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| Tony Speciale to Direct Industry Reading of Plastic Theatre's Newly Revised and Drama Desk Award Nominated Play, UNNATURAL ACTS | |
| Posted by: Official_Press_Release 05:41 pm EST 02/19/20 | |
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| Tony Speciale to Direct Industry Reading of Plastic Theatre's Newly Revised and Drama Desk Award Nominated Play, UNNATURAL ACTS Inspired by true events, this powerful new version commemorates the centennial of Harvard's Secret Court of 1920, a long-buried chapter of LGBTQ history. UNNATURAL ACTS Collaboratively Written by members of Plastic Theatre Conceived & Directed by Tony Speciale Tuesday, March 17, 2020 at 3pm and 7pm HERE (145 Sixth Avenue, Manhattan) rsvp@theviciouscircle.org; 917-532-6317 The Vicious Circle (Jerry Marsini, Meredith Lynsey Schade and Tony Speciale, Co-Directors) will present two private industry readings of a new version of Plastic Theatre's critically-acclaimed docudrama UNNATURAL ACTS, directed by Tony Speciale on Tuesday, March 17th. Casting to be announced. In the spring of 1920, a Harvard sophomore is found dead. Soon after, an ad hoc disciplinary tribunal is formed to investigate allegations of homosexual activity at the university. What begins as an inquiry into the mysterious death of a student quickly becomes a campus-wide inquisition. Inspired by true events, Unnatural Acts incorporates court transcripts and historical records from the Harvard University Archives to document an American tragedy and lost chapter in early 20th century LGBTQ history. Unnatural Acts was originally developed and produced Off Broadway in 2011 at Classic Stage Company (CSC) where it played to sold out audiences and was extended three times. The critically-acclaimed play was nominated for three Drama Desk Awards including Outstanding Play, a GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding New York Theater – Broadway and Off-Broadway, and an Off Broadway Alliance Award for Best New Play. "This spring marks the centennial of these tragic events," says Speciale. "The overreach of powerful and trusted institutions, heightened suicide rate among queer youth, and societal fear and intolerance are unfortunately as prevalent today as they were 100 years ago. We are proud to introduce our new streamlined version of Unnatural Acts, which Plastic Theatre has painstakingly reworked to mark the anniversary of these young men who were silenced by Harvard's Secret Court." The industry readings of Unnatural Acts will be held on Tuesday, March 17th at 3:00pm and 7:00pm at HERE, located at 145 Sixth Avenue, New York, NY 10013. Tickets are free, though reservations are required. For more information on the play or to make a reservation, call (917) 532-6317 or email rsvp@theviciouscircle.org. Plastic Theatre (Playwright) is a rolling ensemble of multidisciplinary artists led by Tony Speciale. For Unnatural Acts the creators include Catherine Barricklow, Jess R. Burkle, Joe Curnutte, Frank De Julio, Heather Denyer, Max Jenkins, Zach Kleinsmith, James MacBean, Jerry Marsini, Patrick McCaffrey, Nicholas Norman, Kila Packett, Adam Rihacek, Peter Allen Stone and Tony Speciale. Beginning with investigative research, followed by group improvisation and collaborative writing, Plastic Theatre created its inaugural play Unnatural Acts. Tony Speciale (Conceiver/Director) has developed new work at The Goodman Theatre's New Stages Festival, Berkeley Rep's Ground Floor, Sundance Theatre Lab at Mass MoCA and The Public Theater's Under the Radar Festival. Off-Broadway: James Lecesne's The Absolute Brightness of Leonard Pelkey (Dixon Place/Westside Theatre); Plastic Theatre's Unnatural Acts, A Midsummer Night's Dream featuring Bebe Neuwirth, Christina Ricci, Steven Skybell and Taylor Mac (Classic Stage Company); Rosser & Sohn's musical The Boy Who Danced On Air, Philip Dawkins' The Gentleman Caller, Jason O'Connell's The Dork Knight (Abingdon Theatre Company) and Matthew-Lee Erlbach's Handbook for an American Revolutionary (The Gym at Judson). Regional: Angels in America: Millennium Approaches & Perestroika (St. Louis Rep); The Absolute Brightness of Leonard Pelkey (National Tour: Kirk Douglass, Old Globe, Hartford Stage, Bay Street); Barry Manilow and Bruce Sussman's musical Harmony (Alliance Theatre, Ahmanson Theatre) and Romeo and Juliet (Actors Theatre of Louisville). tonyspeciale.com The Vicious Circle (Producer) was founded in 2010 to create, develop and produce new, ensemble-based works. Past projects have included co-producing Matthew Lopez's The Inheritance on Broadway, producing the international Gun Control Theatre Action Week festival of plays with NoPassport, the development of the play I Wasn't Expecting You by Amy E. Witting, Buyer Beware or "How Lenny Bruce Found a Safe Space" (and lost it again) by Michael Weller, Locust Song by Jerry Marsini and Soulographie: Our Genocides, a series of 17 plays written by Erik Ehn on human rights issues – the latter of which was produced across the nation over the course of two years, culminating in a two-week marathon at La MaMa in November 2012. |
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