Cast Revealed for THE CONTEST at Central Works Theater

CENTRAL WORKS 2024 SEASON concludes with the new play The Contest, written and directed by Gary Graves. The Contest depicts Michelangelo vs. Leonardo da Vinci in an exquisite rivalry and plays October 19–November 17 (previews Oct.17 & 18) at the historic Berkeley City Club, 2315 Durant Avenue in Berkeley. Inspired by an actual event, World Premiere #75 from Central Works continues its mission of presenting new works inspired by contemporary social issues, literature, and history.   Directed by Gary Graves with a cast featuring Nathaniel Andalis*, Alan Coyne & Christopher Herold* (*member AEA)

Florence in 1504, the height of the Italian Renaissance, the two greatest artists of the era: Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo Buonarroti–one the recognized master of science and painting, the other a young wizard with stone, having just completed the statue of David to wild acclaim. Niccolo Machiavelli arranged the contest. The divergence of principle between Leonardo and Michelangelo was profound. It is doubtful whether they ever directly discussed these matters, but they did not have to. The difference was readily apparent. Each assigned to paint a magnificent battle scene on one of two opposing walls in the Great Hall of the Republic.  And the people of Florence will decide which is the best: the aging master or the arrogant upstart?  

“The rivalry between these two extraordinary artists represents something of a debate about the nature of art itself. Machiavelli's motive for engineering this singular contest is part of a larger story we've been working on at Central Works for many years.  The Contest is actually "Part 3" in a 5-Part cycle of plays (each stands alone as well)  under the larger title of The Prince.  Central Works produced Part 2 (The Lion and the Fox, 2014), Part 4 (The Prince, 2009), and Part 5 (Mondragola, 2023) over the years, and we hope to present all 5 Parts together at some point in the future.” –Gary Graves

Gary Graves (playwright/director) has been a resident playwright and company co-director at Central Works since 1998. He has been a part of developing 75 world premiere productions with the company, many of which he has either written and/or directed.  Titles of plays he has written include:  Red Virgin, Richard the First (a trilogy), Machiavelli's The Prince, The Grand Inquisitor, Chekhov's Ward 6, Wonderland, Mondragola and this season's Boss McGreedy.  He directed the company's first collaboratively developed script, Roux, at the Berkeley City Club in 1997. He also leads the Central Works Writers Workshop, and he teaches playwriting regularly at the Berkeley Rep School of Theater.

Cast

Nathaniel Andalis* (Michelangelo Buonarroti) is an actor born and based in the East Bay. He is a graduate of Pacific Conservatory Theatre and company member of Ubuntu Theater Project. Notable credits include: Hamlet in Hamlet (San Francisco Shakespeare Festival) and Laertes (Arabian Shakespeare Festival); Biff in Death of a Salesman (Ubuntu Theatre Project); Tyler in Laughing Stock (Role Players Ensemble); Marco in A View from the Bridge (Northside Theater Company); Frank in Mrs. Warren's Profession (Douglas Morrison Theater) and various roles in Hamlet, Peter and the Starcatcher, and Twelfth Night at the Illinois Shakespeare Festival.

Alan Coyne (Niccoló Machiavelli) is no stranger to portraying historical figures in this space, having previously played (with Indra's Net Theater) Drs James Watson, GH Hardy, and Stephen Hawking, and (with Central Works) the pre-eminent Viennese psychologist Herr Doktor Florian von Grabstetter. He has also worked with the San Francisco Shakespeare Festival, We Players, Center Rep, Ferocious Lotus, and Lafayette Town Hall Theatre, among others. In 2019, his two-person adaptation, 2ELFth NIGHT, appeared at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, and this August, he and Anjoli Aguilar devised and performed 2EMPEST at Eclectic Box in San Francisco.

Christopher Herold* (Leonardo da Vinci) is collaborating on his fourth project with Central Works, appearing previously in Inspector General and The Mysterious Mr. Looney, and directing Achilles & Patroklos. Locally, he has also performed at Aurora Theatre, Magic Theatre, Word for Word, Shotgun Players, and Theatre Rhinoceros. He has been a core member of the faculty at the Tony Award-winning American Conservatory Theater in San Francisco, where he served as the Director of the Summer Training Congress and taught in the MFA and Studio programs, where he also directed multiple Studio Productions. Mr. Herold has additionally taught at Stanford and The Berkeley Repertory School of Theatre and currently serves as Coordinator of the Acting Program at U.C. Berkeley, where he teaches Advanced Acting and Directing. His directing credits at Berkeley include over 20 major productions.

 *member AEA

Central Works

Now concluding its 34th season, Central Works continues to fill a special niche for theater artists in the San Francisco Bay Area, producing more new plays by local playwrights than any other company in the region. “The New Play Theater” utilizes three basic strategies: some are developed in the Central Works Writers Workshop, some are products of the Central Works Method, and some come to the company fully developed.

The Central Works Writers Workshop is an ongoing commissioning program established in 2012.  Twice a year, in 12-week sessions, 8 local playwrights are selected to develop projects through informal readings and carefully directed discussions.  Since 2022, 5 productions at Central Works emerged from this program. For more information, visit our website:  www.centralworks.org

Central Works Method plays bring together writer, actors and director at the very outset of the playwriting process. In a supportive workshop environment, group research and collective brainstorming contribute to the entire development of the script.

Company Co-directors Jan Zvaifler and Gary Graves remain steadfast in their mission to develop and produce new works. “New plays are the lifeblood of the theater,” says Ms. Zvaifler. “We look at current events, politics, classic literature and traditional storytelling to bring our audience face to face with the challenges of our lives everyday, juxtaposed against the reflections of history, both recent and far-reaching. Given our current harrowing times, we all need an opportunity to pause, feel, think and act.” The special intimacy of the Central Works theater offers this in a truly unique package.

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