columbinus written by stephen karam and pj papparelli
directed by rob urbinati
Thursday through Saturday, November 12 – 14 at 8pm
Wednesday through Saturday, November 18 – 22 at 8pm
Sunday, November 15 at 3pm
michelson theatre, little center, clark university
free with clark student I.D. $5 general public
starring
rob donnelly and ian michaels
with
victoria grogan, jo maulbeck, cameron miller,
alana osborn-lief, sarah surprenant, danny zeliger
and
amanda ethridge, riley foster, keen hahn, sarah jette,
thaddeus kelley, joseph kowalski, alex kump, laura menzie,
julie mitchell, sean morrow, john nolan, abby petkov,
precious ra’akbar, milla smith, richard spurgin
set design by chris weinrobe
costume design by catherine quick spingler
lighting design by kevin mcgerigle
sound design by robert timothy jarbadan
projection design by adam lefebvre
photography by louie despres
poster designs by cory bratton
stage manager emily hananah
crew
chirs weinrobe - technical director
kevin mcgerigle - assistant technical director
christine dunant - assistant stage manager
dan pologe - sound board operator
katie stone -light board operator
"good wombs have borne bad sons"
eric harris, quoting shakespeare
“In this fierce, disturbing lament for the death of childhood, the characters hardly change - but the audience does. Six junior high school kids remain, through terrible events, suspended in a moral vacuum. We, however, move from open laughter to uncomfortable giggling to deep, dark silence. Though the play retains a deadpan documentary feel, withholding judgments and explanations until near the end, it is very much a dramatic artifice. Urbinati immerses us in the girls’ world. He sweeps us into the warped logic by which a lunchroom tiff escalates into a dreadful crime, and this logic is stitched into dialogue where perspective and proportion are scarily absent. Urbinati creates a mental jungle in which vampires and cuddly toys, Pentecostal visions and Kmart are tangled together. Slowly, these juxtapositions lose their humor and become an angry, insistent protest at the failure of the adult world to provide these kids with a way through. This is deft and morally serious writing, never exploitative and ultimately full of pity. Everywhere, there is the kind of precision and care that such a subject demands.”
- Fintan O’Toole, New York Daily News
“Mr. Urbinati’s script is based on court testimony and psychological and police reports. Even in the era of Jeffrey Dahlmer and Susan Smith, the story holds its own grotesquerie; you can see why Mr. Urbinati was hooked by it. It takes the absolutely ordinary subject of teenage rivalry and revenge pranks, gives it an exotic lesbian twist and then pushes it to the outer limits of sociopathic behavior... Mr. Elliott, Mr. Urbinati and the cast do nicely in conveying the solemn earnestness of young love and social warfare, highlighting the contrast between the flatness of the dialogue and the intensity of the confused passions behind it."
- Ben Brantley, New York Times
“Hazelwood Jr. High is a blistering piece of drama that’s conceived and presented in cinematic terms. Its multiple scenes and locations flow into each other without a break, building a considerable I can’t believe I’m watching this steam as Urbinati’s story veers from puppydog lesbian romance toward brutal slaughter. The horror of it all is seriocomically underscored by the typical banalities of teen existence while songs by Mariah Carey and 1990’s girl groups pulse through the air. If you go, better hang on tight -- it’s a wicked midnight ride with the rising generation, and definitely not a show for the squeamish.”
- Michael Sommers, New Jersey Star Ledger
“Mr. Urbinati has written this in a combination of documentary and dramatic style, effectively capturing the banality, the provincialism and the simple mindedness of the girls and their cruelty. While he makes some gestures in the direction of psychological explanation, the overall effect -- undoubtedly intentional -- is the frightful ordinariness of these teenagers. Even as they stumble toward savagery, they play their boom boxes, eat at McDonald’s, hang out at the mall and gossip about social life.”
- Martin Gottfried, New York Law Journal
New York Musical Theatre Festival and Diodati Productions
present VILLA DIODATI A Mary Shelley Phantasia
"Mira J. Spektor (music and libretto) and Colette Inez (lyrics and libretto) have imbued their show with all the classic elements of success - luxurious love, vibrant-voiced performers, lush poetry, and a visionary director...The unabashedly operatic music wraps you in the warm embrace of the writings’ timeless romanticism....
You’ll probably hear no better musical all this year than VILLA DIODATI..."
Matthew Murray, TALKIN' BROADWAY
Music and Libretto by Lyrics and Libretto by Mira J. Spektor Colette Inez
Additional Lyrics by Lord Byron, Percy Shelley, Mira J. Spektor and William Wordsworth
Featuring Sarah Arikian Mark Campbell* Elizabeth Cherry* Lauren Hauser Nalina Mann* Sal Sabella* Brian Thomas Wilson
Scenic Design Costume Design Lighting Design Sound Design Andis Gjoni Sidney Shannon Jeff Nash David M. Lawson
Casting Publicity Tom Rowan, Michael Rabinowitz Springer Associates PR, Joe Trantacosta Graphic Artist Producing Consultant Producing Assistant Barry Childs Judy Gordon Marisol Rosa-Shapiro
Production Stage Manager Assistant Stage Manager Jennifer G. Birge* Shane Schnetzler
Instrumental Arrangements Mira J. Spektor Thomas Carlo Bo
Musicians Todd Sullivan Violin Zoe Hassman Cello
Musical Director Thomas Carlo Bo
Directed by Rob Urbinati
45th St. Theatre, 354 West 45th St. between 8th and 9th Avenue
September 22 - October 4, 2008
Photos by Steven Rosen
Underwritten in part by BookHampton
ANNOUNCING THE PUBLICATION OF
WEST MOON STREET
By Rob Urbinati
Queens Theatre in the Park
Immigrant Voices Project Reading Series
in association with
LaGuardia Community College Division of Adult and Continuing Education
presents
GO! by Go Takeuchi and Rob Urbinati
directed by Rob Urbinati
Saturday, May 3 at 8pm
No Charge - Reservations Required
718.760.0064
Growing up in Nagoya, Japan, the son of an African father and a Japanese mother, a boy grapples with race and identity in a non-diverse city. But the real adventure begins when he emigrates to New York!
This new play with music is the captivating story of the struggles and triumphs of a completely unique,
and utterly charming young man who embodies the new "American dream."
The performance runs approximately 80 minutes, and will be followed by a talkback
