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NELSON
February 7 - March 3 at The Lion Theater

"The little company that could... they have achieved what hundreds of people come to New York every year to do: make a mark on the city’s fiercely competitive theater world." -- The New York Times

Partial Comfort Productions (‘nami, Booty Candy, Battle of the Bards) presents the World Premiere of NELSON by Sam Marks. Directed by Kip Fagan, previews begin February 7th at The Lion Theater at Theater Row Studios where Partial Comfort is a 2006-2007 resident company. Opening night is scheduled for Thursday, February 14th.

NELSON is the story of a young man caught between two worlds. By day, he works as a low-level assistant to a film talent agent. By night, Nelson is the camera man for an underground, gang-related videotape series. As the videos become increasingly dangerous and popular, Nelson develops an overwhelming obsession with a C-List actress. Eventually, Nelson’s two worlds collide with disturbing, unsettling results. The play is a darkly comic look at the guilt dream of a man trying to find something authentic in a world of two very different kinds of film

The production stars Frank Harts (Broadway’s A Raisin in the Sun opposite Sean Combs and Phylicia Rashad), Jordan Mahome and Alexander Alioto with sets by Lex Liang, costumes by Elizabeth Flauto, lights by Jason Jeunnette, and sound by Zach Williamson.

Sam Marks’ first full-length play, Craft, debuted at the Flea Theater in 2002 and has been developed into series for HBO with Tom Fontana (creator of Oz, St. Elsewhere, Homicide) and Greenestreet Films. His other plays include The Bigger Man (Center Stage, 2005) and Which Wolf is Which (HERE, 2003). He has also worked with The New Group, The Bat Theater Company and the Labyrinth Theater Company. Currently, Marks is a playwriting Fellow at Brown University, studying under Paula Vogel, Erin Cressida Wilson, and Oskar Eustis. As an actor, he has been seen on stage at BAM, Classic Stage Company, and the Flea Theater. This year, Sam is a visiting Lecturer of Playwriting at Harvard University and the first ever recipient of Brown University's John C. Russell 91' Fellowship. He is currently working on a pilot for MTV. Sam was born and raised in Lower Manhattan, attended Stuyvesant High School, Stanford University and New York University.

Partial Comfort Productions is a collaborative ensemble devoted to the development and presentation of original new theater. The company was co-founded in January 2002 by Chad Beckim and Molly Pearson. Past productions include ‘nami and ...a matter of choice. by Chad Beckim, Open House at FringeNYC 2006; Craft and The Bigger Man by Sam Marks; Booty Candy by Robert O’Hara; Play by O’Hara, Chay Yew, Kia Corthron, Eddie Sanchez, Keith Adkins and Tracey Scott Wilson; and Edith Freni’s Baby Girl. They have presented shows at venues including The Kirk Theater, TheFlea, CSV Cultural Center, HERE, The Kraine and Chashama. For more information visit www.partialcomfort.org.

NELSON runs February 7 - March 3, Wednesday - Saturday at 8:00pm. The Lion Theater is located in Theatre Row Studios (410 W. 42nd Street at 9th Avenue). Tickets are $15. For information or reservations call 212-279-4200 or visit ticketcentral.com.