THEATER FOR THE NEW CITY’S DREAM UP FESTIVAL PRESENTS
“#THETHIRDPERSON” BY CHRIS PRICE
Politically charged experimental theater with a crude, orange, alien. Sound familiar?

WHERE AND WHEN:
August 26 to September 2.
Theater for the New City (Johnson Theater) 155 1st Avenue.
Presented by Theater for the New City (Crystal Field, Artistic Director) as part of Dream Up Festival 2018.
August 26 at 5 PM, August 28 at 6:30 PM, August 30 at 6:30 PM, September 1 at 2 PM, September 2 at 2 PM
Tickets: $15. Box Office: (212) 254-1109, www.dreamupfestival.org
Running time: 35 min. Critics are invited to all performances.

NEW YORK, July 22 – Possibly set in the present, “#thethirdperson”, a new topical satire by Chris Price and directed by Kordell Draper, features a third person-talking, eccentric, orange, offensive, alien-like character who provokes corruption between two best friends. Traces of racism, xenophobia, sexism, and a slew of shenanigans (not dissimilar from the hysterics of our US government), go rampantly unaddressed. Even though these elements are coated in satire, their realness is all too palpable. Theater for the New City’s Dream Up Festival will present the world premiere of the “#thethirdperson” August 26 to September 2.

The one-act begins with a meet-up between two best friends, Melvin and Drew. Melvin has been waiting for Drew for 20 minutes, and when he finally arrives, Drew reveals the surprise that he has been seeing a girl for quite some time and would like Melvin to finally meet her. Despite his own secret romantic affections for Drew, Melvin continues to suppress his true feelings for his best friend and agrees to meet the new girlfriend.
When the girlfriend, Donna, arrives, she is literally of another planet, and she is as obnoxious, abrasive and “unwoke” as they come. Her outrageous narcissism and blatant disregard for political correctness are somehow of no issue to Drew, who is desperate for an off-put Melvin to like her. When Melvin and Donna are left to make small talk, Donna convinces Melvin to develop a scheme to end the relationship between her and Drew. Seeing it as an opportunity to protect his friend, Melvin agrees, and the ensuing antics ultimately test Drew's and Melvin’s friendship like never before.

The actors are Sebastian Cummings, Oskar Owens and Imani Youngblood. Playwright and Executive. Producer is Chris Price. Associate Producer is Ginou Lilavois. Director is Kordell Draper. Creative Consultant is Jason Zomback. Lighting Designer is Zev Levi Spiegel.

The ninth annual Dream Up Festival (www.dreamupfestival.org) is being presented by Theater for the New City from August 26 to September 16. An ultimate new work festival, it is dedicated to the joy of discovering new authors and edgy, innovative performances. Audiences savor the excitement, awe, passion, challenge and intrigue of new plays from around the country and around the world.

The festival does not seek out traditional scripts that are presented in a traditional way. It selects works that push new ideas to the forefront, challenge audience expectations and make us question our understanding of how art illuminates the world around us.

In addition to traditional plays, a unique and varied selection of productions will again be offered, drawing upon a variety of performance genres including musicals, puppetry and movement theater. The Festival's founders, Crystal Field and Michael Scott-Price, feel this is especially needed in our present time of declining donations to the arts, grants not being awarded due to market conditions, and arts funding cuts on almost every level across the country and abroad.

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Captioned, high-resolution photos of shows in this festival are available for download at:https://photos.app.goo.gl/e1pxCX4oeTwshVwn7
The festival's website is www.dreamupfestival.org.