquarters on Lafayette Street and at the Delacorte Theater in Central Park.  The Public's mandate to create a theater for all New Yorkers continues to this day on stage and through its extensive outreach and education programs. Each year, over 250,000 people attend Public Theater-related productions and events at six downtown stages, including Joe's Pub, and Shakespeare in the Park. The Public has won 40 Tony Awards, 141 Obies, 39 Drama Desk Awards and 4 Pulitzer Prizes.

www.spfnyc.com

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