I Am The Chosen Fish
Our pal Alec Duffy sent this in about what he’s got going on:
Here it is. Inverse’s next big thing. Call it a musical, a play with music, a song play, or whatever, it’s called ME, it’s at the Ohio, it’s filled with amazing songs, and it’s the cast of a lifetime. And tickets are on sale!
We open on May 3 (one week from today), so get them now at www.smarttix.com. And yes, the rumors are true – we’re going to bring a live fish on stage and…well…you’ll have to come see for yourself.
Soho Think Tank presents
ME
A New Musical from Inverse Theater
Book/Lyrics by Kirk Wood Bromley
Music by John Gideon
Directed by Alec Duffy
May 3rd through May 24th
At the Ohio Theater, 66 Wooster Street
Tickets will be $18.00 for all performances except for Tuesdays, which will be $10. Tickets may be purchased by calling Smarttix at 212-868-4444, or online at smarttix.com.
Soho Think Tank will present Inverse Theater’s latest musical, Me, directed by Alec Duffy, with book and lyrics by Kirk Wood Bromley and music by John Gideon. Performances will be at the Ohio Theater, located at 66 Wooster Street, between Spring and Broome Streets in Soho. Performances will begin on Saturday, May 3rd, continuing through Saturday, May 24th.
When Kirk Wood Bromley set out to write a text about himself, the result was something other than a simple autobiography. Similar to Charlie Kaufman‘s film ”Adaptation,” where the author set out to adapt a novel but ended up writing a film about a writer trying to adapt a novel, Me is a theatrical meditation on self-identity, where Bromley starts out looking to write a play about himself and takes detours through his personal relationship with his placenta, the recent extinction of the white river dolphin of the Yangtze in China, and just what exactly he means when he says, “I am the chosen fish, chosen by me / To save the planet from humanity.”
The myth of the origin of the white dolphin (a girl thrown into the Yangtze river because she refused to marry), discourses on definitions of self, and personal parental histories of the author all find their place in this swirling, humorous and challenging work.
Bromley’s part verse, part prose, all poetic script is matched by John Gideon’s mesmerizing and eclectic music, Karen Flood’s imaginative and wild costumes, Jane Stein’s stunning puppets and properties, and Jeff Stein’s unconventional but magical lighting. A cast of 13 performs this musical play with 15 songs performed live by the cast and composer.
About The Cast
The cast includes Arthur Aulisi* (“Denis Leary‘s Merry F#%$in Christmas“), Lora Chio* (“Law & Order”), Drew Cortese* (Public Theatre, FringeNYC), Sarah Engelke* (four Inverse Theater shows, others), Josh Hartung (Banger’s Flopera), Bob Laine (many Inverse productions), Dan Renkin* (Culture Project, Inverse), Annie Scott, Erwin Thomas*, Paula Wilson* (Alvin Ailey dancer, recurring role on “All My Children“), Brenda Withers* (one of the creators of the off-Broadway hit Matt and Ben), and Marshall York. (* indicates the actor is a member of Actors’ Equity Association.) Ruthie Turk will serve as Production Manager.
About The Artistic Team
Director Alec Duffy is the Artistic Director of the theater company Hoi Polloi. This past summer, The Ontological Theater presented Hoi Polloi’s Dysphoria as part of their Summer Residency. Duffy’s play The Top Ten People Of The Millennium Sing Their Favorite Schubert Lieder was produced at the Victory Gardens Theater in Chicago and the Bank Street Theatre in New York, and was recently published in the collection Plays and Playwrights 2006, edited by Martin Denton. Duffy was selected by The Drama League as one of four directors nationally to be awarded the Drama League Directing Fellowship. Duffy was also recently selected for the NEA/TCG Career Development Program for Directors.
Jill Guidera, whose work has been seen at Galapagos Art Space, PS122, and Soho Rep, will be the choreographer.
John Gideon, a composer and musician who first collaborated with Inverse on The Banger’s Flopera – A Musical Perversion, will contribute the original music for the 15 songs in Me.
Karen Flood (Costume Design) has designed costumes for theater, film, television, and advertising for over 10 years. She recently created costumes for a multi faceted performance entitled Fascinating Gershwin, by violinist Janice Martin, in which the costumes change on stage, before the very eyes of the audience.
Jane Stein (Set Design) is a sculptor who has created sets, masks, props, puppets and photographs for eight Inverse shows. Her work has appeared in productions on Broadway, Off-Broadway, dance, opera and television. She began her theatrical work as a mask maker for the New York Shakespeare Festival and has contributed work to many Broadway shows including Lenny, Jesus Christ Superstar, and Bette Midler‘s Clams On The Half Shell Review. Her dance credits include masks for Martha Graham, New York Baroque Dance Company, Buglisi Dance Theatre and My-Yi Co.
Jeff Nash (Lighting Design) has designed lights for Robert Wilson, John Jesurun, Natsu Nakajima, Ellen Stewart, Stuart Sherman, John Vaccaro, Gian Carlo Minetti, and Kirk Wood Bromley.
Tickets and Schedule
ME will begin performances on Saturday, May 3rd and will continue May 24th. All performances will be at 8pm and the schedule will be as follows:
Saturday and Sunday, May 3 and 4 at 8 pm
Wednesday – Saturday, May 7 – 10 at 8 pm
Tuesday – Saturday, May 13 – 17 at 8 pm
Tuesday – Saturday, May 20 – 24 at 8 pm
Tickets will be $18.00 for all performances except for Tuesdays, which will be $10. Tickets may be purchased by calling Smarttix at 212-868-4444, or online at smarttix.com.
Let it be known that this project has been workshopped for the last year with a revolving cast of company members, and community members old and new that include: Sarah Engelke, Bob Laine, Catherine McNelis, Christopher Thorn, April Vidal, Josh Hartung, Alex Smith, Lauren Benson, Arthur Aulisi, Marshall York, Timothy Reynolds, Megan Dullaghan, Dara Seitzman, Joe Pindelski, Christopher Borg, Anni Bruno