Jason S. Grossman's

LOVE ME 

Directed by Rachel Klein

LIMITED ENGAGEMENT

APRIL 30 - MAY 16, 2015

AT THE 4TH STREET THEATRE

OPENING NIGHT

SATURDAY, MAY 2 AT 7:30 P.M.

BROWNPAPERTICKETS.COM

See and hear what's going on inside Charlie Styptic's head in LOVE ME, a self-conscious comedy in three acts!

It's the mid-1990s in New York City, and underachieving writer/motivational speaker Charlie Styptic is mired in a lifelong love life slump. Forever lovesick, he's haplessly counseled by a simpleminded sidekick and a womanizer he's just befriended. Will he ever find love? Or will he be eternally controlled by the incessantly critical voice in his head?

Over 15 years in the making, LOVE ME is an extreme comedy about the never-ending search for love and artistic fulfillment in an unforgiving world. It's 44 furiously fast scenes of comedy and acute cognitive dissonance.

The production stars

• Carlotta Brentan (Six Passionate Women) as Susan/Kate, 
• Amy-Helene Carlson (Blogologues) as Carol, 
• Chris Chirdon(Epic History of Everyday Things) as Tom, 
• Sarah Elizabeth Grace (Law and Order: SVU) as Sara, 
• Mary Orzano (Food Detectives, Forensic Files) as Wendy, 
• Zal Owen* (Fiddler on the Roof national tour, opposite Harvey Fierstein) as Charlie, 
• Michael Perrie (The World Wars) as Charlie's Head, and J. Andrew Young* (30 Rock) as John. 

The production features

• scenic design by Brian Dudkiewicz, 
• costume design by Rachel Klein, and 
• lighting design by Jonathan Hartley. 
• Jaime McWilliams* is the Production Stage Manager. 

(*Member AEA)
 

LOVE ME plays the following performances:

• Thursday, April 30, 7:30PM
• Saturday, May 2, 7:30PM
• Sunday May 3, 3PM
• Wednesday May 6, 7:30PM
• Friday May 8, 7:30PM
• Saturday May 9, 3PM
• Sunday May 10, 7:30PM
• Monday May 11, 7:30PM
• Tuesday May 12, 7:30PM
• Wednesday May 13, 7:30PM
• Saturday May 16, 7:30PM

The 4th Street Theatre

83 East 4th Street

New York, NY

Running Time: 2 hours with intermission

Tickets are $18 and are available online at

www.brownpapertickets.com

or by calling

1-800-838-3006. 

Tickets may also be purchased in-person at the theater ½ hour prior to performance.

MOONLIGHT AFTER MIDNIGHT FROM FRIGID NEW YORK @ HORSE TRADE

FRIGID NEW YORK @ HORSE TRADE

PRESENTS 

A CONCRETE DROPS

PRODUCTION OF

MOONLIGHT AFTER MIDNIGHT

WRITTEN BY MARTIN DOCKERY

DRAMATURGY BY VANESSA QUESNELLE

PERFORMED BY

MARTIN DOCKERY & VANESSA QUESNELLE

NYC PREMIER

APRIL 10 - 30 @ THE KRAINE THEATER

FRIGID New York @ Horse Trade will present Concrete Drops’ production of Moonlight After Midnight written by Martin Dockery and performed by Dockery and Vanessa Quesnelle, April 10-30 at The Kraine Theater (85 East 4th Street between 2nd Avenue and Bowery) with performances 
Friday, April 10, 17, & 24 and 
Thursday, April 30 at 8pm. 

Tickets ($18) may be purchased in advance at 

www.horseTRADE.info

The performance runs 60 minutes, with no intermission. 


A mysterious man and a beautiful woman meet in a midnight hotel room to play out scenes from a relationship. Love and loss, memory and intrigue intertwine in the luminal space of a magical hotel room bathed in moonlight.


Moonlight After Midnight debuted at the Ottawa Fringe Festival in 2014, where it received *Best Original Show”, it went on to tour to festivals in Winnipeg, Edmonton, Vancouver, and London. Following its run at The Kraine, it is scheduled to perform at the Orlando and Cincinnati Fringe Festivals in May and June. 

  
Some critical notes:

“This play is everything I’ve ever wanted out of theatre. To say that Martin Dockery and Vanessa Quesnelle’s chemistry is riveting would be an understatement. Don’t miss this play.” Capital Critics Circle, Ottawa, ON

“This mystery about relationships tickled my brain and captivated me from start to finish. The vivid performances by Dockery and Quesnelle, and the chemistry between them, cannot be denied.” Plank Magazine, Vancouver, BC

“The complexity of the story combined with the excellent character work allows this performance to engage both the mind and the soul… These two actors really bring something beautiful to the stage, a natural chemistry.” New Ottawa Critics, ON


MARTIN DOCKERY (Writer/Performer) is a frequent performer in New York’s storytelling scene. Over the past several years, he’s created six monologues, performing them across North America, the UK, and Australia. His four autobiographical, theatrical monologues Wanderlust, The Surprise, (both directed by Jean-Michele Gregory), The Bike Trip, The Holy Land Experience, and his two fictional monologues, Bursting Into Flames and The Dark Fantastic have enjoyed successful runs in New York City, San Francisco, Orlando, London, Toronto, Winnipeg, Fresno, Charleston, Minneapolis, Boulder, Saskatoon, Edmonton, Calgary, Victoria, Vancouver, Bellingham, Seattle, New Orleans, Phoenix, & Adelaide (where he won the 2011 Critics Circle Award), and The Melbourne Comedy Festival. He also headlined The London Storytelling Festival. He has an MFA in playwriting from Colombia University.

VANESSA QUESNELLE (Dramaturg/Performer) has toured with Concrete Drops for the last four years. Bringing Oh, That Wily Snake!, The Abyss Burrow, The Pit and Moonlight After Midnight to theatres in Ottawa, Fresno, Orlando, London, Winnipeg, Saskatoon, Edmonton, Victoria, Vancouver, Bellingham, and New York City. Some of her ‬ ‪previous acting credits include Amy in Company (Fountainhead Productions), Nurse Wilson in 7 Stories, Pierrette in Les Belles Soeurs, Helena in Midsummer Night’s Dream (Passionfool Theatre), Suzanne in Picasso at the Lapin Agile, Margot Frank in The Diary of Anne Frank (Theatre Woodstock), for which she was awarded Best Supporting Actress at WODL Festival, Bottom in Midsummer Night’s Dream (CAST Theatre Company) and Laura Wingfield in The Glass Menagerie (QP Productions).  

CONCRETE DROPS Martin Dockery and Vanessa Quesnelle founded Concrete Drops Theatre Company in 2011. It is their mission to engage, entertain and challenge audiences with theatrical productions that range from the comically absurd to the dramatic, to take audiences on a journey that is both fanciful and thought provoking. Since it’s inception, Concrete Drops has created, performed and toured four shows across Canada and the US. Three of them being two person plays starring the company’s founders Martin Dockery and Vanessa Quesnelle ( Oh, That Wily Snake!, The Pit, Moonlight After Midnight) and the fourth is a solo show starring Vanessa Quesnelle ( The Abyss Burrow). 


FRIGID New York is a theater development group with a focus on new work that produces a massive quantity of stimulating downtown theater every season. FRIGID’s Resident Artist Program offers a home to a select group of Independent theater artists, pooling together a great deal of talent and energy. FRIGID New York grew out of the annual FRIGID Festival, the first and only festival of its kind in New York City to offer artists 100% of their box office proceeds, and Horse Trade Theater Group, a self-sustaining theater development and management group.

BRITS OFF BROADWAY FESTIVAL 2015 AT 59E59

BRITS OFF BROADWAY FESTIVAL 2015

AT 59E59

APRIL 14 - JUNE 28

The critically acclaimed Brits Off Broadway festival, host to the UK's most innovative and provocative theater in New York City, returns for its 10th season of New York premieres of new British theater with shows from Inverness in the far North of Scotland to Plymouth in the Southwest of England, and Manchester in the Northwest to London in the Southeast.

Presented by 59E59 Theaters Brits Off Broadway launches on Tuesday, April 14 and runs through Sunday, June 28.

• Single ticket prices range from $25 - $70 ($17.50 - $49 for 59E59 Members).
• Tickets to Brits Off Broadway go on sale on Wednesday, March 11.
• Tickets are available by calling Ticket Central at 212-279-4200 or online at 

www.59E59.org

For more information on Brits Off Broadway, visit

 www.britsoffbroadway.com

A strikingly personal piece for writer/performer Matthew Zajac, THE TAILOR OF INVERNESS chronicles his father's journey from Eastern Europe to Scotland. 

IN MY FATHER'S WORDS is a celebration of language, with a man whose dementia allows him to remember his forgotten Gaelic language.

Dystopian author Anthony Burgess' lesser-known novel ONE HAND CLAPPING arrives in a daring stage adaptation.

CUDDLES, a story of two sisters, one of whom is a vampire, will make you question who the real monsters are.

BRITANNIA WAVES THE RULES is a heart-wrenching play about the brutal effects of war on a young man from the North.

Finally, two titans of the British stage grace our own: Simon Callow stars in TUESDAYS AT TESCO'S' and Edward Petherbridge in MY PERFECT MIND; both shows anchoring this year's festival in Theater A.



The full 2015 Brits Off Broadway lineup:



Tuesday, April 14 - Sunday, May 3

THE TAILOR OF INVERNESS, 

• Written by Matthew Zajac
• Directed by Ben Harrison
• With Matthew Zajac and Aidan O'Rourke (musician)
• Produced by Dogstar Theatre

Tickets $25 ($17.50 for 59E59 Members)

This internationally acclaimed, multi-award-winning play is a story of a son’s search for his father, a story of 20th century Europe, of how a boy who grew up on a farm in Galicia (Eastern Poland, now Western Ukraine) came to be a tailor in northern Scotland.  A story of deception, identity and survival, The Tailor of Inverness has moved thousands across the world. This remarkable true story, lovingly recounted by his son, the acclaimed actor Matthew Zajac, and directed by Grid Iron's Ben Harrison, is "a resonant meditation on what can become of families when countries shift beneath their feet." (The Guardian)


Tuesday, April 28 - Sunday, May 31

BRITANNIA WAVES THE RULES 

• Written by Gareth Farr
• Directed by Nick Bagnall
• With Roger Evans, Dan Parr, Michael Peavoy and Francesca Zoutewelle

Tickets: $35 ($24.50 for 59E59 Members)

Carl Jackson doesn’t fit in at home. When he joins the army, he sees it as a chance to escape the grim reality of life. But it doesn’t matter where he runs to, or how hard or how fast – there are too many battles for him to win them all. And when Carl comes home, it’s not as a hero but a changed man. Fast, furious and filled with rage, this play is a scream of protest at the state of the world.


Tuesday, May 5 - Sunday, May 31

Anthony Burgess' ONE HAND CLAPPING

• Adapted and directed by Lucia Cox
• With Eve Burley, Oliver Devoti and Adam Urey
• Produced by House of Orphans

Tickets: $25 ($17.50 for 59E59 Members)

Adapted from Anthony Burgess’s 1961 novel, this is the darkly comic story of Howard and Janet Shirley, who have a humdrum life in a Northern town in England. But Howard has a talent: a photographic memory, which he uses to win a TV quiz show. With his winnings, he and Janet travel the world. But upon their return, a morose Howard takes a decidedly sinister turn. What's On Stage called ONE HAND CLAPPING "daringly surreal and innovatively executed!"


Thursday, May 14 - Sunday, June 7

TUESDAYS AT TESCO'S

• Written by Emmanuel Darley
• Adapted and translated by Matthew Hurt and Sarah Vermande
• Directed by Simon Stokes
• With Simon Callow and Connor Mitchell
• Produced by Richard Darbourne Ltd in association with Assembly & Riverside Studios

Tickets: $70 ($49 for 59E59 Members)

One of Britain’s greatest actors, Simon Callow stars (in a performance Variety called "authoritative, humane and brave") as Pauline: Loving daughter, caregiver, cross-dresser.



Wednesday, June 3 - Sunday, June 28

CUDDLES

• Written by Joseph Wilde
• Directed by Rebecca Atkinson-Lord              
• With Carla Langley and Rendah Heywood
• Produced by Oval House

Tickets: $25 ($17.50 for 59E59 Members)

Eve is a 13-year-old vampire. She has never left her room and everything she knows about the world comes from her sister Tabby and her storybook characters. Eve does everything a good little vampire girl should, including drinking her (human) sister’s blood. But one day, Tabby tires of opening her veins and, in a breath, Eve's whole world changes. "A smart and gruesome gothic tale!" Time Out London.


Thursday, June 4 - Saturday, June 27

IN MY FATHER'S WORDS

• Written by Justin Young
• With Gaelic by Iain Finlay MacLeod
• Directed by Philip Howard
• With Angus Peter Campbell, Garry Collins, and Muireann Kelly
• Produced by Dundee Rep

Tickets: $35 ($24.50 for 59E59 Members)

In an old wooden house by the shore of Lake Ontario in Canada, Louis battles with his elderly father, Don, whose decline into dementia is gradually robbing him of the ability to speak.  Into their lives comes Flora, the caregiver that Louis employs to look after Don. Flora, who is of Scottish heritage, understands that the ‘nonsense’ that Don speaks is fragmented Gaelic, opening up an ocean of revelations and buried family history spanning the Atlantic. IN MY FATHER’S WORDS is a beautiful play about identity – national and personal – and language, and the utter indivisibility between the two.


Wednesday, June 10 - Sunday, June 28

MY PERFECT MIND 

Created by Told By An Idiot
Written by Kathryn Hunter, Paul Hunter and Edward Petherbridge
Directed by Kathryn Hunter
With Paul Hunter and Edward Petherbridge
Produced by Told By An Idiot, Young Vic, and Theatre Royal Plymouth

Tickets: $70 ($49 for 59E59 Members)

Olivier Award-winning actor Edward Petherbridge was cast as King Lear, when on the second day of rehearsals he suffered a stroke that left him barely able to move. As he struggled to recover Edward made a discovery: the entire role of Lear still existed word for word in his mind. From being on the brink of playing one of Shakespeare’s most revered roles, to lying in a hospital bed surrounded by doctors, Edward never imagined what tragedies and comedies lay in store for him. MY PERFECT MIND celebrates the resilience of the human spirit through the prism of Shakespeare’s great tragedy. MY PERFECT MIND is, however, anything but a tragedy. Called "an exquisite piece of tomfoolery" by The Guardian, the play, "gurgles with merriment."

FRIGID NEW YORK @ HORSE TRADE - APRIL EVENTS 2015

APRIL EVENTS PRESENTED BY

FRIGID NEW YORK @ HORSE TRADE

COMEDY

Sketch Block
Wednesday, April 8 @ 9pm $10
UNDER St. Marks (94 St. Marks Place)
Sketch Block is a comedy showcase that gives sketch troupes an opportunity to perform without the pressure of bringing in an audience. Also, Sketch Block does not force their audience to pay for drinks. We believe that it's your choice to drink or not. It's about the comedy. Sketch Comedy meets Block Party. This monthly show features a guest host comedian, three guest sketch troupes and drinking. Come meet, mingle, and perform!

The Adam Wade Show
Featuring Moth StorySLAM Champion, Adam Wade
Monday, April 13 @ 7pm $10
UNDER St. Marks (94 St. Marks Place)
Moth storytelling favorite, Adam Wade, has put together many of his winning heartfelt and humorous stories for a special show. He’ll also sing a few songs, and play video shorts. No two shows will be the same. A different featured guest will start the evening off.

Thank You, Robot
Friday, April 17 @ 10:30pm $5
UNDER St. Marks (94 St. Marks Place)
A showcase for independent and established improv teams. For each show, two teams join Thank You, Robot to perform sets of unscripted comedy, never seen before and never to be seen again.

A Brief History of Beer
Sunday, April 26 @ 6:30pm $18
UNDER St. Marks (94 St. Marks Place)
A Brief History of Beer is a one hour drinkeractive comedy where the audience travels through time with William Glenn and Trish Parry, all the way back to Ancient Sumeria, through to today, on a mission to save beer from a mysterious nefarious person!

BURLESQUE

Stand Up and Take Your Clothes Off
Sunday, April 5 @ 8pm $10
The Kraine Theater (85 East 4th Street)
Stand Up and Take Your Clothes Off! features NYC's funniest female comics and sassiest burlesque acts. Past performers have been featured in films, seen on TV, and perform at venues all over the world. This is a fast paced sexy show, exploding with talent.

The Wasabassco Hellfire Club
Wednesday, April 8 @ 9pm $40
The Kraine Theater (85 East 4th Street)
It is with pleasure that we serve up to you our naughtiest and most revealing show: The Wasabassco Hellfire Club. It’s Wasabassco’s wildest, wickedest and most adult evening, curated to cater to the most sophisticated and lustful desires of a select group of curious and enlightened guests.

Naked Girls Reading
Wednesday, April 15 @ 9pm $25 (2 for $40)
UNDER St. Marks (94 St. Marks Place)
Naked Girls Reading NYC is the perfect intimate live event: a monthly nude literary salon featuring in the buff readings by local burlesque luminaries, professional librarians, authors and other Naked Girls.

DANCE

Shall We Dance
Tuesday, April 7 @ 7pm & 9pm $40
The Kraine Theater (85 East 4th Street)
Aithan Harrari has a unique Israeli profession; he organizes group dancing of Israeli folk dances. He is eager to gain recognition and uses the opportunity he gets when asked to replace a well known dance instructor one evening to create an innovative folk dance and thus upgrade his standing in the world of popular dancing. During the evening Aithan exposes the sources of his inspiration – experiences he went through as a young man during his service in the IDF (Israel Defense Forces). The dancing gets in to full swing and Aithan begins to sniff the sweet smell of success…

VARIETY & OPEN MIC

The Open Mic Downstairs
Hosted by Dan Ricker, Mike Milazzo, & Kaitlyn O’Connor
Every Tuesday @ 9pm $4 at the door
UNDER St. Marks (94 St. Marks Place)
At The Open Mic Downstairs the focus is the stage! Sign-ups get seven minutes to try anything in one of the most supportive rooms in New York. Whether it’s a performance art piece, comedy, music, storytelling, dance, or something entirely off the top of your head, you'll find a home in the attentive welcoming community at UNDER St. Marks.

Ten-Foot Rat Cabaret
Thursday, April 9 @ 10:30pm $10
UNDER St. Marks (94 St. Marks Place)
Ten-Foot Rat Cabaret is Gotham’s Premiere Variety Show: Comedy, Music, Burlesque, Vaudeville, and More! Hosted by Canadian import Jillian Thomas; featuring Bill Chambers and Gregory Levine - and a rotating cast of the entertainment cream of NYC, America and Canada. Created and Produced by Rob Dub and Gregory Levine.

Cabaret Showdown: Winners Showcase
Sunday, April 12 @ 5:30pm $10
UNDER St. Marks (94 St. Marks Place)
Join last month’s winner of the Cabaret Showdown as they star in their own show!

The Cabaret Showdown
Hosted by Mark McDaniels
Sunday, April 12 @ 7pm  $12 (includes a free drink)
UNDER St. Marks (94 St. Marks Place)
Do you have what it takes to be a cabaret champion? Contestants compete for the chance to star in their own show or cabaret. Come out and join the fun! Whether you are a contestant or in the audience you are guaranteed to have a blast.

Thus Spoke the Spectacle
Sunday, April 26 @ 8pm $15
The Kraine Theater (85 East 4th Street)
Thus Spoke the Spectacle deconstructs and reconfigures the massive onslaught of news, advertising, politics and entertainment into an edgy and highly entertaining transmedia rock experience. Original music, spoken word vocals, video and lights combine to tell the story of “the spectacle”: a worldview come to life as a veil over reality, as the lens through which most people view and interpret the world.