BROOKLYN: St. Ann’s Warehouse has announced its 2017-18 season, which will feature five American premieres.
The season will begin with the American premiere of Duncan Macmillan’s People, Places, and Things (October 19-November 19, 2017), which is presented in collaboration with the National Theatre and Headlong in the United Kingdom, and is directed by Jeremy Hernin. The play is centered around the emotional journey of an actress going through rehab. It was previously performed in London’s West End.
The next show is Ballyturk (January 9-28, 2018), written and directed by Enda Walsh in association with Landmark Productions and Galway International Arts Festival. Originally performed at the Galway fest before transferring to the Abbey Theatre in Dublin, it is an American premiere. It focuses on the lives of two men in a small, rural town in Ireland and presents their stories through a tender balance of comedy and tragedy.
Following is another American premiere directed by Thomas Ostermeier: Returning to Reims (February 4-25, 2018). It is a production from Schaubühne Berlin, coproduced with the Manchester International MIF, HOME Manchester, and Théâtre de la Ville Paris and is funded by Lotto Stiftung Berlin. The play takes Didier Eribon’s memoir of the same name and views it through the lens of an actress in a recording studio where they are recording the documentary of his memoir. The memoir details his journey of coming out as a gay man.
Next is Baker Theatre Center’s production of The Fall (March 8-25, 2018), an ensemble play devised by the actors and facilitated by Clare Stopford. The play is centered around an event that took place on April 9, 2015 when the statue of colonialist Cecil Rhodes was taken down at the University of Cape Town in South Africa. The Fall is seven student’s commentary on how race, class, power, and history operate on a global level. It received two awards at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival and is an American premiere.
Next is the New York premiere of Northern Stars (April 19-20, 2018), where Rufus Wainwright will perform the songs of Joni Mitchell, Neil Young, and Leonard Cohen, among others.
Following is a re-envisioning of Aristophane’s The Birds (May 2-13, 2018), which is directed by Nikos Karathanos and adapted by Karathanos and Giannis Asteris. It premiered in Greece at the Ancient Theater of Epidaurus and the Onassis Cultural Center. In this re-imagined classic, two men travel to the country of the birds and learn valuable life lessons in the process. The work is an American premiere.
The season will close with an annual event. St. Ann’s Puppet Lab returns with Labapalooza!: A Mini Festival of Puppet Theater From the Lab (June 26-July 1, 2018). The Lab features various artists making experimental theater through puppets and objects. It is supported by Cheryl Henson and The Jim Henson Foundation.
In addition, there will be an ongoing site-specific theatre piece: Here Their There Here: A Sound Walk through Brooklyn Bridge Park created by Geoff Sobelle, with sound design by Gareth Fry and app design by Jesse Garrison. The sonic piece is an audio guide through Brooklyn Bridge Park, using the voices of regular people. The app can be downloaded here: stannswarehouse.org/show/here-their-there-here/
St. Ann’s Warehouse is a waterfront theatre that opened in October 2015; it specializes in presenting international theatre.
