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NNPN ANNOUNCES THREE 2006/2007 CONTINUED LIFE FUND PROJECTS

The National New Play Network announces the formation of three Continued Life of New Play Fund projects, featuring multiple "rolling world premieres" of three new plays:

THE ICE-BREAKER
by David Rambo:
Written by David Rambo - known nationally for his writing on the hit television series Crime Scene Investigation (CSI) as well as his acclaimed play GOD'S MAN IN TEXAS - THE ICE-BREAKER depicts the developing relationship between two scientists. Sonia, a brilliant academic completing her thesis on climatology, arrives on the desert of the American Southwest in search of Lawrence, a once-legendary scientist (now living in self-imposed exile), whose research on polar ice inspired Sonia's work. When the two meet, sexual and intellectual sparks fly, but in the course of one sleepless night, both learn that their romantic attraction is as volatile and mysterious as the potential climate change they fear.

THE ICE-BREAKER will be produced in "rolling world premieres" at the following three theatres:

Magic Theatre
San Francisco, CA
www.magictheatre.org
February 18 - March 19, 2006

Phoenix Theatre
Indianapolis, IN
www.phoenixtheatre.org
July 13 - July 30, 2006

New Repertory Theatre
Boston, MA
www.newrep.org
September 6 - October 1, 2006

tempOdyssey
by Dan Dietz:
From the Austin, TX-based playwright Dan Dietz, author of DIRIGIBLE, BLIND HORSES, TILT ANGEL and AMERICAMISFIT, comes tempOdyssey, a funny and fantastically surreal comedy about Little Genny, a temp whose starting her first day working as a receptionist for a bomb manufacturer. When past and present lives intersect, the results are explosive. From the Big Bang to the basement File Room of a Seattle skyscraper, mythology and corporate absurdity collide in the epic adventures of Little Genny, a receptionist who believes she is the Goddess of Death... on a quest for the meaning of life.

tempOdyssey will be produced in "rolling world premieres" at the following three theatres:

Curious Theatre
Denver, CO
www.curioustheatre.org
November 2 - December 16, 2006

Phoenix Theatre
Indianapolis, IN
www.phoenixtheatre.org
February 1 - February 25, 2007

New Jersey Repertory Company
Long Branch, NJ
www.njrep.org
T.B.A. during 2006/2007 Season

A HOUSE WITH NO WALLS
by Thomas Gibbons
Following on the extraordinary success of PERMANENT COLLECTION and BEE-LUTHER-HATCHEE, A HOUSE WITH NO WALLS represents the final part of Gibbons' "race trilogy." The play -- inspired by real-life events in Philadelphia -- dramatizes the conflict between a conservative African American academic and an ultra-liberal, Afro-centric political activist. The battleground for these two opposing forces is the proposed site for the new National Constitution Center, which happens to be on the grounds of George Washington's Philadelphia home, including its slave quarters. Flashing between the dramatic story of one of Washington's slaves contemplating escape, to a current day debate over what "freedom" truly is, A HOUSE WITH NO WALLS serves as a springboard for a complex and volatile exploration of whether or not African-Americans should embrace the legacy of slavery as their primary cultural identity or discard this mantle of "victimhood."

A HOUSE WITH NO WALLS will be produced in "rolling world premieres" at the following three theatres:

InterAct Theatre Company
Philadelphia, PA
www.interacttheatre.org
January 19 - February 18, 2007

Florida Stage
West Palm Beach, FL
www.floridastage.org
January 23 - March 4, 2007

Curious Theatre
Denver, CO
www.curioustheatre.org
March 10 - April 21, 2007

REASONING BEHIND THE CONTINUED LIFE OF NEW PLAYS FUND PROGRAM

The continued life of important new plays of quality is vital to the health of the American Theatre. Across the country, hundreds of new plays by emerging and established writers are developed each year, yet only a handful receive full productions on the regional professional theatre circuit. Among the plays that do receive world premiers, only a fraction receive second, third and fourth productions at theatres outside their immediate region. Without subsequent productions, plays have little opportunity to evolve artistically or to generate significant critical attention and momentum. And while there are numerous funding opportunities for play development and world premieres, there are none devoted to the continued life of new plays.

After a new play has had a successful premiere in a region, it remains a risky venture for a theatre elsewhere. Without the "hype" generated by an Off-Broadway run or a major festival, new plays struggle to attract audiences equal to that of classic plays, musicals and star-studded pre-Broadway tryouts. Nationwide statistics consistently reveal that traditional theatregoing audiences respond more positively to familiar titles and authors; and people who are not regular theatregoers are generally even less adventurous in attending new plays.

Thus, NNPN has developed the Continued Life of New Plays Fund (CLNPF) program, a cooperative venture designed to insure that new plays will see future productions beyond the initial world premiere. Partnerships of three theatres receive funds in support of multiple, yet completely independent, productions of the same new play. In this way, each theatre takes part in a "rolling world premiere" that guarantees an opportunity for the play to grow and flourish through contact with a wider national audience.

NNPN'S CLNPF PROJECTS HISTORY

In 2003, NNPN established the pilot project for the the Continued Life of New Plays Fund (CLPNF), which featured PERMANENT COLLECTION by Thomas Gibbons. Five NNPN theatres committed to producing the play prior to the official opening of its world premiere production.ÊPERMANENT COLLECTION saw its first production at InterAct Theatre Company (Philadelphia, PA) and then went on to subsequent "rolling world premieres" atÊ Florida Stage (West Palm Beach, FL), Kitchen Dog Theater (Dallas, TX), Mixed Blood Theater (Minneapolis, MN) and Unicorn Theatre (Kansas City, MO).

Since the intial five productions by NNPN member theatres -- InterAct Theatre Company, where it won the 2004 Barrymore Award for Best New Play; Florida Stage, where it won the 2004 Critics' Circle Carbonell Award for Best New Play; Kitchen Dog Theater, where it was nominated for the 2004 Leon Rabin Award for Best New Play or Musical; Mixed Blood Theater and Unicorn Theatre (Kansas City, MO) - PERMANENT COLLECTION has become one of the most produced new plays in recent years, despite never having received a New York run. This included productions at respected venues throughout the United States, such as New Repertory Theatre (Boston, MA), Northlight Theatre (Skokie, IL), Arizona Theatre Company (Tucson, AZ), CENTERSTAGE (Baltimore, MD), Robey Theatre Company (Los Angeles, CA), TJX Companies (Framingham, MA), Deep Dish Theater Company (Chapel Hill, NC), Ensemble Theatre of Cincinnati (Cincinnati, OH), and Center Theatre Group (Culver City, CA). There are also two productions forthcoming: Horizon Theatre Company (Atlanta, GA) and Theatre Northwest at Indiana University Northwest (Gary, IN).

Since the pilot project, NNPN's CLNPF has continued to grow and flourish as a direct result of PERMANENT COLLECTION's success. In 2005, NNPN continued the life of two plays, which were each produced by theatres both inside and outside the NNPN membership: ICE GLEN by Joan Ackerman, which was produced at Florida Stage (West Palm Beach, FL), non-NNPN member Shakespeare & Co. (Lenox, MA), and Performance Network (Ann Arbor, MI); and HAZARD COUNTY by Allison Moore, produced by non-NNPN member Actors Theatre of Louisville (Louisville, KY) as part of the 2005 Humana Festival, Kitchen Dog Theatre (Dallas, TX), and Actor's Express Theatre Company (Atlanta, GA).