For Immediate Release

TACOMA, WA: New Muses Theatre Company’s 2014 One-Night-Only staged reading series is set to begin performances this Sunday, July 27th, with Kenneth Lonergan’s “This Is Our Youth” at Tacoma Little Theatre.  The staged reading series will feature Pay-What-You-Can performances of contemporary plays at different venues in the Tacoma area through the end of the summer.

Encompassing forty-eight hours in the lives of three lost young souls at the dawn of the Reagan Era: Warren Straub, a dejected nineteen-year-old who steals fifteen thousand dollars from his abusive lingerie-tycoon father; Dennis Ziegler, the charismatic domineering drug-dealing friend who helps him put the money to good use; and Jessica Goldman, the anxiously insightful young woman Warren yearns for, "This Is Our Youth" is a living snapshot of the moment between adolescence and adulthood when many young people first go out into the world on their own.

The one night performance will feature a cast of some of the best talent in Tacoma, Jacob Tice ("Arsenic and Old Lace" at Lakewood Playhouse, "Moonlight and Magnolias" at TLT) as Dennis, Niclas Olson ("The Farnsworth Invention" and "Who’s Afraid Of Virginia Woolf " at Lakewood Playhouse, New Muses’ "The Shape of Things") as Warren and Katherine Mahoney ("Twelfth Night" at Lakewood Playhouse, "How I Learned to Drive" at PLU) as Jessica.

Olson, Managing Artistic Director of New Muses, was thrilled to talk about the upcoming performance, saying, “We’re really looking forward to bringing this play to TLT and Tacoma for a night.  Beyond being a really good piece of writing, it hits on a lot of issues about economics and youth culture that we really don’t get a chance to talk about much in theater.  All three parts are just incredible and we’ve managed to assemble a great ensemble to tell this story.  If you like out-of-the-box theater, as we so affectionately call edgy work around here, this is really something you don’t want to miss.”

New Muses does express that "This Is Our Youth" is intended for a mature audience and contains strong language and themes that may be unsuitable for children and sensitive individuals.

ABOUT THE COMPANY:

New Muses Theatre Company is dedicated to producing intelligent, thought-provoking, and engaging theatre for a contemporary audience.

Founded in 2009, New Muses Theatre Company has produced works ranging from The Importance of Being Earnest and Hamlet to their recent Seattle production of Wallace Shawn’s The Fever, and Tacoma production of Neil Labute’s The Shape Of Things.  Upcoming events include the 2014 One-Night-Only staged reading series and Karel Capek’s R.U.R.

For more information please visit www.NewMuses.com.

SCHEDULE:

One–Night-Only Staged Reading Series 2014

July 27, 2014 at 7:00pm
This Is Our Youth
By Kenneth Lonergan | Directed by Niclas Olson
Tacoma Little Theatre, Tacoma

August 3, 2014 at 7:00pm
On The Verge
By Eric Overmeyer | Directed by Niclas Olson
Tacoma Little Theatre, Tacoma

August 17, 2014 at 7:00pm
Copenhagen
By Michael Frayn | Directed by Niclas Olson
Lakewood Playhouse, Lakewood

2014-15 Mainstage Season

September 5 – 21, 2014
R.U.R.
By Karel Capek  |  Adapted and Directed by Niclas Olson
Opening Night: September 5, 2014
Dukesbay Theater, Tacoma

PRESS CONTACT:
Niclas Olson | Managing Artistic Director
n.olson@newmuses.com
253.720.3486

###

For Immediate Release

TACOMA, WA -- Managing Artistic Director Niclas Olson is pleased to announce the launch of New Muses first ever crowd-funding campaign to bring R.U.R. to the Dukesbay Theater in September.  A Czech play written in 1920, with Broadway and London productions the following year, R.U.R. not only invented the word “robot,” but laid the groundwork for the massive outpouring of apocalyptic science fiction to follow.  New Muses is excited to bring this incredible piece of literature to the stage, but is seeking help from the local audience to make it so.  Contributions will help cover the technical aspects of the production such as sets, costumes, and lighting.

Contributors will be able to secure complimentary tickets for the production, as well as priority access to reserved seating, as well as the possibility of taking home limited edition posters and signed copies of the original script adaptation being created specifically for this production.  New Muses is also opening up the possibility of sponsoring specific design elements and becoming a producer on the production.

“I’m really looking forward to this show,” says Olson, “It isn’t very often that I get to mix my love of theater with my not-so-secret love of science fiction, and to be able to do just that with a great script, and a historical script at that, is really exciting.  As much fun as it is to market the sci-fi aspects of the script, it’s actually a really great piece of political drama and touches on a ton of social issues from the time that are unfortunately still relevant today.  I’ve been looking for the right show to run a crowd-funding campaign on for a couple years now and this finally seemed like the right time and the right script.  I love that (crowd-funding) gets the local audience involved early on and let’s them really take ownership of the show before they step in the theater.  And it guarantees people a ticket, which is always good.”

The deadline for the funding campaign is midnight on July 31, 2014.  If funding is successful production will begin immediately to be ready for the September 5 opening.

Interested persons can find more information on the New Muses website (www.NewMuses.com) or by visiting Kickstarter and searching for R.U.R.

ABOUT THE SHOW:

Written in 1920, R.U.R. is a Czech play about a Rossum’s Universal Robot factory and what happens when the robots begin to develop human emotions, needs, and desires.  Of historical note, Karel Capek actually invented the word Robot for this play, marking the beginning of an entire genre of science fiction.

R.U.R. is scheduled to run for three weekends from September 5 – 21, 2014 on Fridays and Saturdays at 8:00 and Sundays at 2:00 in the Dukesbay Theater 508 6th Ave #10, Tacoma.

ABOUT THE COMPANY:

New Muses Theatre Company is dedicated to producing intelligent, thought-provoking, and engaging theatre for a contemporary audience.

Founded in 2009, New Muses Theatre Company has produced works ranging from The Importance of Being Earnest and Hamlet to their recent Seattle production of Wallace Shawn’s The Fever, and Tacoma production of Neil Labute’s The Shape Of Things.  Upcoming events include the 2014 One-Night-Only staged reading series and Karel Capek’s R.U.R.

For more information please visit www.NewMuses.com.

SCHEDULE:

September 5 – 21, 2014
R.U.R.
By Karel Capek  |  Adapted and Directed by Niclas Olson
Opening Night: September 5, 2014

Performances at the new Dukesbay Theater, located in the Merlino Art Center at 508 6th Ave, Tacoma, WA.  Note: Programming and scheduling are subject to change.

PRESS CONTACT:

Niclas Olson
253-720-3486 | n.olson@newmuses.com

###