Third Rail Rep to Stage GIDION'S KNOT, 2/21-3/16

Third Rail Repertory Theatre Presents Gidion's Knot by Johnna Adams, directed by Michael O'Connell* and featuring Amy Newman and Dana Green, February 21 through March 16, 2014.

-Awarded the Steinberg/ATCA Citation for New Playwrighting -Finalist for the Susan Smith Blackburn Prize-

The Play: 5th-Grader Gidion has been suspended for reasons that his teacher, Heather, is reluctant to explain. His mother, Corryn, shows up for her scheduled Parent/Teacher conference and what begins as an uncomfortable exchange evolves into a confrontation that will expose both women to their core. Questioning the limits of freedom of expression, the power of language, parental vs societal responsibility, and the complex nature of love and loyalty, GIDION'S KNOT is a stunning new play that leaves no one unscathed.

The Playwright: Johnna Adams' plays are an eclectic menagerie containing meditations on grief, wild farcical verse plays, southern gothic supernatural plays and hard to explain, in-your-face tragicoms. She is the 2011 recipient of the Princess Grace Award and a 2012 Finalist for the Susan Smith Blackburn Award. As a playwright, she has mingled with an all-inmate cast at the Mitchellville Theatre Project at the Iowa Women's Correctional Institution (In The Absence Of Angels, 2006) and participated in a fully nude talkback in front of a nude audience at the Naturist Society's Western Naturist Gathering at the Lupin Naturist Club (Nude On The Beach, 2002). Other plays include Gidion's Knot;The Anguisher; Hripsime; Hued Moll; Lickspittles, Buttonholers And Damned Pernicious Go-Betweens; The Angel Eaters Trilogy (Angel Eaters, Rattlers, and 8 Little Antichrists); Sans Merci, Cockfighters and The Sacred Geometry Of S&M Porn. She is a past Reva Shiner Award winner, winner of the OC Weekly's Best Original Play award (twice), finalist for the Princess Grace Award, finalist for the Christopher Brian Wolk Award, finalist for the National Art's Club's Playwrights First Prize; finalist for the William Saroyan Prize and New York Innovative Theatre Award nominee. Johnna graduated from the DePaul University Theatre School with a Bfa in Acting and is currently pursuing an Mfa in Playwriting at Hunter College with Tina Howe and Mark Bly.

Director: Michael O'Connell is a founding company member of Third Rail Repertory Theatre and a local fixture in the performing arts community. He has appeared on nearly every professional stage in Portland and won numerous Drammy Awards for his work. He is also a member of the faculty at Portland State University's Department of Theatre and a certified Associate Teacher of Fitzmaurice Voicework. He holds an MFA from the University of Missouri at Kansas City. Gidion's Knot marks Michael's directorial debut with the company he co-founded.

The show runs Feb 21, 2014 - Mar 16, 2014, Thursday-Saturday at 7:30pm, Sunday at 2pm at the CoHo Theatre, 2257 NW Raleigh St, Portland, OR 97210. Tickets Available: By phone at 503.235.1101, online at thirdrailrep.org, or Portland'5 Centers for the Arts Box Office (1111 SW Broadway). Prices: Single tickets $20 - $27 (plus online service fees).

About Third Rail Repertory Theatre: Third Rail is an artist-driven theatre company whose vitality is defined by its audience's sharp appetite for groundbreaking, innovative work. We promote new plays while exploring The Edges of theatrical style. Third Rail exists to provide a home for artists and theatergoers alike, offering a range of experiences to be shared by the audience and the community. More information about Third Rail can be found at thirdrailrep.org. * Denotes Third Rail Company Member

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