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Set in southern Louisiana in a community on the river, the story involves an artist, a young girl inspired by her visions of an aged nun, a collection of politicians, church leaders, industrialists, and a community impacted by the toxic pollution of the river. The reading will be followed by audience discussion. Admission is by a suggested donation of $10. Information: 415-441-8001. Julie Hèbert’s Biography Writer/director, working in theater, film and television, Julie Hèbert’s first play, TRUE BEAUTIES, premiered at the Magic Theater in San Francisco in 1987. The play won the Critics Circle Best Play Award, and went on to productions in Los Angeles, Seattle, Dallas, Canada and several universities. Her next play was ALMOST ASLEEP, further developed in a workshop with Ruth Maleczech of Mabou Mines. Premiered at Intersection for the Arts in San Francisco, the work was also produced at Padua Hills Playwrights Festival, Seven Stages in Atlanta, at theaters in New York and New Orleans, and most recently at Molasses Tank in Boston. Other works include RUBY’S BUCKET OF BLOOD, premiered at San Diego Rep, and adapted as a film for Showtime, starring Angela Bassett. THE KNEE DESIRES THE DIRT was developed at Padua Hills Playwrights Festival and at Seven Stages with a grant from the Rockefeller Foundation, premiered at The Women’s Project in New York and published by Dramatic Publishing. It was honored with the Pen West Award for Drama, and runner-up for Susan Smith Blackburn Award. ST. JOAN AND THE DANCING SICKNESS is a large scale contemporary drama set in Julie’s native South Louisiana, where for four years she served as Artistic Producing Director for the Contemporary Arts Center, New Orleans. The work has had several readings in Los Angeles, New York and San Francisco, and is still unproduced. Her latest play TREE was workshopped at the 2007 Bay Area Playwrights Festival, where she was a member in the founding days. In addition to her writing career, she has directed new plays with the Magic and the Eureka in San Francisco, Steppenwolf, Seven Stages, Provincetown Playhouse, LaMaMa, LA Theatre Center, San Diego Rep and others. Her directing career in film and television is extensive, and includes co-directing In Their Own Words, a documentary of survivors of the 9/11, attacks for which she received a George Foster Peabody Award. Currently, she works as co-Executive Producer for Numb3rs, and won an Environmental Media Award for the episode Waste Not; a Prism Award for the Third Watch episode Know Thyself; and a multitude of other awards and grants including from the NEA, Theatre Communications Group, California Arts Council, Marin Arts Council for writing, directing, and inter-disciplinary Arts. __________________________ Monday, March 17, 2008 at 7pm blue grass centers on events unfolding around a devastating tragedy in an isolated rural valley in the middle of the blue grass region of Kentucky. Set in the world of tent-revivalism, snake-handling, faith-healing, holy spirit-filled worship, this moving play explores the roots of faith-based fundamentalism through the wholly American story of one community's loss of all but two of their children. In development with San Francisco’s foolsFURY Theatre Company, blue grass epitomizes the innovative spirit of cutting edge new work in the Bay Area. Katy Hilton has been working in the Bay Area theatre as a playwright, director and producer since moving here in 2003. She is an extremely devoted and passionate member of the Bay Area arts community, specifically focused on the field of new play development for the theatre. She is an Artistic Associate at the Magic Theatre, has recently worked with the Playwright's Foundation, foolsFury, mugwumpin, Just Theater, and is a founding member of the brave trade narrative. She has served on the Bay Area Playwright's Festival selection committee for the past two years. __________________________ Monday, February 25, 2008 at 7pm Zoo Logic looks at topics as various as endangered species, the experience of captivity, and reproductive challenges for animals and humans alike. Woven throughout is the story of a couple struggling to conceive. Attending the "Saint Francis zoo's annual Valentine's Day sex tour" led by the legendary Jane "the Penguin Lady" (played by Joan Mankin) Bob and Helen hope for inspiration, distraction, or just a little entertainment, but they wind up with much more than they bargained for when they encounter a space alien, disguised as a little lost boy, on a mission to capture a breeding-pair of endangered apex predators. Trevor Allen’s The Nutshell was presented at Magic Theatre’s New Media festival at the Commonwealth Club in 2005. Recent productions include: The Creature an audio podcast play www.blackboxtheatre.com, Tenders in the Fog at San Jose Stage Company (recipient of the 2005 Dean Goodman Choice Award for Original Script), Working for the Mouse! with Impact, The EXIT and Bus Barn Stage Company, 49 Miles co-produced with Crowded Fire, Chain Reactions with Theatre of Yugen, The Cutting Ball and Combined Art Form Entertainment. He received PlayGround's Emerging Playwright Award in both '98 & '99 and the 2003 PlayGround Playwriting Fellowship full-length play commission. His plays have received San Francisco Fringe Festival’s “Best Of” award in ’96 and 2000. He is currently collaborating with Liebe Wetzel of Lunatique Fantastique on One Stone (A theatrical found-object puppet piece which takes place inside the mind of Albert Einstein) for the Playwright’s Foundation’s In the Rough series in May. He will also be a Djerassi Playwright in Residence in the fall. He is an Active Member of the Dramatist’s Guild. __________________________ Monday, January 14, 2008 at 7pm |
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