Magic Theatre, the premiere home for new plays, announces its 2008-09 Season of New Plays. New Artistic Director Loretta Greco's inaugural season features a wide breadth of styles and stories from a cutting-edge family drama to a kid's perspective on life and death, from a fast-paced and darkly humorous rumination on modern existence to a dynamically theatrical and surprisingly funny odyssey through one woman's battle with breast cancer. Running from September 2008 to June 2009, the season brings new plays in various stages of development and production history to the Bay Area in line with Magic's mission of serving nation's most celebrated writers alongside hot newcomers.
"I am thrilled to be producing this line-up of exciting plays by such a vast array of writers," says Artistic Director Loretta Greco. "Each play has its own brand of theatricality, perfectly suited to the intimate and muscular spaces at Magic Theatre. I am thrilled to welcome acclaimed writers Craig Wright and
Theresa Rebeck to our stages, while introducing the work of four hot newcomers to the Bay Area."
"We continue our commitment to keeping our subscription packages affordable," says Managing Director David Jobin. "Our packages offer up to 25% discounts for the first time this year and we are continuing our successful 3|30<30 membership program that allows under-30 patrons to see three plays for $30. I am truly excited about Loretta's first season and thrilled to be able to make San Francisco's best theatre offerings affordable for every Bay Area resident."
Magic's 2008-09 Season of New Plays opens with Laura Schellhardt's The K of D, an urban legend – a quirky tale of a small-town kid coming to terms with the big questions of life and death. Schellhardt enlists the audience's imagination to weave a complete portrait of a Midwestern community during one particular summer in a young girl's life. "I am thrilled to open my inaugural season with this show. It captures the power and simplicity of theatrical storytelling that is at the heart of Magic's aesthetic," says Greco. "Laura's voice is singular and we are thrilled to introduce her to the West Coast with this production." The season continues with Carter W. Lewis' Evie's Waltz, a hard-hitting family drama about a couple's dilemma when their son is expelled for bringing a gun to school. As they struggle with the ramifications of this fact on their family, an unexpected visit from their son's girlfriend turns their backyard barbeque into a high-stakes game of cat and mouse. "We welcome Carter back to the Bay Area where he lived and worked before moving to St. Louis," says Greco who will direct the production. "This evocative play will be the perfect homecoming for a writer of his talent."
The New Year begins with Oni Faida Lampley's Tough Titty, a bold and sassy exploration of one woman's struggle with breast cancer directed by Obie Award-winning director Robert O'Hara. Like all of Ms. Lampley's work, Tough Titty tears down the cliché of the "Strong Black Woman" to celebrate the spirit, language, and courage of people who are searching for grace while fighting for survival. Tough Titty is the last finished manuscript by Ms. Lampley, who passed away this week, after a 12-year struggle with breast cancer. "This is a very personal project for me," says Greco. "Oni was an extraordinary force who inspired everyone she came in contact with. Although it's hard to imagine, being in rehearsal without her, I can't think of a better way to honor Oni's generosity of spirit than this fearless and raucous play."
The season continues with a moving world premiere play about identity and American family. Lloyd Suh's American Hwangap centers on a Korean immigrant who returns home for his sixtieth birthday to reconnect with the family he abandoned 15 years before. "Lloyd is a writer of exceptional depth who is writing about identity in this country with great authenticity and humor," Greco says. "I know Bay Area audiences will relate to this emotional homecoming story." The season continues with Mauritius,
Theresa Rebeck's high-stakes thriller about rare stamps, directed by Loretta Greco. Mauritius was the first Broadway outing for Ms. Rebeck, whose accolades include an Emmy for her work on NYPD Blue and a Pulitzer Prize nomination for Omnium Gatherum. This play Variety called "funny, sharp, and beguiling" is sure to be a crowd-pleaser. "Fasten your seatbelts," says Greco. "Theresa is at the top of her craft with this fast-paced heist. For me, it was the highlight of the New York season, displaying Theresa's extraordinary use of language to deliver full-bodied characters and a deliciously conjured plot. "
The 2008-09 Season culminates in the world premiere of celebrated writer Craig Wright's Mistakes Were Made, a darkly humorous take on modern existence. Craig Wright's acclaimed credits include the play The Pavilion and the award-winning TV drama Six Feet Under. "Craig is a writer of national acclaim, whose acute social and spiritual lens I've admired for years," says Greco. "I am thrilled to offer Craig a West Coast home at the Magic and I'm sure Mistakes will the first of many adventures we will embark together on in the years to come."
Subscriptions and pass memberships are available for Magic Theatre's 2008-2009 Season. Six-play subscriptions range from $120 to $224 with flexible six-ticket passes from $144 to $240. Under-30 theatregoers can take advantage of the 3/30<30 membership and see three plays for only $30. All subscriptions are on sale now at www.magictheatre.org and (415) 441-8822.
Founded in 1967, Magic Theatre is one of the most prominent theatres in the nation solely dedicated to development and production of new plays. Magic Theatre plays and playwrights have won numerous awards, including Pulitzer Prizes, Kennedy Center Award, NAACP Image Award, Obie Awards, Pen-West Awards, Bay Critics Circle Awards and Los Angeles Drama-Logue Awards. The list of playwrights whose works have premiered at the Magic reads like a "Who's Who of American Theatre":
David Mamet,
Sam Shepard,
Paula Vogel,
Nilo Cruz,
Charles Mee, Anne Bogart and Rebecca Gilman. In addition to its production calendar, Magic Theatre is also instrumental in the development of works in the Bay Area and beyond, with its Sloan Foundation Science & Technology Initiative (now in its second three-year cycle, the program is developing and commissioning over 25 new works), Magic/Z Space New Works Initiative (also in its second three-year program, a consortium of fourteen Bay Area theatres commissioning, developing and producing 18 new plays), Martha Heasley Cox Raw Play Series, New Voices West Workshop Productions, education program Young California Writers Project amongst others. For more information, visit the Magic Theatre website at
www.magictheatre.org.
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