Artists Rep presents Horror Genre-Inspired Comedy FEATHERS AND TEETH

Artists Repertory Theatre presents the Northwest Premiere of FEATHERS AND TEETH by Charise Castro Smith, directed by Artistic Director Dámaso Rodríguez. Previews performances begin March 7, the play opens March 11 and runs through April 2 on the Morrison Stage.

FEATHERS AND TEETH is a stew of dark comedy, family drama and fantastical horror that makes for a crackling good time. It's 1978 and young Chris is reeling from her mom's illness and recent death. Throw in dad's new girlfriend (mom's ex-nurse!), a few freaky little creatures and the boy next door, and things really get out of hand. Part monster tale and revenge tragedy, the highly theatrical FEATHERS AND TEETH delivers a meaty exploration of grief and obsession.

Artists Rep's production features acclaimed child actor Agatha Day Olson as the play's 13-year-old protagonist, along with Darius Pierce making his Artists Rep debut as her father, Sara Hennessy as the intruding new girlfriend and the young Dámaso J. Rodríguez as the boy-next-door, Hugo. The titular creatures featured throughout the play are voiced live at every performance by actor Nelda Reyes as part of Composer and Sound Designer Rodolfo Ortega's intricate soundscape. The production requires highly theatrical animation sequences created by Animation and Projection Designer Andrés Alcalá which were inspired by the drawings of Chagall and Lorca.

"Be prepared for Castro Smith's pitch dark comedy, heightened theatrical style and subversive intentions," said director Dámaso Rodríguez at the play's first rehearsal. "On the surface, this play is a lot of fun, with its nostalgic 1970s setting and its outrageous blend of sitcom, fairytale and monster movie plot, but I invite you to look beneath this façade. FEATHERS AND TEETH has more in common with HAMLET than The Brady Bunch."

ABOUT THE PLAYWRIGHT
Charise Castro Smith is a playwright, television writer and actor from Miami, currently residing in Los Angeles. Playwriting credits include: FEATHERS AND TEETH (Goodman Theater/ Developed at Atlantic Theater Company), ESTRELLA CRUZ [THE JUNKYARD QUEEN] (Ars Nova/ Yale Cabaret/ Halycon Theatre), THE HUNCHBACK OF SEVILLE (Washington Ensemble Theater/ Trinity Repertory Theatre), WASHETERIA (Soho Rep) and BOOMCRACKLEFLY (Miracle Theatre). She is currently under commission by South Coast Rep and Trinity Repertory Theatre, and is developing a new drama series at ABC. Select acting credits include ANTONY AND CLEOPATRA (Royal Shakespeare Company/ Public Theater), AN ENEMY OF THE PEOPLE (Baltimore Center Stage) and THE GOOD WIFE (CBS). Charise is the recipient of a Van Lier Fellowship at New Dramatists, and is an alumna of Ars Nova's Playgroup and New George's The Jam. MFA: Yale School of Drama, BA: Brown University.

ABOUT THE DIRECTOR
DÁMASO RODRÍGUEZ is in his fourth year as Artistic Director of Artists Repertory Theatre. In 2001 he co-founded the Los Angeles-based Furious Theatre Company, where he served as Co-Artistic Director until 2012. From 2007-2010 he served as Associate Artistic Director of the Pasadena Playhouse. His directing credits include work at Artists Rep, Playwrights' Center, the Pasadena Playhouse, Intiman Theatre, South Coast Repertory, Laguna Playhouse, A Noise Within, The Theatre@Boston Court, Naked Angels and Furious Theatre. Rodriguez is a recipient of the Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Award, the Back Stage Garland Award, the NAACP Theatre Award and the Pasadena Arts Council's Gold Crown Award. His productions have been nominated for multiple LA Weekly Theatre Awards and LA Stage Alliance Ovation Awards. In 2012, Rodriguez was honored by the Stage Directors and Choreographers Foundation as a Finalist for the Zelda Fichandler Award. He is a member of the Stage Directors and Choreographers Society (SDC).

Directing credits at Artists Rep include revivals of THE SKIN OF OUR TEETH by Thornton Wilder, THE MIRACLE WORKER by William Gibson and THE PLAYBOY OF THE WESTERN WORLD by J.M. Synge, the World Premiere musical CUBA LIBRE featuring the music of three-time Grammy-nominated Tiempo Libre, the Portland premieres of Nick Jones' TREVOR, David Ives' adaptation of Pierre Corneille's THE LIAR, Nina Raine's TRIBES, EXILES by Carlos Lácamara, the U.S. premiere of Dawn King's FOXFINDER, and the West Coast premieres of Jeffrey Hatcher's TEN CHIMNEYS and Dan LeFranc's THE BIG MEAL. Credits at other theatres include productions by contemporary and classic playwrights including Craig Wright, Neil LaBute, Matt Pelfrey, Peter Sinn Nachtrieb, Richard Bean, Owen McCafferty, Alex Jones, William Shakespeare, Eugene O'Neill, Tennessee Williams, Noel Coward, Bernard Shaw, Clifford Odets and Lillian Hellman. www.damaso-rodriguez.com

TICKETS: $50 regular price; $25 preview/student/under 25

PREVIEW WEEK SPECIALS

Pay-What-You-Can First Preview performance: Tuesday, March 7

$10 book ahead or PWYC at the door

Preview Play & Pizza: Wednesday, March 8

$25 ticket & FREE slice of HotLips Pizza

Preview Play & Beer: Thursday, March 9

$25 ticket & Lagunitas Beer

Preview Play & Happy Hour + Live Music: Friday, March 10

p:ear Partner Performance: Tuesday, March 28

$40 ticket, $20 goes to p:ear

Buy Tickets: 503.241.1278 or www.artistsrep.org

To post a comment, you must register and login.