Paradise Factory presents the World Premiere of three one-act plays by Eric Maierson, Joan Mathieu & Grant James Varjas.
May 29 - June 8 at Paradise Factory
Paradise Factory presents WORKPLACE INJURIES, the World Premiere of three one-act plays by Eric Maierson, Joan Mathieu and Grant James Varjas (HERE THERE ARE BLUEBERRIES) all of whom studied with Tom Noonan, iconoclastic actor, writer, director and founder of Paradise Factory. Performances begin May 29.
WORKPLACE INJURIES is:
• BOOKSTORE. It's just before closing time at a bookstore in Beacon, New York, when one last customer arrives to challenge the store's owner.
• THAT PICTURE OF YOU. A college professor faces a reckoning.
• DIET COKE FOR THE DEAD. Two park rangers spend the night watching over the body of a hiker who has fallen to his death.
WORKPLACE INJURIES stars Sean Patrick Folster and Katie Moore in Eric Maierson’s THAT PICTURE OF YOU (directed by Sean Patrick Folster), Monique Vukovic and Ken Forman in Joan Mathieu’s DIET COKE FOR THE DEAD (directed by Howard Fishman), and Chase McCloud and Joan Mathieu in Grant James Varjas’ BOOKSTORE (directed by Chuck Blasius).
WORKPLACE INJURIES runs May 29 - June 8, Thursday thru Saturday at 7pm and Sunday at 3pm. Paradise Factory is located at 64 E. 4th St., NYC (between Bowery and 2nd Ave.) For tickets and info, visit www.paradisefactory.org.
Chuck Blasius (director, BOOKSTORE) directed Peter Mercurio's ANDREW REACHES THE OTHER SIDE, RED AND TAN LINE and TWO SPOONS, Eric Bernat and Robin Carrigan’s JESUS AND MANDY, John Alban Coughlan’s OF LIVES AND LEAVES. He wrote the plays I COULD SAY MORE, LONELY TOO LONG, WE WERE THERE and BETTE AND KATE JOIN THE LINE (with Robert Kahan). He previously worked at the Paradise Factory as an actor in Grant James Varjas’ ACCIDENTALLY LIKE A MARTYR. Chuck is a member of the Dramatists Guild and a graduate of New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts.
Howard Fishman's (director, DIET COKE FOR THE DEAD) directing credits include the world premiere of Elmer Rice's final play COURT OF LAST RESORT (Culture Project), Eugene O'Neill's RECKLESSNESS, (Playwrights Theatre) and the American premiere of Valentin Krasnogorov's THE DOG (Todo Con Nada). He is an alum of the Lincoln Center Director's Lab, assisted Arvin Brown on Austin Pendleton's BOOTH, and studied with both Jose Quintero and Estelle Parsons.
Sean Patrick Folster (director, THAT PICTURE OF YOU) is also a teacher and writer who lives in the Bronx. Originally from Detroit, he's been in the arts since age four, and has appeared in things. He loves Paradise Factory, creating, long walks, Zen koans, Eric Maierson and Emperor's Cloud green tea, among other things.
Eric Maierson (playwright, THAT PICTURE OF YOU) is a two-time Emmy Award–winning filmmaker. His work has appeared in The New Yorker, The New York Times, and many other publications. His latest film, THE VISIT, was directed by Sean Patrick Folster and screened at more than a dozen festivals in the U.S. and abroad. His play REPRISE, starring Folster, Ken Forman and Tara Westwood, premiered at the Paradise Factory. He lives in Brooklyn with his family.
Joan Mathieu (playwright, DIET COKE FOR THE DEAD) studied acting and playwriting under the mentorship of actor/writer/director Tom Noonan. Her essays have appeared in the Antioch Review and The Rumpus. She is the author of ZULU: AN IRISH JOURNEY (Farrar, Straus & Giroux).
Grant James Varjas (playwright, BOOKSTORE) is a deviser of Tectonic Theater Project’s Pulitzer Prize-nominated HERE THERE ARE BLUEBERRIES, currently on a national tour. He is the playwright and composer of 33 TO NOTHING (GLAAD Nomination) and ACCIDENTALLY, LIKE A MARTYR (Top 10 Best Plays of 2015 -TimeOut Chicago). Both plays were produced in Chicago (A Red Orchid Theatre), and New York City (Wild Project and Paradise Factory). Grant is the creator and writer of the queer web series WAY DOWN (waydownseries.com). He serves on the Paradise Factory board and is a writer, deviser and company member at Tectonic Theatre Project. He is also an Advanced Teaching Artist at Tectonic’s Moment Work Institute.