The San Francisco Playhouse (Bill English, Artistic Director; Susi Damilano, Producing Director) completes its fifth season of the Sandbox Series of new plays with the world premiere of Rhett Rossi's From Red to Black. Susi Damilano will direct. Rhett Rossi is the newest playwright under commission to write a play for San Francisco Playhouse in partnership with Bisno Productions, producers of numerous Broadway shows.
A man falls to his death on a New York subway track. Two detectives, both Irish, one battle wearied, the other brimming with education, question a young black man who was arrested in the vicinity. Did he push the victim? Was he provoked? As they dig further into the story, identity and truth become more and elusive. And our presumptions become layers of the urban onion, peeled away one by one. The cast includes Matthew Baldiga, Charles Shaw Robinson*, Isiah Thompson and Michael Shipley*.
The mission of The Sandbox Series is to promote new works utilizing top-notch directors and actors. Sandbox Series shows, with limited design elements and reduced finanacial risk, bridge the gap between "readings" and "main stage" productions offering increased exposure to the new voices in American Theater.
Rhett Rossi (Playwright) is an accomplished New York City based playwright. His play, In God's Hat, (written under the pseudonym
Richard Taylor) was done at the Peter Jay Sharp theater at Playwright's Horizons. The New York Times reviewed the play as, "in a single word: terrific" and "downright thrilling".
Mr. Rossi started out as an actor. That is how he met his mentor, Kevin Kittle, of Rutgers University. Kevin has developed and served as dramatist on every play Rhett has penned since 1999. Rhett's plays have been produced in both New York and Chicago and he is thrilled From Red to Black is having its world premiere at the San Francisco Playhouse. From Red to Black had previously received a reading at South Coast Rep and was a runner up in the Laurents/Hatcher Foundation for emerging US Playwrights. Rhett is currently working on a commission piece for San Francisco Playhouse in conjunction with Bisno productions. Look for his new play Lights at the Edge to be produced in NYC at the end of 2014. Rhett has also developed a pilot with HBO about minor league hockey and he is currently developing a new pilot based on interest in his work.
Founded by
Bill English and Susi Damilano in 2003, The San Francisco Playhouse has been described in the New York Times as "a company that stages some of the most consistently high-quality work around." Located right in the heart of the Union Square Theater District, The San Francisco Playhouse is the city's Off-Broadway company, an intimate alternative to the larger more traditional Union Square theater fare. The San Francisco Playhouse provides audiences the opportunity to experience professional theater with top-notch actors and world-class design in a setting where they are close to the action. The company has received multiple awards for overall productions, acting, and design including the SF Weekly Best Theatre Award and the Bay Guardian's Best Off-Broadway Theatre Award. Presenting a diverse range of plays and musicals, The San Francisco Playhouse produces new works as well as re-imagining classics, "making the edgy accessible and the traditional edgy." The company's 2012-2013 season marked its 10th anniversary and as it moved to a newly renovated venue, The San Francisco Chronicle raved: "On the verge of opening its 10th season, the company that lived a hand-to-mouth existence for its first few years has become the little playhouse that could. It quickly established a reputation for attracting some of the Bay Area's best acting and directing talent, as well as for its exciting play choices. And with its bold Sandbox Series, it's become a player in developing new works as well." The San Francisco Playhouse is committed to providing a creative home and inspiring environment where actors, directors, writers, designers, and theater lovers converge to create works that celebrate the human spirit.
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