RAT Reading Series Press Release

[brad rothbart <scrdchao@nni.com>]

*  Press release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE  FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
WHO:
Theatre Double Repertory Company
WHAT:
A new, National-Level Reading Series, Underground Voices
WHERE:
Theatre Double Salon, 1619 Walnut St. Philadelphia, PA. 19103 . The space
is wheelchair accessible.
WHEN:
First, third and fifth Mondays at 8 pm, beginning November 1, 1999
 	  LOOKING FOR:
Audience members of all ages and sizes who enjoy challenging new work.
People who feel the theatre has nothing to say to them.  The
disenfranchised and disenchanted.  The long-term patron of the arts.  Come
one and all, and help us  make the theatre a true gathering place again.

WHY THIS SERIES EXISTS:
As the societal margin shrinks,  and the economic risk of creating theatre
becomes higher and higher, fewer and fewer original, boundary-stretching
works are produced.  All too often, theatremakers are forced to commit
themselves to the bottom line, rather than an artistic vision. As the work
becomes uninteresting and irrelevant, the audience turns to other art
forms, such as television, music, and  film. In my 10 years in experimental
theatre, I  have been  privileged to witness extraordinary  perfomances and
read  remarkable scripts. As I  encountered these works, I wished that more
people could experience their power.
Therefore,  I have created a reading series devoted to "underheard
playwrights," so that their strong, unique voices can finally be  known.
The audience  will hear the piece read ( in a bare bones setting, so that
the focus remains on the script) and can  later discuss (often with the
playwright and performers present) the complex questions brought up by the
work. This is the only  series of its kind in the country, and it is my
small contribution to moving theatre forward into the next century. Whether
you care about the vitality of the theatre, or  feel that theatre is a form
devoid of any relevance in your life , I urge you  to  come to Underground
Voices and see the  possibility of what the theatre can become.

Contact Brad Rothbart, Literary Manager  215.836.5382 or E-MAIL thtrdbl@aol.com

Brad Rothbart, (creator, director and  facilitator  of  Underground Voices)
graduated from Sarah Lawrence College in 1989 with a B.A. in Liberal Arts.
Following graduation he moved to Seattle, where he began his professional
career in 1990 as an original member of The Alchemical Theatre-Seattle. He
then departed for NYC, where he worked with  The Living Theatre from
1992-1997 (including two German tours), as an actor, stage manager and
Assistant to the Managing Director.
 In 1994 he  co-founded Mobility Junction: a Mixed Ability Dance Company ,
as well as serving
as one of the founders of the RAT Conference, a loose association of
alternative theatres throughout the United States. Currently, he is a
company member with Theatre Double.

The Confirmed Reading Schedule includes:
				1 November Shelley Berc , A Girl's Guide to
the Divine Comedy
				15 November Caridad Svich, Pensacola
				29 November Ruth Margraff, Elektra Fugues
				6 December David Simpatico, Waiter Waiter
				20 December Steven Tomlinson, Millennium Bug
				3 January Paula Cizmar, Street Stories
				17 January  Aishah Rahman, Only in America
				31 January Alice Tuan,  Coastline
Most of the playwrights will be present at the reading of their work, from
locations as varied as LA, Austin TX,  Providence RI and  NYC.


Theatre Double is a non-profit Repertory Company based in Philadelphia and
New York City. Theatre Double is dedicated to developing works that, in the
words of New York theatre critic
 Brad Bradley, "Reach contemporary ears with both sharpness and strength..."