La MaMa will present the third annual edition of Author Directing Author, a series that pairs international playwrights with one another as directors of each other’s work. This year’s participating playwrights are Neil LaBute (US), Marco Calvani (Italy), and Marta Buchaca (Spain).
Each playwright has written a 30-minute one-act play for the evening, prompted by this year’s overarching theme: Power.
“That certainly seems like a timely topic to be considering at the start of 2017,” says LaBute in a press statement. “I think our three plays are surprising takes on the idea of ‘power dynamics,’ and together they make for a fun and thought-provoking evening of theatre.”
Performances begin January 19 and continue through February 5. Richard Kind, Margaret Colin, Victor Slezak, Gia Crovatin, Dalia Davi, and Midori Francis star.
The three plays, as billed by La MaMa, are outlined below:
I don’t know what I can save you from by Neil LaBute, directed by Marco Calvani
An estranged father and daughter meet to negotiate a new relationship between themselves. Old wounds surface and new ones appear as they grapple with the past, present and future of the bond they have. In the end, there will be a price to be paid for continuing on as parent and child.
After the dark by Marco Calvani (translated into English by Allison Eikerenkoetter), directed by Marta Buchaca
A designer is on a business trip with her young and negligent assistant. Late in their hotel after a night of drinking, the boss, eager to boost her company sales, and her underling, who has other plans for the evening, play a cruel game that reveals their own fragilities and true intentions in the wee hours before sunrise.
Summit (translated into English by H.J. Gardner) by Marta Buchaca, directed by Neil LaBute
After a decade in office, a male city mayor is defeated by the female candidate of the left-wing party. A conservative who can’t bear the idea of a woman from the left-wing taking over his seat, the outgoing mayor is in no hurry to leave, even on the day when his successor arrives to assume power, eventually revealing an ace up his sleeve.
The series features set design by Neil Patel, lighting design by Alex Jainchill, costume design by Jeff Mahsie, and management and promotion by Unamism LLC NY. Miriam Hyfler is the stage manager.
Tickets are $18 and $13 and can be purchased online at LaMaMa.org or by phone at (212) 352-3101.
