Playwrights Horizons Announces Casting for A COOL DIP IN THE BARREN SAHARAN CRICK

Playwrights Horizons (Tim Sanford, Artistic Director; Leslie Marcus, Managing Director) continues its 2009/2010 Season with the World Premiere of A COOL DIP IN THE BARREN SAHARAN CRICK, a new play by Kia Corthron (Breath, Boom at Playwrights Horizons/PH, Force Continuum), directed by Obie Award winner Chay Yew (Durango at The Public).

Presented as a co-production with The Play Company (Kate Loewald, Founding Producer; Lauren Weigel, Managing Producer) and Culture Project (Allan Buchman, Artistic Director), the production will begin previews on Thursday, March 4 with an Opening Night set for Sunday, March 28 at 7PM. The limited engagement will run through Sunday, April 11 at Playwrights Horizons' Peter Jay Sharp Theater (416 West 42nd Street).

The cast will feature Keith Eric Chappelle (Cyrano de Bergerac on Broadway), William Jackson Harper (Ruined), Joshua King, Kianné Muschett (The Brother/Sister Plays) and Myra Lucretia Taylor (Crazy Mary and Fabulation at PH, Nine on Broadway).

In A COOL DIP IN THE BARREN SAHARAN CRICK, an African preacher-in-training (William Jackson Harper) comes to a drought-stricken rural American community to further his studies in religion and water conservation. He stays with a mother (Myra Lucretia Taylor) and daughter (Kianné Muschett) haunted by personal tragedy and takes a special interest in a young orphan (Joshua King) starved for guidance. In the face of all obstacles he maintains an infectious, unstinting optimism determined to battle - by any means necessary - the personal and political forces that threaten the ecology of his new home.

The production will feature scenic design by Kris Stone, costume design by Anita Yavich, lighting design by Ben Stanton and sound design by Darron L West. Production Stage Manager is Kasey Ostopchuck.

A COOL DIP IN THE BARREN SAHARAN CRICK is the result of a Playwrights Horizons' Time Warner commission and has received generous support from the Peter Jay Sharp Foundation, Tiger Baron Foundation, New York City Department of Cultural Affairs and The Carter Fund.

Playwrights Horizons is supported in part by public funds from the National Endowment for the Arts, the New York State Council on the Arts, the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, the New York State Assembly and the New York State Senate. In addition, Playwrights Horizons receives major support from Carnegie Corporation of New York, Charina Endowment Fund, Fan Fox and Leslie R. Samuels Foundation, the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, The Shubert Foundation and Time Warner Inc.

The performance schedule for A COOL DIP IN THE BARREN SAHARAN CRICK will be Tuesdays through Fridays at 7:30 PM, Saturdays at 2PM & 7:30 PM and Sundays at 2PM & 7PM. Beginning Wednesday, February 3, tickets, $50, may be purchased online via TicketCentral.com, by phone at (212) 279-4200 (Noon-8pm daily), or in person at the Ticket Central Box Office, 416 West 42nd Street (between Ninth & Tenth Avenues). 

A ticketing initiative created as part of the theater company's Arts Access program, LIVEforFIVE makes available $5 tickets for the first preview performance of each Playwrights Horizons production through a lottery via the company's website. The LIVEforFIVE Lottery for A COOL DIP IN THE BARREN SAHARAN CRICK will be for tickets to the first preview on Thursday, March 4 at 7:30 PM. Details for the lottery are as follows: beginning Wednesday, February 24 at 10AM, theatergoers can enter the lottery by filling out an entry form at www.playwrightshorizons.org. Entries will be accepted until Monday, March 1 at 12 Noon. Winners of the lottery will be notified via email no later than 3PM on Monday, March 1 with instructions on how to book their $5 tickets. Unclaimed tickets will be offered via email starting at 12 Noon on Tuesday, March 2 on a first-come, first-served basis. One or two tickets may be purchased for $5 each. A total of 40 tickets will be available for Sharp shows via the lottery.

Reflecting Playwrights Horizons' ongoing commitment to making its productions more affordable to younger audiences, the theater company will offer HOTtix, $20 rush tickets, subject to availability, day of performance only, starting one hour before showtime to patrons aged 30 and under. Proof of age required. One ticket per person, per purchase. STUDENT RUSH, $15 rush tickets, subject to availability, day of performance only, starting one hour before curtain to full-time graduate and undergraduate students. One ticket per person, per purchase. Valid student ID required.

LIVEforFIVE, HOTtix and STUDENT RUSH are some of Playwrights Horizons' popular Arts Access initiatives, which allow the institution to reach out to those who may not be able to afford the cost of a full-price theater ticket. This program is supported, in part, by the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, The McGraw-Hill Companies and the Elroy and Terry Krumholz Foundation.

In addition, special Post-Performance Discussions have been scheduled. Discussions with members of the cast and creative team will take place immediately after the following three performances: Friday evening, March 5 at 7:30 PM, Wednesday evening, March 10 at 7:30 PM and Sunday matinee, March 14 at 2PM.

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