CELEBRATING SEASONS OF

Kate Loewald Founding Producer

Lauren Weigel Executive Producer

The Play Company develops and produces adventurous new plays, from the U.S. and abroad, to engage New Yorkers in a dynamic global practice of contemporary theatre and expand the American repertoire. Our singular international programming reflects and responds to our diverse New York City home, and to the globally connected way people live now. We are committed to producing works of significant artistic achievement and substance that would not otherwise be seen, and to providing artists with thoughtful, meaningful support and encouragement to reach for and realize their visions. Our programming is driven by what is going on in the world around us, exploring the ideas, events and issues of our time through the intimate, personal live theatre experience. We maintain affordable ticket prices to make PlayCo accessible and welcoming to the broadest audience possible.

OUR MISSION

15We’re celebrating this company landmark with a year full of new plays and events that reach into far corners of the world - Germany, the former Yugoslavia, China and Japan - as well as local spots right here in NYC. Have a look and join us! In the fall we introduce German writer Maria Milisavljevic for her U.S. debut with ABYSS. Maria Mileaf, who led our productions of Monsieur Ibrahim and The Flowers of The Koran (2003) and Sakharam Binder (2004), directs this intense and haunting play. Next, we’re joining forces with our smart and sassy friends at Ars Nova to co-produce a new music-theatre piece (first seen in our 2012 Studio program) from Kyle Jarrow, Lauren Worsham and the Brooklyn band Sky-Pony. We’re thrilled to premiere PlayCo’s first musical project, and to welcome director Sam Buntrock (Sunday in the Park with George, Turn of the Screw, Sleeping Rough) into our ever-growing circle of artists. And in the spring, get ready for our cross-genre piece CAUGHT, the New York debut of U.S. writer Christopher Chen, spotlighting the playful, dissident Chinese artist Lin Bo. We’re so grateful for the extraordinary vision, generosity and commitment of the artists, audiences and supporters who come together around The Play Company. As ever, we look forward to seeing you at the theatre!

Welcome to PlayCo. Here’s to 15 joyful, ambitious, rough and tumble seasons! From the beginning we’ve been inspired, energized and determined to create a theatre for our time and our city.

SEASONS

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Kyra Tirana Barry

Carmine Boccuzzi

Trip Cullman

Michael Dweck

Ruth Hendel

Lawrence Kaplen

Philip Levy

Kate Loewald

Victoria Reese

George Sheanshang

Jeffrey A. Sine

VISIONGLOBAL 15 YEARS FEELS LIKE A LONG TIME, AND ALSO THE BLINK OF AN EYE.

Co-founders Kate Loewald, Mike Ockrent and Jack Temchin launched The Play Company in 1999, to contribute a progressive, global program of new work to New York City’s theatre landscape. Since then, we’ve introduced artists and plays from Mexico, Japan, Sweden, India, China, the Ivory Coast, France, Northern Ireland, England, Scotland, Germany, Poland, Russia, Romania and the U.S. Today, under the leadership of Kate and Executive Producer Lauren Weigel, PlayCo creates conversations among American artists and their colleagues abroad, and brings a world of plays to the New York stage.

THIS IS MY OFFICEU.S. (2013)

LUDIC PROXYU.S. (2015)

HIGH DIVEU.S. (2001)

GENERATIONSUnited Kingdom (2014)

INVASIONSweden (2011)

THE GOLDEN DRAGONGermany (2013)

TERRORISMRussia (2005)

SAKHARAM BINDERIndia (2004)

THE SONIC LIFE OFA GIANT TORTOISEJapan (2014)

THE DUCHAMPSYNDROMEMexico (2015)

Anyone who regularly sees premieres of new foreign-language plays knows

how easy it is to get lost in translation, which makes the accomplishment of The Play Company so impressive.

- The New York Times

Which among the commercial producers and non-profit companies

in the U.S. commit such unbridled acts of brashly utopian, dramaturgy-centered

intercontinental optimism? PlayCo is a breath of fresh air.

- American Theatre Magazine

Sky-Pony(U.S.)

Text by Kyle Jarrow & Lauren Worsham Songs by Kyle Jarrow Performed by Sky-Pony Directed by Sam Buntrock

FEBRUARY / MARCH 2016

PlayCo joins forces with award-winning, adventurous Ars Nova and Brooklyn-based indie-rock band Sky-Pony to bring you a new rock-theater-event, directed by Sam Buntrock (Tony nominee). A collaboration between singer/actress Lauren Worsham (Drama Desk winner and Tony nominee) and her musician/writer husband Kyle Jarrow (OBIE winner), Sky-Pony is beloved for their lush, cheeky, pop sound and high energy performance style. Step into the world of Sky-Pony!

Abyss(Germany)

Written and translated by Maria Milisavljevic Directed by Maria Mileaf

NOVEMBER / DECEMBER 2015

Karla’s been missing since Monday. The police are indifferent, so her friends launch a search of their own. But soon secrets surface, and threaten the safety they’ve worked so hard to find in a new home. This award-winning poetic thriller leads us through a world where people make their own justice, to the brink of irrevocable loss.

U.S. PREMIEREWORLD PREMIERE

PlayCo @ Theaterlab 357 W. 36th St., 3rd Floor Midtown West

a co-production with Ars Nova PlayCo @ Ars Nova 511 West 54th St. Hell’s Kitchen

© Jonathan L. Manshack

© Jennifer Walkowiak

7

© Dasic Fernández

PlayCo’s Artistic Programming

IDEA LABPlayCo’s eclectic series of conversations, readings, and musical events features artists, scholars, community leaders...and you! Idea Lab events extend PlayCo productions into a public forum pre- and post-performance, and explore topics and trends of interest to our city. Idea Lab events are free and open to the public – a way for you to engage with our work, artists and fellow-audience members.

Visit PlayCo.org throughout the year for an updated calendar of events.

THE HUBThe Hub is an online public resource where PlayCo staff, artists and special guests share information and reflection. It’s a guide to readings, workshops, conversations, and other happenings benefiting theatre-goers, artists, writers, scholars and community leaders. The Hub regularly features news, people and events of interest to PlayCo’s audience.

Check our website for the latest posts, PlayCo.org

PlayCo launches a new collaboration with Ripe Time, its award-winning Artistic Director, Rachel Dickstein and Japanese-American playwright Naomi Iizuka to adapt Haruki Murakami’s iconic short story for a new physical theater piece. In Sleep, insomnia turns the routine life of a Japanese housewife upside down, opening a window into a haunting and beautiful sleep-deprived world.

Join us for three public performances of this work-in-progress.

Visit JapanSociety.org for tickets and more information.

SLEEPHaruki Murakami’s

Follow us on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram @PlayCompany

Location TBA

Caught(U.S.)

Written by Christopher Chen

MAY / JUNE 2015

This irreverent new genre-bending piece spotlights Chinese dissident artist Lin Bo. Featuring a special appearance by Bo himself, Christopher Chen explores the notion of art that lives only in the mind, rather than the tangible world, to achieve true artistic freedom, and interrogates the value of authenticity in today’s globally interconnected culture.

© Courtesy of Liu Bolin and Klein Sun GalleryNEW YORK PREMIERE

IN THE STUDIO

February 2016 @ The Japan Society

Every year PlayCo hosts distinctive, fun events that showcase our artists and raise money to continue offering a home

to some of the most provocative and thoughtful new work produced in New York – work that wouldn’t otherwise be seen.

Whether you indulge in an evening of gourmet food from culinary artists at “Cabaret Gourmet,” try to win big at the “PlayCo Poker

Tournament,” or buy a ticket to one of our other special events, you’ll be supporting our artistic programs and new productions!

HELP PLAYCO PUT THE WORLD ON STAGE IN NYC Our singular international mission brings new stories and perspectives to New York audiences. Our artistic programs support artists at every stage of creating and developing new work. And our Idea Lab generates public conversation with and around these artists and their plays. The Play Company is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization. We maintain affordable admission prices as part of our mission, to ensure our work is accessible and welcoming to all. Ticket sales cover only a small portion of our annual costs. Charitable donations from supporters like you make our work possible. Please join our family of donors today!

The Play Company’s 15th Season is now on sale! Each PlayPass is priced at $75 and includes three tickets to be used however you like over the course of one season. Use one ticket per show, all your tickets for one show, or anything in between! We want you to be an ambassador for The Play Company and participate in the work we do. Bring a friend. Join a conversation. See below for special benefits that come with your PlayPass.

• Priority booking before tickets go on sale to the general public.

• Exchange or reschedule your tickets for a show, with 24-hour advance notice (subject to availability).

• Additional tickets at a 15% discount, in honor of our 15th Anniversary season.

• Exclusive invitations to Idea Labs and other special events.

THE PLAYPASS ORDER FORM

HOW TO ORDER:

MY INFORMATION PAYMENT OPTIONS

PLAYPASS - Three tickets to be used however you like over the course of one season.

ONLINE:

playco.org

PHONE:

(212) 398-2977

MAIL:

The Play Company 321 West 44th St., Suite 802 NY, NY 10036

Tax Deductible Donation: $

Name:

Address:

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$75 X = $

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$100 provides four hours of rehearsal space for one of our productions or Studio projects.

$250 allows us to present an Idea Lab event following a performance.

$500 enables a costume designer to buy clothes for a character.

$1000 supports an artist residency.

$1500 helps us commission a new English translation of a play from abroad.

$2500 funds part of a commission for a brand new play.

YOUR TAX-DEDUCTIBLE GIFT MEANS THE WORLD TO US!

THE PLAYPASS INCLUDES:

JOIN PLAYCO and have a great time!

© Jennifer Mitchell

To find out more, contact Sarah Beth Lardie

slardie@playco.org

GET A PLAYPASS FOR ONLY:

$75

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