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Event
LOTUS EATERS EP
Not a conventional performance, LOTUS EATERS EP an audio-fueled "extended play" is a hallucinatory sonic experience about loneliness, depravity, and the intrinsic failure of all human contact. With nearly an hour of original music by Reggie Watts featuring vocal work by author Neil Gaiman, and Broadway stars Marin Ireland & Reed Birney this video-heavy multimedia piece is a 50-minute journey into the dark depths of human consciousness.
THREE PERFORMANCES ONLY!
Tuesday, June 18 @ 8:00 pm
Wednesday, June 19 @ 8:00 pm
Thursday, June 20 @ 8:00 pm
West of Lenin, 203 N 36th St.
$15
Direction and text by Tommy Smith. Original music and soundscapes by Reggie Watts. Featuring the voices of Neil Gaiman, Reed Birney, Marin Ireland, Mary Jane Gibson. Arranged, mixed and mastered by Michael McQuilken. Additional music by John Osebold and Michael McQuilken. Visual imagery by Fette Sans. Video design by Lucy MacKinnon.
Praise for Smith's previous work:
"Excellent THE WIFE is a brew all Mr. Smith's own a sort of warped, contemporary La Ronde." Rachel Saltz, NEW YORK TIMES
"[WHITE HOT] is excellent To make stories about awful, broken people watchable, there has to be something to recognize or something to surprise. You'll find both here. There's no intermission, and the sounds and lights startle and seethe as the shitshow unfolds. The audience staggered a bit on the way out. You've been warned." Anna Minard, THE STRANGER
"[Tommy Smith] is writing in the shadow of our most daring and politically incendiary of martyred playwright saints, Sarah Kane and Edward Bond "
Craig Lucas, NEW YORK THEATRE REVIEW
TOMMY SMITH (DIRECTOR & WRITER)
Tommy Smith's plays include PTSD (Ensemble Studio Theatre; d. Billy Carden), WHITE HOT (Here Arts Center; d. May Adrales & West Of Lenin, d. Braden Abraham), PIGEON (Ensemble Studio Theatre; d. Billy Carden), THE WIFE (Access Gallery; d. May Adrales), SEXTET (Washington Ensemble Theatre; d. Roger Benington), CARAVAN MAN (Williamstown Theatre Festival, music & lyrics by Gabriel Kahane, d. Kip Fagan), DEMON DREAMS (Magic Futurebox, music by DJ Spooky, d. Kevin Laibson), A DAY IN DIG NATION (PS 122, co-written and d. Michael McQuilken), AIR CONDITIONING (Eugene O'Neill Playwrights Conference; d. Steve Cosson), among others. In addition, his award-winning theatrical collaborations with Reggie Watts played at The Public Theatre, Lamama, The Warhol Museum, MCA Chicago, ICA Boston, On The Boards and PICA: TBA, among others. As a director/writer, Tommy recently created the environmental sound performances, NECTARINE EP (for Flea Theater) LOTUS EATERS EP (for IRT Theater, with voices of Neil Gaiman, Marin Ireland & Reed Birney) and FORTH (for MFB, d. Meiyin Wang). Tommy is the recipient of the PONY fellow at The Lark, a two-time winner of the Lecomte du Nouy Prize, a recipient of the E.S.T. Sloan Grant, a winner of the Page73 Productions Playwriting Fellowship, a recipient of the Creative Capital award and a member of the Dorothy Strelsin New American Writer's Group at Primary Stages. Publications include PIGEON for Dramatists Play Service and WHITE HOT in the New York Theatre Review. His feature film FIGMENT was optioned by Ridley Scott's production company ScottFree. He is a graduate of the playwriting program at The Juilliard School. He lives in New York City.
REGGIE WATTS (MUSIC & SOUNDSCAPES)
internationally renowned vocalist/ beatboxer/ musician/ comedian/ improvisor, amazes audiences with his unpredictable performances, which are created on-the-spot using only his formidable voice and looping pedals. Blending and blurring the lines between comedy and music with his unique lyrical style, LA Weekly calls Reggie "the most wildly inventive new talent of the past five years." As a solo performer, Reggie was handpicked by Conan O'Brien to open nightly on Conan's sold out North American "Prohibited From Being Funny on Television" tour. Reggie was crowned "Hot Comedian" by Rolling Stone, named SPIN Magazine's "Best New Comedian" and "Best of CMJ" 2010, and a featured profile in GQ's Man Of The Year issue 2010. Reggie released his debut comedy cd/dvd 'Why $#!+ So Crazy?' on Comedy Central Records in May 2010. He also released 'Reggie Watts Live at Third Man Records' in limited edition vinyl on Jack White's Third Man Records label. Reggie's most recent release 'A Live at Central Park' is currently available on CD/DVD through Comedy Central Records and on iTunes. As a musician, Reggie was invited to join LCD Soundsystem as guest onstage at the final NY shows Spring 2011. He also sang on Regina Spektor's "Dance Anthem of the 80s" and contributed two tracks to DFA Records' Spaghetti Circus. As the frontman for Seattle rock outfit Maktub, Reggie and his band released five albums. Reggie recorded original music featured on FX's Louie and performed the theme song for Kristin Schaal's Penelope Princess of Pets. In the Spring of 2011 he recorded an original session for the hugely popular Daytrotter series. On screen, Reggie has appeared on Conan, Late Night With Jimmy Fallon, HBO's The Yes Men Save The World, Comedy Central's Michael and Michael Have Issues, Iceland TV, UK's Funny Or Die, PBS' Electric Company, and currently stars as house band leader on the IFC original series Comedy Bang Bang with Scott Aukerman. "Deliciously strange" LA Times; "Spectacularly original" New York Magazine; "Do yourself a big favor and go see him on tour now." MTV; "Musician, comedian, stand-up-surrealist-beat-boxer-force-of-nature" Radiolab. He can be found on the internet at http://reggiewatts.com/
NEIL GAIMAN (VOICE)
is the New York Times bestselling author of the novels NEVERWHERE, STARDUST, AMERICAN GODS, ANANSI BOYS (#1 NYT bestseller), and GOOD OMENS (with Terry Pratchett); the Sandman series of graphic novels; and the short story collections SMOKE AND MIRRORS and FRAGILE THINGS. He is also the author of books for readers of all ages including the #1 bestselling and Newbery Medal winning novel THE GRAVEYARD BOOK, the bestselling novels CORALINE and ODD AND THE FROST GIANTS; the short story collection M is for MAGIC and the picture books THE WOLVES IN THE WALLS, THE DAY I SWAPPED MY DAD FOR TWO GOLDFISH, and CRAZY HAIR, illustrated by Dave McKean; THE DANGEROUS ALPHABET, illustrated by Gris Grimly; and BLUEBERRY GIRL, illustrated by Charles Vess. He is the winner of numerous literary honors, including the Hugo, Bram Stoker, and World Fantasy Awards, and the Newbery Medal. Originally from England, he now lives in America. Visit him online at www.neilgaiman.com.
MARIN IRELAND (VOICE)
Broadway: reasons to be pretty (Tony nomination, Theatre World Award, Drama League nomination), After Miss Julie. Off-Broadway: Maple and Vine (Playwrights Horizons), Three Sisters (Classic Stage), In The Wake (Public Theater), A Lie of the Mind (New Group, Outer Critics Circle Nomination), Blasted (Soho Rep), Cyclone (Studio Dante, 2006 OBIE for Performance); The Beebo Brinker Chronicles (4th Street, 37 Arts), Bad Jazz (The Play Company); The Ruby Sunrise (Public Theater); The Harlequin Studies (Signature); The Triple Happiness (Second Stage); Manuscript (Daryl Roth); Fighting Words (Underwood); Savannah Bay (Classic Stage); Where We're Born (Rattlestick); the title role in Sabina (Primary Stages); Far Away and Nocturne (both at New York Theatre Workshop). Royal Court's American tour of Sarah Kane's 4.48 Psychosis. Regional work includes Mauritius (Huntington Theatre, IRNE Award, Elliot Norton nomination), Heartbreak House (Goodman), The Bells (McCarter), Uncle Vanya (Lake Lucille), As You Like It (Commonwealth Shakespeare), and Richard Greenberg's The Injured Party (South Coast Rep). Film/TV: "Homeland," "The Good Wife", "Mildred Pierce," "Law & Order" trifecta, Future Weather, 28 Hotel Rooms, But Beautiful, I Am Legend, The Understudy, The Loss of a Teardrop Diamond, Suburban Girl, Rachel Getting Married, others.
Reed Birney (VOICE)
appeared last summer in the Soho Rep production of Annie Baker's translation of UNCLE VANYA, directed by Sam Gold. In 2011 received a Special Drama Desk Award honoring his thirty six years of work as an actor. He made his Broadway debut in Albert Innaurato's smash hit, GEMINI, in 1977. Recent New York productions include: Kim Rosenstock's TIGERS BE STILL and David West Read's THE DREAM OF THE BURNING BOY (Drama League, Outer Critics Circle nominations), both at The Roundabout Underground, and Adam Bock's A SMALL FIRE at Playwrights Horizons, where he has appeared a record-breaking eight times. Reed was seen last fall at The Atlantic in DREAMS OF FLYING, DREAMS OF FALLING by Adam Rapp. He was Ian in the New York premiere of Sarah Kane's BLASTED in 2008 at Soho Rep, for which he was nominated for a Drama Desk Award. He received an OBIE and Drama Desk Award for his performance in Annie Baker's CIRCLE MIRROR TRANSFORMATION also at Playwrights Horizons. He was Tony Blair in the acclaimed Public Theater production of STUFF HAPPENS. Other notable roles include the world premiere of Tony Kushner's revised HOMEBODY/KABUL at Steppenwolf and The Taper; BUG (OBIE award); THE COMMON PURSUIT at the Promenade Theater; Gaev in THE CHERRY ORCHARD at Williamstown Theater Festival. He made his film debut in Arthur Penn and Steve Tesich's FOUR FRIENDS, and has appeared in Clint Eastwood's CHANGELING, MORNING GLORY with Harrison Ford and Jeff Lipsky's TWELVE THIRTY. Upcoming film roles include: IMOGENE with Kristin Wiig and Annette Benning; Jeff Lipsky's MOLLY'S THEORY OF RELATIVITY; Joss Whedon's IN YOUR EYES and ADULT WORLD with John Cusack. TV work includes episodes of "The Good Wife," "Gossip Girl," "Kings" and "My Generation" and the upcoming "House of Cards" for Netflix, directed by David Fincher. HE won a 2006 Obie Award for Sustained Excellence in Performance and Actor's Equity awarded him the Richard Seff Award in 2011.
MARY JANE GIBSON (VOICE)
grew up in Newfoundland, and trained in Montreal and the UK. She wrote and performed in Anaphylaxis (Artistic Pick, 2003 Seattle International Fringe Festival), and with Nicole duFresne wrote and performed inBurning Cage (Artistic Pick, 2002 SIFF). Other Seattle credits include Abe Lincoln in Illinois (Intiman), Alki (ACT), Measure for Measure (Seattle Shakespeare Company) and Holes (Seattle Children's Theatre). New York credits include Anaphylaxis (IRT), White Hot (HERE), Extropia and Liliom (Flying Carpet Theatre), M4M and Rehearsal: Vanya (Quality Meats). Mary Jane was awarded the Fox Foundation Fellowship in 1999. She is a founding member of The Fabulistswww.thefabulists.com.
Lucy Mackinnon (VIDEO DESIGN)
is a projections designer, photographer, and new media artist. She has designed for the Ensemble Studio Theater and the Chocolate Factory Theater in New York, and worked as an assistant and contributing artist on the Broadway productions of Allegiance (2013), Newsies (2012), Wonderland (2011), and Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown (2010). She holds a BA from Harvard University.
MICHAEL MCQUILKEN (ARRANGING, MASTERING, MIXING & ADDITIONAL MUSIC)
sound engineer, director, videographer, drummer, inventor Michael McQuilken previously collaborated with Smith on A DAY IN DIG NATION (touring Amsterdam, Edinburgh, Prague, NYC and Seattle) and the upcoming NECTARINE EP (for Flea Theater). Plays live shows with Amanda Palmer & Grand Theft Orchestra.
John Osebold / Jose Bold (ADDITIONAL MUSIC)
creates works fusing music, theater, film, and literature. His showsMOUNTAIN (a film with a live score) and Spidermann (a comic "musical" experiment that played at NYC's The Tank) earned him the 2011 Genius Award for Theater by The Stranger. 2004-2011, he led a band called "Awesome" that regularly performed throughout Seattle, made experimental shows at On the Boards, and played on the mainstage at the 2008 Sasquatch Music Festival. Currently, he's a monthly contributor to Seattle's City Arts magazine, he writes and performs with his long-standing sketch comedy troupe The Habit, and makes a new album every December which he posts for free at josebold.com. This fall he will sing like a banshee with Kronos Quartet for their 40th anniversary.
FETTE SANS (ADDITIONAL IMAGERY)
is a photographic artist based in Los Angeles and Berlin. (http://fettesans.com/)
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LocationWest of Lenin Theater (View)
203 N. 36th Street
Seattle, WA 98103
United States
Categories
| Minimum Age: 18 |
| Kid Friendly: No |
| Dog Friendly: No |
| Non-Smoking: Yes! |
| Wheelchair Accessible: No |
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