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Contact: Selene Faer, 202-256-1721, contact@pushingboxes.org
Date: Wednesday, July 5, 2006

WASHINGTON, D.C. - What do you get when you mix a headless leader with the adoring masses, medical bills with romance, and family values with murder? The classic Washington scandalous summer drama or one of the highlights at the inaugural Capital Fringe Festival?

For two weeks this summer, you get Short Works Exploring Dangerous Devotion, brought to the Woolly Mammoth Rehearsal Space by Pushing Boxes Productions as part of the Capital Fringe Festival. The production features three short plays, each of which explores the theme of dangerous devotion: The Leader by Eugène Ionesco, Springtime by María Irene Fornés, and The Book of Leviticus Show by Christopher Durang.

Ionesco’s absurdist “anti-play,” directed by Austin Elston, depicts a mindless mob in a disjointed frenzy awaiting their leader’s arrival. “We are excited to debut this play in Washington for the underlying political twist. The audience could infer that the play is about a political figure, perhaps one who lives right up the road from the festival. The play also rings true in an age of pop-culture idol-worship,” said Elston.

The second segment, Fornés’ Springtime, also directed by Elston, focuses on the tender relationship between free-spirited Rainbow and her lover Greta. When Greta falls ill, Rainbow’s commitment to find money for medical care drives her to dangerous lengths, shaking the foundations of the relationship she is trying so desperately to save.

Producer Selene Faer directs the final piece, Christopher Durang’s dark comedy The Book of Leviticus Show. Lettie Lu is a chipper church-goer who decides to take her religious devotion to the masses with her own public-access television show. However, when she introduces her special guests, it becomes clear that despite her chatty demeanor, she’s deadly serious about the Bible. “In a time when morality is featured in every politician’s repertoire, it is good to go back and check their sources,” said Faer.

The ensemble cast is: Katie Atkinson, Daniel Eichner, Tina Renay Fulp, Andrew Gable, Elizabeth Jernigan, and KC Wright. Short Works Exploring Dangerous Devotion is presented as a part of the inaugural Capital Fringe Festival, July 20-30. Performances are Saturday, July 22 (ASL Interpreted) at 12pm; Monday, July 24 at 5pm; Wednesday, July 26 at 7:45pm (ASL Interpreted and Audio Described); Friday, July 28 at 5 pm; and Sunday, July 30 at 11am.