Aurora Theatre Company Extends GIDION'S KNOT Through 3/9

Aurora Theatre Company announces that it will add an additional 7 performances of its current hit production of Johnna Adams' incendiary GIDION'S KNOT. GIDION'S KNOT, directed by Jon Tracy (The Elaborate Entrance of Chad Deity) and featuring Jamie Jones (Edward Albee's A Delicate Balance) and Stacy Ross (Wilder Times), plays at the Aurora Theatre in Berkeley now through March 9 (added performances: Tuesday, March 4, 7pm; Wednesday, March 5, 8pm; Thursday, March 6, 8pm; Friday, March 7, 8pm; Saturday, March 8, 8pm; Sunday, March 9, 2pm and 7pm). For tickets ($32-50) and information the public can call (510) 843-4822 or visit auroratheatre.org. For mature audiences.

In GIDION'S KNOT, a parent/teacher conference begins with a concerned mother wanting answers as to why her son was suspended from his 5th grade class. Was he a bully? A victim? A protector? Their discussion develops into a dramatically charged, volatile exploration of personal responsibility, freedom of expression, the failure of our school system, bullying, and blame. Called "heart-stopping" by Washingtonian Magazine, and "a well-crafted and powerful experience...confrontational and thought-provoking" by the LA Weekly, this provocative exploration of culpability received its World Premiere in 2012 at The Contemporary American Theater Festival. Published in its entirety in American Theatre Magazine, and a finalist for the 2012 Harold and Mimi Steinberg/American Theatre Critics Association New Play Award, GIDION'S KNOT raises profound questions about parenting, maternal loyalty, and who is ultimately responsible for the actions of our children.

Actress Julia McNeal replaces Stacy Ross as Gidion's teacher, Heather Clark, for the added performances. Bay Area stage credits include Olga in Chekov's The Three Sisters for Porchlight Theatre, Kate in Pinter's Old Times for TheatreFIRST, and Alma in Williams' Summer and Smoke for Center Repertory Company. Other credits include roles at San Francisco Playhouse, Marin Theatre Company, Magic Theatre, and Actors Theatre of San Francisco. She is a PlayGround company member, a Guest Artist at the CTE conservatory program at Tamalpais High School, and teaches a distinct technique for playing multiple characters at The Marsh, and elsewhere.

GIDION'S KNOT is the fully-staged anchor production in this season's Global Age Project (GAP), an Aurora Theatre Company initiative that encourages playwrights and directors to explore life in the 21st century and beyond. This year's GAP prize winners include: #therevolution by Kristoffer Diaz; Technicolor Life by Jami Brandli; Sagittarius Ponderosa by MJ Kaufman; and Welcome Home by Stephen Brown. The selected GAP plays will be presented as staged readings in a four-week festival at the Aurora Theatre, Monday, February 10 through March 3, 7:30pm. All GAP readings are free and open to the public.