Wednesday, May 21, 2008

Kitchen Dog Theater reveals complete lineup for 2008 New Works Festival

By Shawn Parikh

Last week, Kitchen Dog Theater announced that Sick would headline their 2008 New Works Festival. Today, the collection of staged readings that are part of the festival was announced, featuring the diverse and vibrant new voices of local, regional and national playwrights. This year's staged readings were chosen from over 370 scripts submitted from all across the globe and will feature a strong cadre of DFW's most accomplished actors and directors.

Each staged reading is followed by a moderated panel discussion focused on the unique process of developing and creating new work and will be videotaped for the playwrights. Below is a list of the staged readings which are all pay-what-you-can:

Sick

• Jihad Jones and The Kalashnikov Babes by Yussef El Guindi. Ashraf, an Arab-American actor, is being offered the role of a lifetime in a big Hollywood blockbuster. There is just one hitch - the role is the most stereotypically evil, fanatical Islamic terrorist ever to grace the silver screen. A hilarious comedy about fame, fortune and compromise in today's mixed-up world. Saturday, June 7 at 1:00 p.m.
• Dreams of the Washer King by Christopher Wall. Boy obsessed with paranormal meets girl with mysterious past. The past and the present have no firm boundary in this violently haunting portrait of the search for connection. Saturday, June 7 at 4:00 p.m.
• A Short Play About Globalizations by Dominic Orlando. A young FBI Agent travels to Mexico in search of his missing sister, a journalist investigating the mass disappearance of young women from the factories along the U.S. Border. What he finds instead is that changing the economic rules of human relationships may also change what it means to be human. Sunday, June 8 at 7:00 p.m.
• Boom by Peter Sinn Nachtrieb. A marine biologist hosts a journalism student in his subterranean biology lab for an erotic "casual encounter." As disaster looms upon the planet, the fate of their "date" takes on monumental importance. BOOM is an epic and intimate comedy of evolution, loneliness, and how to survive. Saturday, June 21 at 1:00 p.m.
• The Rant by Andrew Case. A boy is dead at the hands of the police. The investigator assigned to the case must wade through prejudice, deceit, and a volley of anonymous threats to find out where culpability really lies. The truth itself is a kind of bias. Saturday, June 21 at 4:00 p.m.
• Day of the Dog by Daniel Damiano. In this brand new black comedy, a South Florida couple obtains the services of a somewhat enigmatic Canine Relations Specialist named Vadislav in order to curb the violent behavior of their dog Carrot. Instead they gradually learn that, per Vadislav's theory, a dog is merely a reflection of the people who house him. Sunday, June 22 at 4:00 p.m.
• Tall Thin Walls of Regret by KDT Artistic Company Member Lee Trull. Set in Dallas during the end of the Cold War, five people struggle with death, desire, fear, rage and regret. This affecting new play is about what happens when their paths meet on the tenuous road to redemption. Sunday, June 22 at 7:00 p.m.

Also part of the New Works Festival is the Playwrights Under Progress (PUP) Fest, now in its 7th year, which is a unique project, co-produced with local youth organization Junior Players. Written and performed by some of the Metroplex's finest high school talent, this year's PUP Fest will feature an afternoon of six world premiere staged readings developed through playwriting workshops with local celebrated playwrights and Kitchen Dog Artistic Company Members Vicki Caroline Cheatwood, David Goodwin and Christina Vela alongside longtime KDT collaborator and playwright Erin Burdette.

The readings at PUP Fest are all free and include:

• Sassy Intervention by Dencia Baltimore, Senior, W.T. White.
• The Actor and the Musician by Avery Centala, Junior, Hillcrest.
• Change of Heart by Mayte Delatorre, Sophmore, Adamson.
• Ronan by Shaun E. Kitchens, Senior, W.T. White.
• Irregardless by Jenny McCartney, Senior, The Hockaday School.
• Columbus Day by Molly Kay Wolchansky, Junior, Booker T. Washington.

In Sick (May 30 - June 28), a college professor brings his star student home to meet his dysfunctional family - a home so obsessed with cleanliness that the real dirt lurks around every corner and behind every sentence. Toying with post 9/11 phobias, this quirky dark comedy plays upon our fears, both real and imagined. Talk-Backs" with the actors and director follow the Sunday matinee performances. Pay-What-You-Can specials are available to the first 25 patrons on Wednesdays (June 11 and 25) and Thursdays (June 5, 12, 19 and 26). This production contains adult language. Purchase tickets online or by calling 214-953-1055.

Click here to see a complete festival schedule.

Related stories

• Pegasus News Week in View: Memorial Day Planning Edition (May 22, 2008)

See more stories in:

• Arts > Fine Arts > Theater > Plays
• Festivals