News: In Scena! Italian Theater Festival presents "Mater Familias" May 4-18 as part of Emerging Directors’ Mentorship Program

Director Emma Denson
In Scena! Italian Theater Festival NY, New York City’s premiere festival of Italian theater happening in all five boroughs, will present Mater Familias, written by 2015 Mario Fratti Award-winner Pier Lorenzo Pisano,  a director and author of theater, film, and novels whose plays have been translated into 14 languages and performed worldwide; translated by Carlotta Brentan; and directed by Emma Denson at The Tank (312 W 36th St., New York, NY 10018) on Sun May 4 at 3pm; Sun May 4 at 9:30pm; Thu May 8 at 7pm; Sun May 11 at 7pm; Thu May 15 at 9:30pm; Sun May 18 at 7pm Tickets ($20-$30) are available for advance purchase at thetanknyc.org.

Over the years, In Scena! Italian Theater Festival NY has proudly presented the staged production of plays that have won the Mario Fratti Award, now known as the In Scena! Playwright Award. As part of their commitment to fostering artistic growth, In Scena!, in collaboration with The Tank, offers a Mentorship in Directing to an emerging director. This year’s selected director, Emma Denson, will have the opportunity to direct a play chosen from among the winners of the In Scena! Playwright Award, while receiving a mentorship from a seasoned director, Debora Balardini -a New York-based Brazilian performer, theatre director, educator, and integrative therapist with extensive experience in theatre work - and an experienced producer from the Kairos Italy Theater’s team. The play is produced by Kairos Italy Theater for In Scena! Italian Theater Festival NY and presented in collaboration with the Tank NYC.

Mater Familias tells the story of three generations through increasingly difficult times, as they sometimes help each other, and sometimes clash in order to survive. A powerful drama with exact dialogue and sharply drawn relationships, the play begins with a mother and son’s desperate need to commit a crime in order to allow their family to survive. From there, it moves backwards through the decades, as three generations come into focus: their dreams, regrets, and what might have been.

The production is directed by Alabama-born, Brooklyn-based director, playwright, and Associate Director at Origin Theatre Company Emma Denson, with Hannah Ciesil serving as the Stage Manager and Uchenna Agbu as the Assistant Director. The design team includes Set Design by Franny Sebastiano, Lighting Design by Mikelle Kelly, and Costume Design by Karina Work. The cast features Becca Berlind, Tiffani Butler, Sam T Cini*, Richard Diamond, Te’ena Klein, Maxwell Marlowe*, and Prentice Myles with Understudy Lexie Waddy.

*Actors appear courtesy of the Actors' Equity Association.

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