News: Fourth Annual Women in Theatre Festival Begins June 5

Playwright Gena Femia. Photo credit: Jody Christopherson
The fourth annual Women in Theatre Festival, presented by Project Y Theatre Company, will run June 5-30, 2019 at the Jeffrey and Paul Gural Theatre at the A.R.T./New York Theatres, located at 502 W 53rd St. in Manhattan, NY. The Festival will feature ten productions, each with at least fifty-percent female representation among the artists. 

Productions include: 
Three Musketeers: 1941
A commissioned World Premiere by Megan Monaghan Rivas
Co-Directed by Michole Biancosino & Andrew W. Smith
June 5-29 
Inspired by characters from Alexandre Dumas’ classic adventure novel, this new play is set in the occupied Paris of World War II. The Third Reich has hung every balcony in the City of Light with swastika banners and filled the streets with the tramp of goose-stepping boots. While the French police pander to Nazi occupiers, in a secret room five brave women struggle to keep hope alive for themselves and their fellow citizens. The arrival of two strangers sets off a chain of events that might just turn the tide in this thriller about what happens when a group of women take up the chant, “All for one, and one for all!”

Sleeping Beauty
A commissioned World Premiere by Amina Henry
June 22-30, Saturdays & Sundays @ 12pm & 3pm (only 1 show on Sunday, June 30at 12pm)
You know the old story: A beautiful princess (what’s her name?) is pricked by a spindle and cursed to sleep until awakened by the kiss of a prince (of course). This new take on a classic fairytale features a prince who prefers baking to waking sleeping beauties and a princess who likes fighting with swords rather than sitting pretty. Prince Rocky and his sister, Princess Jewel, set out on a quest to save the sleeping Princess Rosamond together. Along the way they battle fire birds, trick a troll and meet other famous fairytale siblings. In Amina Henry’s feminist remaking of Sleeping Beauty, the power of love is tested and the bonds of friendship prove stronger than magic. With music, dancing, and singing. For all ages - but especially for 6-13-year old’s and their families.

Argument Sessions
Written & Directed by Ilana Becker
Friday, June 7, Tuesday, June 11 & Wednesday, June 19 @ 7:30pm
Argument Sessions, weaves a verbatim US Supreme Court argument transcript with variety theatre, stripping away the austerity of the court room and evoking a party where bare-bones spectacle, individual incitement, and nonpartisan empathy can meet and mingle.

The Hrosthwitha Project
Adaptations of Calimachus
Written by Eliza Bent, Susan Bradbeer, Antu Yacob, Laura Pittenger, Kaaron Briscoe Minefee & Kelley Nicole Girod
Sunday, June 16 & Saturday, June 22 @ 7:30pm
Aimed at reclaiming and celebrating the history of women in theatre, these plays are commissioned adaptations of a play by the first woman playwright, 10th century abbess, Hrosthwitha of Gandersham. This is part of a 5-year project to adapt all 6 of these historical plays and bring more awareness to this unknown female writer who deserves a place in theatre history.

Fall Risk
Written by Dana Jacks, Directed by Michael Padden
Wednesday, June 12 @ 7:30pm
Imagine waking up to start your day, but instead finding yourself in Intensive Care, monitors beeping, body broken and mind desperate for answers. Sounds like the prelude to a nightmare - until you learn it's real. Fall Risk is about the risks we take every day of our lives and the people who show up for us when we need them the most. Dana will follow the show with an excerpt from her newest work in progress!

Rise/Fall
Written and Directed by Sheila Bandyopadhyay
Wednesday, June 26 @ 7:30pm
Set in the near distant future on an environmentally ravaged earth, Rise/Fallreinvents the classic tale of “Leda and the Swan” as a living meditation on art, celebrity culture and the universal human need for connection. Rise/Fall is a dystopian art rock fantasy combining movement, music, text and media. www.sheilabnyc.com/risefall  

The Violet Sisters
A reading of the play by Gina Femia
Sunday, June 23 @ 7:30pm
In the wake of Hurricane Sandy, Pam comes home to Brooklyn to attend her father’s funeral. When she arrives, she is greeted by an angry sister, a dilapidated house and a past that she can’t escape. Despite all of her best intentions, the conversation quickly turns tense and the two sisters are forced to deal with all that they have let slip away, all the words that have been left unsaid for years. The Violet Sisters is a play about forgiving when you cannot bring yourself to forget.

Tickets for festival productions range from $15-27 and can be purchased at https://witfestival.brownpapertickets.com or by calling 1-800-838-3006.

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