Park Slope’s Gallery Players To Present 11 New Plays Over Next 3 Weekends

PARK SLOPE – Now in its 22nd year, The Gallery’s Players‘ signature theatrical event, the Black Box New Play Festival, will present 11 new plays over the next three weekends.

Kicking off Thursday, January 10, the Black Box New Play Festival will present select new plays Thursday through Sunday each week until January 27. Performances will be staged Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays at 7:30pm and Sundays at 3pm. Following each Sunday matinee performance will be a discussion with the playwright.

Check out the festival lineup below.

Week 1: January 10 – 13

IN THE GARDENS OF EDEN by Vicki Riba Koestler, directed by Nate Sayatovich
While driving to summer camp, a family’s GPS gets them lost and into a challenging situation.

PLANNED OBSOLESCENCE by Bara Swain, directed by Valerie Adami
While Matilda sits Shiva for a nine-year-old companion, an unexpected visitor convinces her to make a life-changing decision.

THE BLACK BOX (OR, HOW TO DIE HAPPY) by David Harms, directed by Sam French
After suffering a nervous breakdown, an uninsured rector is forced to take a leave of absence from his church and convalesce in an unusual place. After reflecting on his life, he decides on a sure-fire way to go out on a high note, and puts his idea to the test.

THE ROOFTOP PLAYS by Marlene Shyer, directed by Max Friedman (“Rooftop Buddha,” “Rooftop Thanksgiving,” and “Rooftop Murder”)
Three 10-minute plays set on an urban rooftop range from murder for real estate, to memorials, to divvying up holiday attendance. You never know what’s going on over your head.

Week 2: January 17 – 20

THE WOMAN AT HIS SIDE by Donald Steele, directed by Becky Abramowitz
A long married couple faces challenges when competing in the same field.

HORNY by Rich Rubin, directed by Kevin Bain
Two small-time con artists devise a new scheme involving, among other things, the large mammal exhibit at the American Museum of Natural History.

ONE NIGHT by A. Dean Bell, directed by Hilary Goldman
Two college roommates uncover what happened one night in an event that could change their lives forever.

THE PRISONERS OF DRISCOLL STREET by Bradley Nies, directed by Cedric Hill
This play imagines a possible altercation between a mother and her son—the latter who may have murdered both of his elderly parents on Father’s Day.

Week 3: January 24 – 27

UPFRONTS & PERSONAL by Ken Levine, directed by Scotty Watson
In this comedy, the process of having a television show picked up by a network is examined as one studio attempts to place two sitcoms in its fall line-up. What compromises must be made? Which ethics will be abandoned?

Founded in 1967, The Gallery Players offers audiences professional-quality theatre at affordable ticket prices in the group’s 99-seat Park Slope venue. Along with introducing new works, the award-winning Gallery Players produce classic and contemporary plays and musicals. Their upcoming season includes productions of Once Upon a Mattress (February 22 – March 17), Steel Magnolias (April 13 – 28), and Spring Awakening, (May 18 – June 9).

Black Box New Play Festival
The Gallery Players, 199 14th Street (between 4th & 5th Avenues), Park Slope
January 10 through January 27
Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays at 7:30pm
Sundays at 3pm
Tickets $20, $15 children under 12 & seniors