Playwrights Horizons: 2015-2016 Season announced
Playwrights Horizons has announced the complete line-up for its 2015/2016 Season, which will present four New York premieres: The Christians by Lucas Hnath, directed by Les Waters; Hir by Taylor Mac, directed by Niegel Smith; Marjorie Prime by Jordan Harrison, directed by Anne Kauffman; and Familiar, by Danai Gurira, directed by Rebecca Taichman, along with two World Premieres: Antlia Pneumatica by Anne Washburn, directed by Ken Rus Schmoll, and Indian Summer by Gregory S. Moss, directed by Carolyn Cantor.
The plays will be presented in the following season order:
The New York premiere of the drama The Christians by Lucas Hnath, directed by Obie Award winner Les Waters, will begin performances at the Playwrights Horizons' Mainstage Theater on 28 August 2015.
Synopsis: "Ten years ago, Pastor Paul's church was a modest storefront. Now it houses thousands, with a coffee shop in the lobby and a baptismal font as big as a swimming pool. But Paul is about to preach a sermon that will shake the foundation of his congregation's beliefs. Backed by a live choir, 'The Christians' is both epic and unexpectedly intimate, an unflinching look at faith in America - and its power to unite or divide."
The Christians had its world premiere in the 2014 Humana Festival of New American Plays at Actors Theatre of Louisville (Louisville, KY) in March 2014.
In the Peter Jay Sharp Theater, the New York premiere of the dark comedy Hir by Obie Award winner Taylor Mac, directed by Niegel Smith, will begin performances on 16 October 2015.
Synopsis: "Somewhere in the suburbs, Isaac has returned from the wars to help take care of his ailing father, only to discover a household in revolt. The insurgent: his mom. Liberated from an oppressive marriage, with Isaac's newly out transgender brother as her ally, she's on a crusade to dismantle the patriarchy. But in Taylor Mac's sly, subversive comedy, annihilating the past doesn't always free you from it."
Hir had its world premiere at Magic Theatre (San Francisco, CA) in February 2014.
The New York Premiere of the comic-drama Marjorie Prime by Jordan Harrison, directed by Obie Award winner Anne Kauffman, will begin performances at the Playwrights Horizons' Mainstage Theater on 20 November 2015.
Synopsis: "It's the age of artificial intelligence, and 86-year-old Marjorie - a jumble of disparate, fading memories - has a handsome new companion who's programmed to feed the story of her life back to her. What would we remember, and what would we forget, if given the chance? In this new play, Jordan Harrison explores the mysteries of human identity and the limits - if any - of what technology can replace."
Marjorie Prime's world premiere was produced by Center Theatre Group at The Mark Taper Forum (Los Angeles, CA) in September 2014.
The New York premiere of the drama Familiar, by Danai Gurira, directed by Rebecca Taichman, will begin performances at the Playwrights Horizons' Mainstage Theater on 2 February 2016.
Synopsis: "It's winter in Minnesota and a Zimbabwean family is preparing for the wedding of their eldest daughter, a first-generation American. But when the bride insists on observing a traditional African custom, it opens a deep rift in the household. Rowdy and affectionate, 'Familiar' pitches tradition against assimilation, drawing a loving portrait of a family: the customs they keep, and the secrets they bury."
Familiar is currently having its world premiere at Yale Repertory Theatre (New Haven, CT).
In the Peter Jay Sharp Theater, the World premiere of the drama Antlia Pneumatica by Anne Washburn, directed by two-time Obie Award winner Ken Rus Schmoll, will begin performances on 11 March 2016.
Synopsis: "In a ranch house deep in Texas Hill Country, a once tight-knit group of friends reunites to bury one of their own. But as they look backward through their lives, it becomes clear they've lost more than just their old pal. In this haunting new play from Anne Washburn, the boundaries between then and now grow disarmingly blurry as these estranged friends confront their slippery past."
And finally, the World premiere of a new romantic comedy Indian Summer by Gregory S. Moss, directed by Carolyn Cantor, will begin performances at the Playwrights Horizons' Mainstage Theater on 13 May 2016.
Synopsis: "Abandoned by his wayward mom, Daniel is consigned to spend summer with granddad in a Rhode Island beach town, where the locals don't look kindly on city kids. But his hapless vacation turns around when he meets Izzy: tough-acting, back-sassing, beguiling and taken. Greg Moss's feisty romantic comedy follows a passing fling that could last a lifetime - as impossible and charmed as an indian summer."
Originally published on