Sanguine Theatre Company to Premiere Patrick Vermillion's JESSICA at IRT Theater

Sanguine Theatre Company will present the World Premiere of Patrick Vermillion's JESSICA, directed by Emily Jackson at IRT Theater (154 Christopher Street, between Greenwich and Washington, 10014), July 22-August 5.

Performances are set for: Saturday, July 22 at 8pm, Sunday, July 23 at 7pm, Tuesday, July 25 at 8pm, Wednesday, July 26 at 8pm, Thursday, July 27 at 8pm, Friday, July 28 at 8pm, Saturday, July 29 at 8pm, Sunday, July 30 at 3pm, Tuesday, August 1 at 8pm, Wednesday, August 2 at 8pm, Thursday, August 3 at 8pm, Friday, August 4 at 8pm, Saturday, August 5 at 8pm, and Sunday, August 6 at 3pm. Tickets ($18) are available online at www.brownpapertickets.com/event/2954473 or by calling 1-800-838-3006. The performance will run approximately 90 minutes, with no intermission.

In 2013, Jessica vanished. Now, her closest friends are reconstructing her with cutting-edge technology to try and track her down. They prime the android with memories from Jessica's past, but it's clear that their stories don't add up. As Jessica's friends fight for ownership over an artificial Jessica, the android listens, learns, and plays along. Suddenly, the line between robot and real life is very, very thin.

Written by a playwright who "daylights" as a software engineer, Jessica dissolves the metallic glamour of traditional science fiction and delivers a jarring encounter with Artificial Intelligence.

Jessica won Sanguine Theatre Company's 2017 Project Playwright Festival. The play was chosen from hundreds of submissions to receive its world premiere as part of Sanguine's 2017 season.

The cast will feature Anna Nemetz (Annotated History of the American Muskrat at the Ice Factory Festival/New Ohio), Alison Scaramella* (Be the Death of Me with The Civilians), Will Sarratt (Omega Kids with New Light Theater Project), Michael Patrick Trimm (Julius Caesar at The Public Theater), and Alli Trussell (Loose Cannon at Soho Playhouse) with Set and Lighting Design by Tyler M. Perry. *Actor appears courtesy of the Actors' Equity Association.

PATRICK VERMILLION (Playwright) is an NYC playwright and comedian. His plays have been seen at Ensemble Studio Theater, The New York Shrt Wv Festival, and the LSU New Works Reading Series. He is also a recipient of the 2015 David Lindsay-Abaire award from his alma mater Sarah Lawrence. He is also a director, most recently having directed the interactive You Haunt Our House at The Annoyance Theater in Brooklyn, New York. As a standup comedian he's performed at The Eastville Comedy Club and The Stonestreet Comedy Hour. His improv and sketch team New Greta won the 2016 Del Close Marathon Cage Match, which might not mean a lot to anyone who doesn't know improv, but trust him, it's a big deal.

Emily Jackson (Director) is an artist and administrator whose focus is on theatrical collaboration, vitality, and impact. She is the Artistic Director for Sanguine Theatre Company in New York City. She most recently served as Artistic Associate and Director of Audience Services for Kitchen Theatre Company in Ithaca, NY where, along with directing and acting on the main stage season, she had the opportunity to champion innovative programming like new play development workshop retreats and play-specific audience engagements events. Emily has been a member of Lark Theatre's Literary Wing and has adapted the works of Italian playwright, Dacia Maraini. Emily's directing credits include, for KTC: I and You, The Soup Comes Last, Physics Fair, Count Me In; for Cider Mill Playhouse: Urinetown, Stage Kiss; for Sanguine Theatre Company: Project Playwright 2014; for After Darks, PTP/NYC: Scenes of Ascending; for 2X4 in Repertory: Haunted; for Rhapsody Collective: How Steve Died; for Writopia's Worldwide Plays Festival: Crazy Like a Pumpkin and How to be a Dad. She was last seen onstage at KTC as Mack/Mabel in Precious Nonsense and Molly in Peter and the Starcatcher. Originally from Dallas, Texas, Emily received her BFA from The University of Oklahoma's Peggy Dow Helmerich School of Drama.

SANGUINE THEATRE COMPANY is a small but mighty pioneer for rising artists and new works. Since its founding in New York City in 2010, Sanguine's work has given NYC debuts to dozens of actors, designers, and playwrights. Sanguine's mission is to advance the art of American theatre through the spirit of collaboration, making art accessible to everyone. Visit www.sanguinenyc.org for more.

IRT THEATER is a grassroots laboratory for independent theater and performance in New York City, providing space and support to a new generation of artists. Tucked away in the old Archive Building in Greenwich Village, IRT's mission is to build a community of emerging and established artists by creating a home for the development and presentation of new work. Some of the artists we have supported include Young Jean Lee, Reggie Watts and Mike Daisey.

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