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Theatre Conspiracy 2016-2017 New Play Contest finalists announced

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Audience chooses ‘Noli Timere’ as Theatre Conspiracy new play contest winner (11-23-16)

cast-of-noli-timere-staged-reading-1sTheatre Conspiracy held its annual fundraiser and new play contest on Saturday, November 19, at the Alliance for the Arts. Noli Timere (Don’t Be Afraid) by Jared Michael Delaney was chosen by the audience as this year’s winner. The play will be produced by Theatre Conspiracy and presented to local audiences in May of 2017.

Caesar’s Blood by Rich Rubin and Highness by Carolyn cast-of-noli-timere-staged-reading-5Kras were the other two finalists. The finalists were chosen from more than 600 entries received by Theatre Conspiracy from across the United States, Canada, England, Israel and Thailand. An excerpt from each play was presented without costumes or props as a staged reading. The cast for Noli Timere consisted of actors cast-of-noli-timere-staged-reading-4sThomas Marsh, Dena Galyean, Ken Johnson and Bill Taylor, who is also Theatre Conspiracy’s Producing Artistic Director. Marsh and Galyean have parts in Theatre Conspiracy’s upcoming production of The Country Wife, which opens December 1st.

Noli Timere tells the story of a newly-ordained priest and his sister, who are unexpectedly made to confront something from their past when a strange cast-of-noli-timere-staged-reading-2sman knocks on the door of the rectory late one night. A confrontation ensues that leads them both into a frightening world that may, in fact, just be our own.

Delaney is the Associate Artistic Director of Inis Nua Theatre Company and co-founder of Revolution cast-of-noli-timere-staged-reading-3sShakespeare. As an actor, he has worked Off-Broadway and regionally with the Folger Theater, Arden Theatre Company, Philadelphia Theatre Company, Delaware Theatre Company, Walnut Street Theatre, Sierra Rep. Theater, River Valley Rep., Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival, Lantern Theater, Theatre Workshop of Nantucket, the Theatre at Monmouth and Azuka Theatre. He has twice been nominated for “Best Ensemble” at Philly’s Barrymore Awards (winning once). As a playwright, he has had three short plays produced as part of the Philadelphia Fringe Arts Festival. The Hand of Gaul, his first full-length play, was produced by Inis Nua Theatre Company in April 2013

Taylor noted that all three plays were worthy of production. Now in its 18th year, Theatre Conspiracy’s new play contest provides opportunity for audiences to get involved with the selection process rather than just the end result. By producing new works, Theatre Conspiracy creates a more promising landscape for the future of theater by providing a nurturing environment for the greatest asset theater can have – great playwrights.

“Unfortunately we only pick one winner and we look forward to the production of ‘Noli Timere’ in May,” stated Taylor. “The script captivates you from the beginning and you’re left wondering what’s coming next.”

Tickets for the May production of “Noli Timere” (“Don’t Be Afraid”) by Jared Michael Delaney as well as any other upcoming Theatre Conspiracy shows can be purchased at www.ArtInLee.org/theatre or by calling 239-936-3239. Theatre Conspiracy productions are staged in the Foulds Theatre at the Alliance for the Arts, which is located at 10091 McGregor Boulevard in Fort Myers, just south of the intersection of McGregor and Colonial Boulevards.

Theatre Conspiracy is a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation. Funding is derived from ticket sales, advertising sales and donations. During its 23 years in existence, it has been described as innovative, exciting, daring, and “a treasured member of the area’s theatrical community.”

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New Play Contest details

producing-artistic-director-bill-taylor-01Theatre Conspiracy’s annual fundraiser and new play contest takes place on November 19 at the Alliance for the Arts. Selected from over 600 entries from across the United States, Canada, England, Israel and Thailand, the three finalists for this year’s contest are:

  • Noltimere (Don’t Be Afraid) by Jared Michael Delaney;
  • intermission-at-theatre-conspiracy-1Caesar’s Blood by Rich Rubin; and
  • Highness by Carolyn Kras.

The audience will vote on these selections and the winner will be announced during the fundraiser. The evening begins at 7:00 p.m. with a reception that includes food and drink. Then at 8:oo p.m. selections from each finalist will be read by a cast of Theatre Conspiracy favorites. After the intermission-at-theatre-conspiracy-2conclusion of the final reading the audience will vote for which show they think should be the winner. The winning script will be given a full production in May of 2017.

Now in its 18th year, the New Play Contest provides opportunity for audiences to get involved whale-3in the contest process rather than just seeing the end result.

“The theatre is a difficult business for everyone involved, but even more so for playwrights,” says Theatre Conspiracy Founder and Artistic Director Bill Taylor. “What happens after a world premiere? By producing new works, Theatre Conspiracy creates a more promising landscape for the future of theatre by providing a nurturing environment fdelaneyor the greatest asset theatre can have: great playwrights.”

Noltimere (Don’t Be Afraid) by Jared Michael Delaney (yellow jacket, orange t-shirt) tells the story of a newly-ordained priest and his sister, who are made to confront something from their past that neither is expecting when a strange man knocks on the door of the rectory late one night. A rubin-1confrontation occurs that leads both of them into a frightening world that may, in fact, just be our own.

Caesar’s Blood by Rich Rubin takes place in late November, 1864. The Civil War is still raging, and President Abraham Lincoln has just been re-elected. At New York’s Winter Garden Theatre, the elite of Manhatten have gathered to watch a one-rubinevening-only benefit performance of Julius Caesar starring the three most celebrated actors in America, the iconic Booth brothers – Edwin, Junius Brutus and John Wilkes. John, heralded in the tabloids as “the handsomest man in America,” is a fervent believer in the Confederate cause, and had already been arrested for his seditious comments about the President and the North. His kras-03older brothers, Edwin and Junius Brutus, meanwhile, are ardent supporters of Lincoln and the Union. Both before and after the performance of Shakespeare’s bloody tragedy, the three brothers spar about politics, theater and the roots of their heated sibling rivalry. It’s a play based, as the saying goes, on true events.

Highness by Carolyn Kras dramatizes Princess Elizabeth I and Queen Katherine Parr’s journey of friendship and betrayal while exploring challenges faced by women in politics. Before Elizabeth I became an iconic queen, she was a troubled teenager meeting her fourth stepmother, Katherine Parr. Katherine becomes Elizabeth’s greatest mentor, but politics and personal betrayal threaten to tear kras-01them apart.

Tickets to Theatre Conspiracy’s Fundraiser are $50 and include the reception, readings and a voucher good for a ticket to ANY Theatre Conspiracy production. Tickets can be purchased at www.ArtInLee.org or by calling 239-936-3239.

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