Theatre Fairfield presents Theatre in the Raw: The Lucille Lortel Festival of New Plays written by American Women | Press Releases

FAIRFIELD, Conn. (Nov. 25, 2015) — Theatre Fairfield, the resident production company at Fairfield University, is reviving its festival of new plays with Theatre in the Raw: The Lucille Lortel Festival of New Plays written by American Women as part of its season dedicated to celebrating American women playwrights.

Performances will take place at Fairfield University’s PepsiCo Theatre on Dec. 3 and 5 at 8 p.m. and Dec. 6 at 2 p.m. Tickets are $15 general admission, $6 seniors and University staff, and $5 students. Tickets are available through the Quick Center Box Office: (203) 254-4010.

The production is underwritten by the Estate of Lucille Lortel. It was her wish that Theatre Fairfield carry on her pioneering work in developing new American plays and playwrights. After a contest held in June 2015 called for submissions from professional and student playwrights, the chosen works are What Happened to Noura ? by professional playwright Noura Embabi, Mechanics of Love by professional playwright Dipika Guha, and Anythin g by Fairfield student Kelly Sheridan ’18. The plays are all directed by Jakob Hofman.

What Happened to Noura follows the story of a girl who wishes to disassociate herself from Islam, much to the disappointment of her family. Anything shows the relationship between two best friends while one of them struggles to complete an essay about what is important to her. Mechanics of Love tells of the odd, yet interesting relationship between four unique characters: a ballerina, a man who forgets everything, his wife, and a mechanic.

Hofmann is no stranger to playwriting and introducing new works to the stage. In addition to directing, he is also an accomplished playwright. “I love working on new material,” he said. “I base most of my career on new works and nothing excites me more than bringing those works to life. I love exploring fertile ground and territory that hasn’t been covered before. I get to learn about things I never considered before. In this case, for example, I got to examine the Muslim religion and the inner workings of a college undergrad’s mind,” said Hofmann.

Assisting Hofmann on the production team are Dr. Martha Schmoyer LoMonaco and Professor Lynne Porter, co-producers; Lynne Porter, lighting designer; Julie Leavitt, costume designer; Jeremy Jenkins, technical director; Jessie Lizotte ’18, stage manager; and Maddie Craig ’19, assistant stage manager. The cast features Patrick Donegan ’18, Shannon Kelley ’19, Jordan Mason ’19, Brendan McNamara ’17, Romina Rabines ’19, Michelle Rakowsky ’17, Tori Schuchmann ’17, Aubrey Sierer ’17, and Nick Solimini ’17.

Theatre Fairfield is Fairfield University’s resident production company. Theatre Fairfield produces three or more productions every year and serves as a platform for community engagement as well a positive and professional learning environment.

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Fairfield University is a Jesuit University, rooted in one of the world’s oldest intellectual and spiritual traditions. More than 5,000 undergraduate and graduate students from 36 states, 47 foreign countries, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico are enrolled in the University’s five schools. In the spirit of rigorous and sympathetic inquiry into all dimensions of human experience, Fairfield welcomes students from diverse backgrounds to share ideas and engage in open conversations. The University is located in the heart of a region where the future takes shape, on a stunning campus on the Connecticut coast just an hour from New York City