Press Kit - Everyday Inferno Theatre Company

Press Kit 2015-2016
www.everydayinferno.com
[email protected]
“This is a power packed group playing out great ideas that push
at the edges of performance…they are committed to jumping off
and away from what they know, they are alchemists creating
and finding what the jaded rest-of-us might not even see. Like
seeing Spalding Gray or going to the Wooster Group before they
became household names, why not go watch them grow?”
-Front Row Center
About Everyday Inferno
"The inferno of the living is not something that will be; if there is one, it is what is already here, the inferno where
we live every day, that we form by being together. There are two ways to escape suffering it. The first is easy for
many: accept the inferno and become such a part of it that you can no longer see it. The second is risky and
demands constant vigilance and apprehension: seek and learn to recognize who and what, in the midst of inferno,
are not inferno, then make them endure, give them space."
― Italo Calvino, Invisible Cities
Our Mission:
Everyday Inferno is devoted to creating
adventurous theatrical productions of both
new and classic texts. We seek to exceed
the conventional limitations of low-budget
theatre by exploring nontraditional spaces,
stagecraft, and storytelling. We are
committed to developing a diverse
audience by producing work that is large in
scope while keeping our production costs
(and ticket prices) at a minimum.
Innovation:
A fairy tale. A ghost story. A twisted short
rooted in philosophy. Each brought to life
with music, creative movement, abstract
design, and vast imagination. Everyday
Inferno thrives on finding thrilling ways to
bring stories to life, whether that’s
combining live folk music with
Shakespearean text, or sleek modern
design with an ancient tale. By assembling
a company of multi-talented collaborators,
we are able to create entirely new worlds
in which audiences can become immersed.
Development:
Our shows are lovingly created, piece-bypiece, from the ground up. The
development and performance of new
writing is a foundation of Everyday
Inferno’s work. Many of the shows that
make up each season begin in the very
early stages of the playwrights’ processes;
through readings and workshops the
plays are transformed into full-scale
productions. In addition to supporting
new writers (including up-and-comer
Reina Hardy’s June 2014 NYC debut, A
Map to Somewhere Else) the company
hosts several staged readings of new
work per season.
Collaboration
Being part of the theatre community
means being folded into a large (slightly
dysfunctional) family of directors,
performers, producers, writers, and
designers. By working hard to cultivate an
atmosphere of trust and respect with
every artistic collaborator, Everyday
Inferno has become a company that
people enthusiastically return to again
and again. We are committed to
providing fulfilling, professional theatrical
opportunities for growing theatre artists.
Everyday Inferno is a company of
opportunity, one that invites creators and
audiences to dream together.
Current & Upcoming Productions
The Developmental Lab
Four Playwrights.
Four Directors.
Four exciting new projects.
Public presentation May 28th, 2016
Lab partnerships:
Helen Banner & Courtney Self
Eleanor Burgess & Todd Brian Backus
Laura Hirschberg & Katherine Sommer
Matthew Minnicino & Christine Zagrobelny
After I Was Free
A world-premiere musical
Written by Caroline Angell & Joshua Coyne
Developmental work in progress
Public presentation June, 2016
Iphigenia Among the Taurians
A free production in Central Park
Adapted from Euripides
Directed by Anais Koivisto
Produced by Katherine Sommer
Summit Rock, Central Park
August 12th-14th & 19th-21st
Past Work
The Dispute
by Pierre de Marivaux
August 14-23, 2015 at Summit Rock, Central Park
In an isolated wilderness, a strange experiment plays out… Four orphans, raised in
captivity, are released into the wild to discover the wonders of love, friendship, and
lust. Their choices will determine their fates, as onlookers seek the ultimate
resolution to an age-old dispute: which sex was unfaithful first?
Punks & Provocateurs
The Roaring Girl by Thomas Middleton & Thomas Dekker
Punk as Fuck by Michael K. White & Dianna Stark (WORLD PREMIERE)
June 4-21, 2015 at The Access Theatre Gallery
An ambitious repertory project consisting of two fully produced works: a rarely
performed feminist Jacobean comedy, and a world premiere drama. Transforming
the Access Theater Gallery into an immersive space with a distinct nightclub vibe,
these two shows played in rotation providing audiences the opportunity to
discover surprising parallels between these very different works.
Heart of Oak
by Laura Hirschberg (WORLD PREMIERE)
February-March, 2015 at The Kraine Theater (FRIGID New York festival)
**FRIGID Hangover encore selection, Highest selling production in the festival
Fleeing an arranged marriage, Alvida commandeers a pirate vessel and assembles a
crew of laundry women, seamstresses, and cooks. As she struggles with opposing
roles – pirate and princess – her betrothed finds himself falling for a woman he's
barely met. Shanties and swordfights frame this theatrical tale of love on the high
seas...
The Turn of the Screw
adapted from Henry James by Jamie Wylie (WORLD PREMIERE)
October-November, 2014 at The Morris-Jumel Mansion
Figures move in the shadows and peer through windows. Something is watching
the children, waiting to take them away - and the Governess stands alone, their sole
protector. But do they want to be protected? This haunting new adaptation of
Henry James’ classic novella of innocence, sensuality, and horror is presented in a
site-specific staging produced in partnership with The Morris-Jumel Mansion.
By Sun and Candlelight
adapted and directed by Katherine Sommer
August, 2014 at Summit Rock in Central Park
Our annual free production in the park for 2014, By Sun and Candlelight blended
the romantic works of Elizabeth Barrett Browning, Lord Byron, and William
Shakespeare to tell two separate but intertwining love stories full of humor and
warmth.
A Map to Somewhere Else
By Reina Hardy (NEW YORK PREMIERE)
June, 2014 at The 133rd Street Arts Center
What happens to the imagined worlds we create as children? The tender, heroic,
silly, elaborate fantasies that shape the souls of so many ordinary people, then are
abandoned as we grow. What if, all this time, they were there waiting, hoping we'd
come back? A Map to Somewhere Else is a comic drama full of fantasy, music, and
magic that dares to ask what happens when that long-closed door is reopened.
Something Wicked
adapted from Shakespeare's Macbeth
February-March, 2014 at The Kraine Theater (FRIGID New York festival)
**FRIGID Hangover encore selection, Highest selling production in the festival
"The Queen, my lord, is dead."
Lady Macbeth awakes to a purgatory created from her own gruesome misdeeds.
Unsure whether her final destination is Heaven or Hell, and guided by three
gleefully tormenting witches, she searches for answers... and her lost love... in the
mind-bending hereafter.
If on a Winter’s Night…
Annual winter production, beginning December 2013
An annual evening of one act plays directed by Women
Generously supported by the Puffin Foundation in 2014
Annual themes, 2013 to present: Fantasy & Magic, Adventurous Women, Rebellion
Briar Rose & the Thirteenth Fairy
May, 2013 at The Jan Hus Playhouse
By Caroline Angell (WORLD PREMIERE)
Briar Rose & the Thirteenth Fairy tells the classic tale of Sleeping Beauty through
the eyes of both the hero and the villain. What happens when you wake up one
morning and 100 years have passed you by? How do you protect the innocence of
your children in a world where evil is ever-present? The universal questions posed
by this timeless fairy tale are addressed in a charming, hilarious, and occasionally
terrifying manner in this new adaptation.
The Golden Hour
September, 2013 in Central Park
A compilation of site-specific shorts
A Brief Informational Session on What Used to Be Central Park (written by Skylar
Fox), Isabel Sleep (written by Essie Martsinkovsky), The Issue (written by Brianna
Keller), In the Land of Giants (written by Gina Femia), Dog and Human (written by
Ellen Koivisto)
Readings, Workshops, and Development 2011-2015
Staged Readings:
Three Patricias, written by Regina Robbins at Space on White
Real | Crazy, written by Cristina Ramos at The T. Schreiber Studio Theatre
Pay the Piper, written by Regina Robbins at The T. Schreiber Studio Theatre
Development to Full Production:
Caroline Angell’s Briar Rose & the Thirteenth Fairy
Jamie Wylie’s The Turn of the Screw
Caroline Angell’s After I Was Free (ongoing)
Jamie Wylie’s CYOA (ongoing)
Buzz for Everyday Inferno
“I am looking forward to the next production of this new and vibrant
indie theater company.“
Joan Kane, NYTheatre.com
"...an entertaining and enjoyable evening put on by some fresh talent and
an eager young theatre company."
Oscar Lopez, StageBuddy
“…Everyday Inferno Theatre Company is a talented ensemble that blends
dance, music and theatre to form new constructs to express the feelings
and ideas of the subjects they explore. I am curious to see more of what
they do.”
Alice Jane Klugherz, Front Row Center
“The cast successfully fills the performance space with songs, movement
and dance to the point where scenery would only hinder their work.”
Juan Recondo, Off Off Online
“[T]his is very impressive work and I would like to see more from
Everyday Inferno.”
Mark Savitt, Hi! Drama
“I’m sure lovers of Macbeth will absolutely eat up the renditions of the
scenes we know so well… Koivisto also incorporates music, dance, and a
pretty exquisite albeit short sequence in which various caricatures of
literati attempt to reduce Lady Macbeth to a woman embittered by her
barrenness, ignoring and talking over the one female among them.”
Greg Solomon, Theatre is Easy
“…this group of theater artists knows what they’re doing.”
Sergei Burbank, nytheater now
“The creative team has great fun with this production, making excellent use of their space and striking a fine
balance between the horror and humor of this timeless gothic tale.”
Eric Grimm, Theater Pizzazz
“Overall, this piece is a great example of what a talented team with
competent direction can produce.”
Dillon Slagle, Theatre is Easy
“The cast exemplifies incredible talent; each actor contributes to the
dark nature of the play in song or instrument playing (violin, banjo,
tambourine)... It's an intimate and whimsical performance you're not
likely to forget.”
Carly Mento, StageBuddy
“…a taut little horror story, with inventive and simple staging, a
wonderfully fluid use of James' own framing device, and enough levity
to give the audience a respite before the next, and markedly more
effective scare.”
PJ Grisar, StageBuddy
Heart of Oak is a true ensemble show, each member of the crew part of
the story of their voyage with their own motivations and struggles… the
actors… shine, leaving us desperately wishing that Alvira and Alfred's
story were true. “
Natalie Sacks, Charged.FM
The Company
Anaïs Koivisto (Artistic Director, Founding Member) is an award-
winning New York based freelance director. Previous credits include In the Land
of Giants (Central Park), Briar Rose & the Thirteenth Fairy (The Jan Hus
Playhouse), It's Just the Radio (The Looking Glass Theatre Forum), Three
Patricias (Staged Reading, Space on White), The Golden Ticket (The Looking
Glass Theatre Forum), The Saint Plays (Seiche Productions), Speed Shakespeare –
Hamlet, R&J (Theatre Artists' Conspiracy), and Misreadings (SOTA). Anaïs holds
a BFA from Boston University and has studied at LAMDA and ACT, is a New York
Affiliate member of Seiche Productions, and has served as a member of (Re:)
Directions Theatre Company and the Theatre Artists' Conspiracy.
Company Collaborators
Caroline Angell
Kathryn Connors
Gina Femia
Francesca Galbo
Leslie Gauthier
Paul Gregg
Jonathan Hendrickson
Jon Meyer
Ryan Mills
Sam Ogilvie
Taylor Reynolds
Danielle Rodino
Christine Zagrobelny
Katherine Sommer (Producing Director, Founding Member) is a
producer and director working primarily in the tri-state area. She is a Skidmore
College graduate and a current board member of the North Jersey-based theatre
company Tomfoolery Theatre, where she has co-produced Godspell and Zombie
Prom. She has directed productions in four consecutive Writer/Director Forums
at the Looking Glass Theater (NY). She is proud to be a founding member of the
innovative and wonderful Everyday Inferno Theatre Company where she now
serves as Producing Director. With Everyday Inferno, Katherine was the
producer of Briar Rose & the Thirteenth Fairy and the director of Dog and Human
as part of The Golden Hour and The Policy as part of the first annual If on a
Winter's Night...
Anaïs Koivisto
Meghann Garmany (Associate Artist, Director of Social Media) is an
actor based in New York with some serious Southern roots. Originally from
Savannah, GA, with most of her life spent in Virginia, she proudly holds a BA in
Theatre Arts from Virginia Tech. Some favorite credits include, Boston
Marriage, Fengar Gael's Devil Dog Six, Eurydice directed by Megan
Carney, Alchemy of Desire/Dead Man's Blues directed by Ashley Sparks, and
numerous readings with Playwrights Gallery produced by Katie McHugh. She is
a member of the acting company of The Playwright's Gallery with Deborah
Savadge. Credits with EITC include Natasha in A Map to Somewhere Else and
work in their developmental series. www.MeghannGarmany.com
Regina Robbins (Associate Artist, Company Manager) is a writer,
director, and native New Yorker. Her plays include Enter Attendant, Disguised
(Expanded Arts), Not a Dream (Six Figures Theatre), and It's Just the Radio,
which won several awards at the Looking Glass Theatre's Spring 2012 Forum.
Regina has had staged readings presented by Identity Theater Company, the
Directors Company, and Everyday Inferno Theatre. Other company associations:
Oslo Elsewhere, Horizon Theatre Rep, Untitled Theatre Co. #61. Regina has
made three films; they have been seen in cities around the U.S., winning awards
in New York, San Diego, Cleveland, and Asheville, NC. BA, Yale University; MFA,
Columbia School of the Arts; MA, CUNY Graduate Center.
Katherine Sommer
Meghann Garmany
Regina Robbins
Jamie Wylie (Associate Artist, Director of Public Relationships) is a
New York based writer and performer. Her most recent work includes "The
Modern Safety Trilogy" of After Ben Alderidge, Your Safety is Important to Us,
and The Gate, as well as radio play The Honorable Thing and Teeth. She has
contributed to scripts for Still, Untitled #2, Fireball, and Skull Session Six. Her
work has been performed in the US, UK and Croatia. Jamie holds degrees from
Skidmore College and the Central School of Speech and Drama.
Jamie Wylie
Get in touch!
Public Relations: [email protected]
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