ensemble 2.0

.ZACK
Monday, May 8, 2017; 8pm

‘ensemble 2.0’ is . . .

. . . a journey into the heart of an American family.  A heart that is often wild, broken many times over, and conflicted – but ultimately kind, caring, and compassionate.

Staged as a dramatic reading, ‘ensemble 2.0’ is a play based on Francesca Williams’s collection of family letters. The simplicity of the communication is striking.  Children speaking to parents. A mother's unflagging attention, compensating for an abusive father. A fragile daughter whose tragic illness is a living reminder of their own frailties. The fame of the tormented older son who is plagued by guilt. And the dutiful younger son forever on call to his demanding, melodramatic mother, whose mounting hysteria threatens the future of his own marriage and family.

It's a family struggling to stay together, needing each other, using each other, and in their own unique ways, taking care of each other. ‘ensemble 2.0’ is all about those details. First presented to a sold-out audience at the 59E59 Theatre in NYC, ‘ensemble’ was a rousing success at last year’s Fest. ‘ensemble 2.0’ has been expanded to include music, home movies, family photos and interviews. Their final curtain is not to be missed.

Festival and Flex pass only includes events from May 3-7, and not the encore presentations.

Cast

* Member, Actors' Equity Association

Music

Music and lyrics by Tor Hyams & Lisa Rothauser

Grammy nominated songwriter, Tor Hyams, and veteran Broadway performer, Lisa Rothauser (The Producers) teamed up after Hyams debuted his first original musical, Greenwood, at NYMF 2011. They immediately began collaborating on Stealing Time, which premiered at NYMF 2012 and was featured in the Finger Lakes Musical Theater Festival.

They are currently working under commission on an adaptation of the legendary television show, Green Acres. Additional projects include Auburn The Musical with book writer Ed Sayles and The Complete Manual of Things That Might Kill You, with book writer/actor John Cariani (Something Rotten). Hyams and Rothauser wrote Mommy Needs A Timeout for the Nickelodeon’s Nickmom and most recently wrote and recorded an album with Howie D of the Backstreet Boys entitled How We Do, which is now being developed as a musical for young audiences.

Their one-woman event, LIFE. Who Knew? has played to sold-out audiences across the country, including New York’s 54 Below, and Joe’s Pub, Los Angeles’ Rockwell, and the Gaslight Cabaret Festival in St. Louis.The duo participated in the BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theatre Workshop and were selected as residents for the Johnny Mercer Writer’s Colony at Goodspeed Opera House.

Produced and Directed By:

Location

.ZACK
3224 Locust Street
St. Louis, MO 63103