SAN FRANCISCO: New Conservatory Theatre Center (NCTC) has announced its 2017-18 season, featuring two world premieres.
“Theatre documents our lives, describes what is happening around us, and often dares us to take a closer look at ourselves,” said founder and artistic director Ed Decker in a statement. “Now more than ever, it is vital for the queer and allied community to stand firm for the values of equality, respect, compassion, and unity that will see us through the tough times and help restore a sense of balance.”
The season will open with the world premiere of This Bitter Earth (Sept. 22-Oct. 22), by Harrison David Rivers, about a romance between a white Black Lives Matter activist and a black man that explores the real cost of political apathy and standing on the sidelines.
Next up will be Le Switch (Oct. 27-Dec. 3), by Philip Dawkins, a comedy about a New York librarian who falls in love with florist while visiting Montreal for his best friend’s bachelor party.
Following will be the return of Avenue Q (Dec. 1, 2017-Jan. 7, 2018), with music and lyrics by Robert Lopez and Jeff Marx, book by Jeff Whitty, about a puppet who moves to a street in New York City inhabited by colorful characters.
The season will continue with the world premiere of Tim Pinckney’s Still at Risk (Jan. 19-Feb. 25, 2018), about a surviving activist from the AIDS crisis who struggles to find his place in a world of greater gay rights.
Next will be Terrence McNally’s It’s Only a Play (March 2-April 1, 2018), a comedy about a playwright at a party for the opening night of his new Broadway play who anxiously awaits the production’s reviews.
Following will be Bathsheba Doran’s The Mystery of Love and Sex (April 13-May 20, 2018), about an unlikely romance between a white Jewish girl and a black Christian man that blossoms from a childhood friendship.
The season will conclude with When Pigs Fly (May 11-June 10, 2018), conceived by Howard Crabtree and Mark Waldrop, sketches and lyrics by Waldrop, and music by Dick Gallagher, about a guy who puts on a musical revue after being told that he would never make it in show business.
New Conservatory Theatre Center, founded in 1981, is committed to producing innovative theatre, and serving youth and the queer and allied communities with its programming.
