The Common Swallow by David Caudle

HOWL ! ARTS PROJECT 2009:
THEATER
45 Bleecker Street Theater
(NE Corner of Lafayette at Mulberry St)
(By subway: #6 train to Bleecker Street Station)

Friday Sept 25, 8:00pm
Saturday Sept 26, 8:00pm
Sunday Sept 27, 3:00pm and 8:00pm

The Common Swallow by David Caudle
Directed by Kirsten Kelly
Starring: Annie Golden, Julie Jesneck, Doug Rees, Elizabeth Rich and MacLeod Andrews
At a summer food festival, modern Midwesterners grapple with unraveling ties
To home, family and their envirornment. Developed in the Dorothy Strelsin New American Writers Group at Primary Stages.
Admission: $15 to benefit the HOWL ! HELP Fund
Advance tickets at: www.brownpapertickets.com/event/78930
Cash only tickets available at the door starting at 6:00pm and 1:00pm (2 hours before showtime) respectively until showtime.

A midwestern town's annual food fair is in full swing. Locals converge along the banks of the muddy river to sample pulled pork, baked beans, and corn. Nineteen-year-old runaway Jim comes for the meth. New Yorker Karen, on a rare return to her roots, picks at her barbecued chicken, potato salad, and a very old wound. Her townie brother Tripp sharpens his teeth on some juicy ribs and a simmering sibling rivalry. All any of them really craves is a good helping of love and acceptance, and even just a taste of "welcome home."

“The Common Swallow,” was developed in the Dorothy Strelsin New American Writers Group at Primary Stages. David Caudle is also author of the acclaimed, award winning play, “The Sunken Living Room.”
Directed by Kirsten Kelly. Starring Annie Golden, Elizabeth Rich, Julie Jesneck, and MacLeod Andrews

“Caudle’s writing is full of humor, compassion, keen observation”
Christine Dolen, Miami Herald

“Caudle’s plays...often suprise with their mystifying aura, their dramatic punch.” Tom Kertes, Village Voice

Elizabeth Rich (Karen) is an award-winning actress and recent transplant from Chicago, where she performed at Steppenwolf in The Pillowman (Mother; dir. Amy Morton); Cherry Orchard (Varya; dir. Tina Landau) and A Tale of Two Cities (Mme. De Farge; dir. Jessica Thebus). She also performed at the Goodman as Kristine Linde in Doll's House (dir. Robert Falls), and Theatre J as Hannah in Hannah and Martin (dir. Jeremy Cohen), to name a few. Ms. Rich is the recipient of a 2006 Helen Hayes Nomination, 2005 Jeff Award and 2004 After Dark Award. Regional: The Alley Theatre, The Scene (dir. Jeremy Cohen); Florida Stage, Cradle of Man (dir. Michael John Garces). In New York, she has received a Talkin Broadway citation for Best Actress and a MITF Best Featured Actress nomination for her work in Non Play; shadows of a dream at the Horace Mann Theatre (dir. Mikhael Tara Garver), and Couldn't Say at the Abingdon (dir. Lisa Rothe.)

MacLeod Andrews (Jim) recently performed as Jake in Slipping at Rattlestick Playwrights Theater. Off-Broadway: Too Much Memory (NYTW Jonathan Larson Lab/Rising Phoenix Rep/Piece by Piece); The NY premiere of Somewhere in the Pacific by Neal Bell, No End of Blame, and Hang Up (Atlantic Stage 2/Potomac Theater Project). New York: Nobody by Crystal Skillman (RPR). MacLeod is a company member of Rising Phoenix Rep. He has recorded a number of audio books and is a 2008 graduate of Middlebury College. Come visit him at www.MacLeodAndrews.blogspot.com

David Caudle (Playwright) wrote THE SUNKEN LIVING ROOM (Samuel French), VISITING HOURS, THE SECOND HOUSE, DAMSEL and others. IN DEVELOPMENT opens in October at Miami’s New Theatre, directed by Ricky J.Martinez. David is a member of the Dorothy Strelsin New American Writers Group at Primary Stages and has been developed in the New Harmony Project, Downstage Miami and the Sewanee Writers Conference.

Matt D'Amico (Tripp) Regional credits include: The House of Gold, Italian Sojourn and The Ballad of Emmett Till (O'Neill Playwright's Conference); Othello, Cymbeline, The Count of Monte Cristo, The Three Musketeers, and Romeo and Juliet (Alabama Shakespeare Festival); Saint Joan (Repertory Theatre of St. Louis); Hamlet, Life is a Dream and Caucasian Chalk Circle (South Coast Repertory); Inherit the Wind and Death of a Salesman (Geva Theatre); Camille (Bard Summerscape); Richard II (Shakespeare Theatre of NJ); As You Like It (Indiana Rep); Sweet Mercy (NY Stage and Film); Dive, Thief of Man, and Zealot (Guthrie Theater); Othello, Dracula, and Acorn (Actors Theatre of Louisville); Twelfth Night and The Tempest (Colorado Shakespeare). Other credits: Fizz (The Ohio Theatre); The Duchess of Malfi and Hamlet (Kings County Shakespeare). TV: Law and Order. He is a graduate of The Juilliard School. For Sarah and Addy.

Annie Golden (Corinthia/Melinda) was discovered by Academy Award- winning film director Milos Forman while fronting her rock band THE SHIRTS at CBGB's and was cast as Jeannie in his movie of the tribal love rock musical HAIR in 1978 and she hasn't stopped working as an actress on Broadway and off originating roles for Stephen Sondheim, Terrence McNally, Jerry Zaks, Richard Foreman and others while continuing to record and tour Europe as a singer songwriter. Annie can be seen on the silver screen (TWELVE MONKEYS, BABY BOOM, PEBBLE AND THE PENGUIN, ) and opposite Jim Carrey and Ewan McGregor in I LOVE YOU, PHILIP MORRIS due out February, 2010...performing Annie Golden's VELVET PRISON at Joe's Pub and Ars Nova...born and bred in Brooklyn growing up on the Bowery making a living on Broadway Annie never forgets her downtown roots!

Julie Jesneck (Abra/Red) Broadway: Rock 'N Roll. Off-Broadway: Walls, Cherry Lane; Green Girl and The Nightshade Family, SPF; Romania. Kiss Me!, The Play Co.; Mr. Marmalade (u/s), Roundabout; Abu Ghraib Triptych, EST; Mistral, Drama League. Regional: A Thousand Clowns, Intiman Theatre; The Trip to Bountiful, The Denver Center (Henry Award); Thinking Of You, Alabama Shakespeare Festival; Othello and A Midsummer Night's Dream, The Old Globe; The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter, Alliance/The Acting Co. Tour; The Ruby Sunrise, Trinity Rep and Actor's Theatre of Louisville (Humana); Mary's Wedding, San Jose Rep. Television: "Law & Order" and "Empire Falls" (HBO). Juilliard graduate.

Kirsten Kelly (Director) is a film and theatre director from New York. Recent directing credits include: Slipping by Daniel Talbott (Piece by Piece Productions, Rising Phoenix Rep, Rattlestick) Crash! (an ensemble created piece based on the Great Depression and the current economic crisis with Roots&Branches Theatre Company) ART (Two River Theatre Co); The Government Inspector (Calvin College Guest Director); 365-Week 47 (Rising Phoenix Rep/Public Theatre); Co-creator of the “CPS! Shakespeare” program at Chicago Shakespeare Theater where she directed productions of Macbeth, Romeo & Juliet and Hamlet; the Washington D.C. premiere of “Boy Gets Girl” by Rebecca Gillman for Theatre Alliance (Helen Hayes Nomination, Best Direction); the Midwest/Chicago premiere of Mamet’s “Boston Marriage” (After Dark Award, Best Director), and Sam Shepherd’s “Savage Love/Tongues” with the Juilliard Percussion Ensemble at Lincoln Center. Film credits include: “Front of House” (Web Pilot Series for Strike TV); Tokyo/Vermont Counterpoint” short film (Beyond The Machine concert, Lincoln Center); “Asparagus! (Stalking the American Life)” (award-winning documentary on the 2006-7 film festival circuit; DVD released 2008; PBS broadcast Spring 2009); Prior to NY, Kirsten directed many Chicago productions and was the Co-Artistic Director of Strawdog Theatre there. Kirsten is a graduate of the Master’s Directing program at Juilliard where she received the Andrew W. Mellon Directing Fellowship, and is a proud member of Rising Phoenix Repertory.

Douglas Rees (Policeman/Porter): Doug is delighted and honored to e making his HOWL debut, and always delighted to be working with David Caudle. Doug has appeared at many theatres regionally, and most recently appeared in New York in the acclaimed NYC premiere of Michael Hollinger's OPUS, at Primary Stages. Some favorite past roles include Lennie in OF MICE AND MEN, Henry Carr in Tom Stoppard's TRAVESTIES, Pato in Martin McDonough's BEAUTY QUEEN OF LEENANE, and Atticus Finch in TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD.

Production Photo Credit:
(Top to bottom: MacLeod Andrews and Annie Golden, Matt D'Amico and Julie Jesneck, Matt D' Amico and Elizabeth Rich; in The Common Swallow by David Caudle. All Photos by donje photography. Used with permission. All rights reserved. Copyright donje photography and David Caudle.)