"Downtown NYC Tales of The City” ventures to forgotten borough.
June 15 - July 1 at La MaMa
Buy tickets HERE.
Playwright/performer Richard Sheinmel and composer Clay Zambo premiere LOST IN STATEN ISLAND: MORE TALES OF MODERN LIVING at La MaMa beginning previews June 15, as the final production the La MaMa 50th Anniversary season. The production marks the latest installment of Sheinmel and Zambo’s Modern Living cycle, which began in 2006. Much like Armistead Maupin’s Tales of The City novels follows the exploits of Michael Tolliver, this series of creative nonfiction musicals center on Mitch, a gay “downtown” New York performance artist, as he writes about his life. Directed by Jason Jacobs, opening night is slated for June 21.
LOST IN STATEN ISLAND: MORE TALES OF MODERN LIVING revolves around Mitch and his Mom as they journey through an extraordinary day. After the death of his brother, Mitch must return home to Staten Island to accompany his mother on a day of difficult but necessary tasks. Alternately humorous and heartfelt, the drive takes them to unexpected places, where nerves are bared, secrets revealed and confessions made. Although he grew up in "the forgotten borough," he finds once familiar roads hard to navigate when landmarks change.
The production co-stars Chris Orbach (Law & Order: SVU, acclaimed musician and son of Jerry Orbach), Catherine Porter (Mac Wellman’s Crowbar), Mick Hilgers, Sarah Corey and Wendy Merritt (East Village Chronicles, The Octoroon), with a production team that includes John McDermott (sets), Jennifer Caprio (costumes), Tim Schellenbaum (sound), New York Innovative Theater Award nominee Timothy M. Walsh (lighting), Monica Minoui (hair), Gabriel Luce (bass) Daniel Acquisto (drums), and Heather Olmstead (stage manager).
Richard Sheinmel is a native New Yorker born in Brooklyn, raised on Staten Island. He attended the LaGuardia High School of the Performing Arts, where he wrote his first play at the age of 14. His plays include Modern Living and Post Modern Living (La MaMa), Jitter (Arclight Theater), and the musical Downtown Dysfunctionals (The Zipper Theater). As an actor, he is best known for appearing for over ten years in the Jeff Weiss / Carlos Riccardo Martinez cult hit serial Hot Keys. He has also appeared in premiere productions by The Ridiculous Theatrical Company, Ridge Theater, Mac Wellman, Penny Arcade, Linda Simpson, and Reza Abdoh. Film appearances include the award-winning The Headhunter's Sister, My Sassy Girl, and Pollock directed by Ed Harris. Richard is a member of The Dramatist's Guild. For more info visit www.sheinmel.com.
Clay Zambo is a composer, lyricist, and sometime book writer. He is composer-lyricist of Greenbrier Ghost (Spirit of Broadway, ASCAP/Disney Workshop); Post Modern Living (La MaMa, published by New York Theater Experience); and over dozen musicals premiered at NYC’s Kaufman Center. With composer Scott Ethier: I Am Star Trek (London); Shlemiel Crooks (Merkin Hall); “A Mother’s Carol” (recorded by Vocal Essence, pub. Boosey & Hawkes). With Kevin Miller, his score for a new adaptation of Beauty and the Beast recently premiered at Seattle's Second Story Rep. Forthcoming: Windjammers (American Folklore Theatre). Member: BMI, Dramatists Guild. Alumnus: Ohio University HTC. For more info visit www.clayzambo.com.
Jason Jacobs was selected as a “2007 Person of the Year” by nytheatre.com for his work as co-artistic director of Theatre Askew. He directed two GLAAD Media Award-nominated productions for Askew: Bald Diva! and i google myself, as well as The Tempest, The Tale of the Good Whistleblower..., and I Claudius Live! Other New York productions include: Post Modern Living, Lavender Songs for TOSOS II (Back Stage Bistro Award), The Boycott, Mario and the Magician for Center for Contemporary Opera. Regionally, he directed Opus and Vanya/Vermont for Vermont Stage Company and directed The Accidental Activist for the Kitchen Theatre in Ithaca. He has a BA from Yale and an MFA Columbia.
LOST IN STATEN ISLAND: MORE TALES OF MODERN LIVING runs June 15 - July 1 on the following schedule: June 15, 16, 21, 22 & 23 at 10pm; June 18, 28, 29 & 30 at 7:30pm, June 17 & 24 at 5:30pm; and July 1 at 2:30pm. Bar opens 30 minutes before showtime. La MaMa is located at 74A East 4th Street (between 2nd & 3rd Aves -- accessible from the F train at 2nd Ave). Tickets are $18, $13 for students/seniors, available at 212-475-7710 or www.lamama.org.