TUCSON and PHOENIX, ARIZ.: Arizona Theatre Company (ATC) has announced the first three plays to receive staged readings as part of its new works program under the direction of new artistic director Sean Daniels.
“Part of our plan to grow Arizona Theatre Company as a national company and to deepen our local roots is the creation of a new work program,” said Daniels in a statement. “We’ll be bringing in the best playwrights and directors from around the world to work with the local actors of Phoenix and Tucson—with the goal of developing work here in Arizona that will later be seen on stages around the world. If you want to see what will be taking New York by storm in a few years, come to Arizona now.”
The first staged reading will be Pru Payne (Aug. 3) by Steven Drukman. In 1988, one of America’s leading public intellectuals starts to lose it a bit—or is she really gaining more of herself? Pru Payne explores love and family, and ponders the question of how it is best for anyone to be remembered.
Next will be will be Bleeding Hearts by Steve Yockey (Aug. 8), a dark comedy following a middle-class couple, the drifter they invite to their home, and their wealthy neighbor.
The final reading will be Christopher Oscar Peña’s How to Make an American Son (Aug. 30), about a Honduran father who brings his American-born son into his cleaning business.
The new works program ties in with ATC’s Cohort Club, offering 20 people in Tucson and 20 in Phoenix to follow the company’s productions from rehearsal to stage. “We want members to learn about the creation of theater through observations and conversations with professional artists,” said Daniels in a statement.
Founded in 1966, Arizona Theatre Company is the professional resident theatre of Arizona, producing works in both Tucson and Phoenix.