MCC Theater Announces 2017 PlayLabs Reading Series

8/24/2017 12:05pm


MCC THEATER (Robert LuPone, Bernard Telsey, William Cantler, Artistic Directors; Blake West, Executive Director) has announced  the 2017 PlayLabs reading series, which will feature new works in development by playwrights: 2017-2018 Tow Playwright-in-Residence Jocelyn Bioh, MCC alum Amanda Peet, Charise Castro Smith, and MCC Youth Company alum Lily Houghton. Readings will be held at the Lucille Lortel Theatre (121 Christopher St). All readings are at 7:00 PM. Full casting will be announced at a later date. For tickets and more info, please visit www.mcctheater.org. The PlayLabs reading series invites audiences to engage directly with playwrights as they develop new works for the theater. Each reading includes a post-show reception with wine and refreshments, offering a chance to discuss the work and mingle with the playwrights, actors, MCC leadership, and other audience members. The 2017 PlayLabs Reading Series is as follows: OUR VERY OWN CARLIN McCULLOUGH by Amanda Peet directed by Tyne Rafaeli (Mon Sept 11) Carlin McCullough is a tennis prodigy with the chance for greatness, but the adults in her life can’t agree on what it takes to succeed in the intense world of competitive tennis. While her long-time coach and troubled mother grapple with their own pasts and failed ambitions, a dramatic encounter forces Carlin to come to terms with her past and face her future head on. EL HURACÀN by Charise Castro Smith director is TBD (Mon Sept 25) Hurricane Andrew is quickly approaching Miami, and three generations of women prepare for the storm while the matriarch Valeria battles her quickly advancing Alzheimer’s disease. Held captive to her debilitating condition, Valeria’s memories and inner world are revealed in a journey both tragic and dreamlike. Thirty years later, the family is again threatened by rising waters and an impending disaster as they face each other in the wake of an unforgivable mistake. HAPPINESS AND JOE by Jocelyn Bioh directed by Saheem Ali (Mon Oct 2) Happiness and Joe are madly in love and their wedding is the most anticipated event in the (fictional) West African country of Upendo. As historic tribal divisions turn violent, the young couple finds themselves, unwittingly, in the center of the conflict. DEAR by Lily Houghton directed by Jenna Worsham (Mon Oct 16) April has disappeared from her college campus, and her three friends convene in their dorm’s shared bathroom to trade theories about her whereabouts and attacks against each other. When April’s paper on female serial killers begins to bare striking similarities to their behavior, the students are forced to face their own secrets and rage. Press contact: DKC/O&M Co (212/695-7400)...