PRESS RELEASE
For Immediate Release
Compassion Transcends All Boundaries:
Nowhere on the Border World Professional Premiere at Stageworks
Nowhere on the Border
By Carlos Lacámara
Directed by Laura Margolis
Previews: August 26-27, 2009
Opens: August 28, 2009
Closes: September 13, 2009
August 12, 2009 – Stageworks/Hudson will open the professional world premiere of NOWHERE ON THE BORDER by Carlos Lacámara on Friday, August 28. Preview performances are August 26-27. NOWHERE ON THE BORDER runs Wednesdays through Sundays through September 13 at Stageworks’ Max and Lillian Katzman Theater, 41 Cross Street, Hudson, New York. NOWHERE ON THE BORDER is directed by Laura Margolis, artistic director of Stageworks.
Stageworks’ 15th Anniversary Season continues in August with NOWHERE ON THE BORDER, Carlos Lacámara’s award-winning play that puts a human face on the conflict-ridden issue of immigration. The professional world premiere runs from August 26 to September 13 and stars Lacámara in one of the leading roles, Roberto Castillo. NOWHERE ON THE BORDER won the MetLife Nuestras Voces National Playwriting Competition and has been called “a piece of raw, poignant power and piercing insight” by the LA Times. The play provides an unbiased look at the issues and controversy surrounding immigration in our society in the form of a compelling story of family, determination and survival.
“We are very excited to produce NOWHERE ON THE BORDER, especially at a time when other governmental concerns overshadow the ever-important question of immigration,” commented Laura Margolis, director of the production and artistic director of Stageworks. “NOWHERE ON THE BORDER portrays conflict and understanding with compassion and humor. This compelling play does not take sides, rather it presents the story of people who are searching for love – love of another human being, love of country, children and a good and fair life. The play fits in perfectly with Stageworks’ mission to produce new, thought-provoking theater. Our cast and design team’s talents culminate in a unifying vision of an otherwise divisive issue.”
On a remote clearing in the Arizona desert, where only the scratching drone of insects offers any hint of life, Gary, a volunteer Minuteman, and Roberto, a Mexican who may have illegally crossed the border, confront each other under the blistering sun. Roberto searches for his daughter, who never arrived at her destination across the border to reconcile with her husband, while Gary struggles to make sense of his role as an American as his son fights in Afghanistan and people cross the border illegally every day. Urgent and heartwarming, NOWHERE ON THE BORDER travels back and forth in time, interweaving the lives of two men firmly gripped in a stalemate of contrasting beliefs—only to discover that compassion can transcend all boundaries.
In conjunction with the production of this award-winning play, Stageworks will hold an open Town Hall Meeting where audience members can learn about the facts surrounding the argument and freely express their opinions. The Meeting, which will take place before the performance on September 5th from 4-6 PM, will be moderated by Mary Jo Dudley, director of the Cornell Farm Workers Program, and Laura Gonzalez-Murphy, Senior Research Aid in migration and security issues at the NYS Research Foundation at the University of Albany. See www.stageworkshudson.org for further details.
The Town Hall Meeting is made possible by the New York State Theatre Institute. The Stageworks 2009 Mainstage season is made possible, in part, with public funds from the New York State Council on the Arts and the Shubert Foundation.
General talk-backs with the cast, director and playwright will occur directly after the performances on September 3rd and 10th.
Carlos Lacámara (Playwright and Roberto) is an actor, director and playwright. He has appeared in over 100 television shows, including recent appearances “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” “The Unit,” “Medium” and “Desperate Housewives” which he just filmed for the upcoming season. He played the role of Pace on NBC's “Nurses” for three seasons and the father in Nickelodeon's “The Brothers Garcia” for four seasons. His play CRASHING HEAVEN was produced at the Court Theater in LA and he has co‑written several comic plays including ELVIS LIES AND VIDEO TAPE, THE FIRING SQUAD and HIT AND RUN, which was developed into a pilot for Fox TV. After visiting Cuba nine years ago and moved by the hardships of life on the island, Carlos was inspired to write his play, BECOMING CUBAN, which was recognized by LA Weekly as the Best Political Drama of 2002. His play HAVANA BOURGEOIS was produced at Reverie Productions in NY and Hayworth Theatre in Los Angeles. Carlos has just completed his play EXILES, which focuses on the Mariel Boatlift of 1980, the third in his trilogy of Cuban plays. NOWHERE ON THE BORDER, which was first produced at the Hayworth Theatre and Repertorio Español, is the winner of the MetLife Nuestras Voces National Playwriting Competition.
Stewart Zully (Gary Dobbs) has worked extensively in New York, LA and Toronto with credits including: TABLETOP (American Place Theater); THE MUGGER (Player’s Theater); STEAMBATH (New York Stageworks); EXTENUATING CIRCUMSTANCES (Perry Street Theater); ZIMMER and HEAT OF RE-ENTRY (Theater 40, LA); THE AUSTRALIA PROJECT (Kraine Theater), THE TANGLED SNARL (The Globe, LA), BEDPAN DEADPAN (Alumnae Theatre, Toronto). His film and TV credits include: “The Sopranos,” “New In Town,” “Wolf,” “Chilled in Miami,” “Rocket,” “For The Boys,” “Law and Order” (SVU and CI), “Burn Notice” and “One Tree Hill,” among many others. Stewart’s Citibank Identity Theft commercial won an Emmy as Best Commercial Of The Year in 2004. Stewart has directed and taught in NY, LA, Florida and Canada, and co‑wrote/produced the feature “Perfect Opposites.” He produced Theater 40's One‑Act Festival for six years; three of the plays have been published and two plays aired on PBS.
Romina Sacre (Pilar) is a graduate from The Neighborhood Playhouse. Theater credits include: Marlena in NORTH SHORE FISH, Mary in THE RED COAT, Marta in COMPANY at the Ria-Wallach Morgenthau and Yolanda in MI EDUCACION SENTIMENTAL at Teatro Pregones. She has appeared in the film "Bendito el Fruto de tu Vientre" and the web series "Sweet and Spicy."
Gustavo Heredia (Jesus) recently appeared in SONNETS FOR AN OLD CENTURY by Jose Rivera at the Bank Street Theatre and RHESUS by Euripides at the East Side River Amphitheatre in NYC. Credits include: PULLING at the Flatiron Playhouse, where he also performed in A VIEW FROM THE BRIDGE; THE SEA GULL at the Julia de Burgos Theatre; BEYOND THERAPY at the Ted Bardy Theatre; A LONG DAY’S JOURNEY INTO NIGHT at the Raw Space Theatre where he also performed in PET CEMETERY and GROUND ZERO (Zona Cero) at Show World Theatre. Gustavo is the recipient of the Best Leading Actor Award from the Hofstra University Film Festival, the Best Supporting Actor Award from the Action on Film International Film Festival III and the Friars Award for Excellence for the Raul Julia Training Unit.
David Arca (Montoya) lives in New York City where he works as an actor and a writer. His theater credits include: Ariel in THE PILLOWMAN, Padraic in THE LIEUTENANT OF INISHMORE at AWG-Theater; Domingo in THE ROYAL HUNT OF THE SUN at Red Bull Theater; Ray in SOME VOICES, Bickham in DOES A TIGER WEAR A NECKTIE, Joe in ANGELS IN AMERICA at the Epiphany Theater and Jimmy in HAPPY BIRTHDAY CHARLIE at Pregones Theater. He most recently appeared in two leading roles on the Reel Batso Films pilots DIRTY PIGEONS and AMERICAN TERRORIST. David holds a BBA from American University and has studied with Larry Moss, Casey Childs and Karl Bury. Early next year he can be seen in NYC on the world premiere of GRIEF.
LAURA MARGOLIS (Director) is the founder and Artistic Director of Stageworks/Hudson. Her directing credits for Stageworks include: CAR TALK (World Premiere), FALLING: A WAKE (American premiere), A WEDDING STORY (American premiere), DOG STORIES (World premiere) and many regional premieres such as OMNIUM GATHERUM, LEBENSRAUM, GUTENBERG! THE MUSICAL!, BRUTAL IMAGINATION and WIT. Highlighting her career are the plays she has directed for Stageworks' annual PLAY BY PLAY FESTIVAL of original one-acts. Regionally, she has directed at Capital Rep, Proctors, SUNY/Albany, among others. Laura has received the Certificate of Recognition from the Columbia County Board of Supervisors for providing original and creative opportunities to the community and the Columbia County Arts Award for Artist “for excellence in developing and fostering the arts in Columbia County.” She attended Brooklyn College's MFA in Arts Administration program and has taught as an adjunct professor of theater at SUNY/Albany.
Design Team
The design team includes: Randall Parsons (Set Design), Jeffrey Leppendorf (Sound Design), Frank DenDanto III, (Lighting Design), Janet Sussman (Costume Design) and Phil Elman (Technical Director). The Stage Manager is Jennifer Schilansky, the Assistant Stage Manager/Understudy is Steven Hosking and the Lighting and Sound Technician is Nick Chiaro.
About Stageworks/Hudson
Stageworks has established a reputation for its ambitious programming and adventurous productions. The company is especially known for producing the bold, risk-taking work of new dramatic voices. Central to its vision is Futures, an integrative program designed to move Stageworks to the forefront of new play development. Stageworks is both the experiment and the resource to infuse the whole life of the theater with a creative process that produces new ways of expressing, interpreting and sharing the human experience.
Stageworks is a member of Theatre Communications Group, the Columbia County Chamber of Commerce and Perform Columbia. It is the recipient of a Proctors Regional Arts Award inaugurated by Proctors Theatre in 2008 to honor the outstanding work of performing arts organizations. For four consecutive years, Stageworks was distinguished in Metroland Magazine as “Best Theater Company.” Stageworks is recipient of the Crystal Apple Award from the Chamber of Commerce for providing a positive effect both culturally and economically on the quality of life in our community.
Plays are for everyone, whether written by students, established authors or emerging dramatists. Theater illuminates, expresses and interprets the human experience and profoundly serves as a global stage for social exchange and enrichment. Stageworks complements its main season with a series of programs to encourage and engage young people, traditional theatergoers and new audiences. Stageworks continues to actively take a leadership role in establishing the Hudson Valley as a cultural destination by exploring and expanding its reputation for developing new theatrical works, forms and programs.
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FACT SHEET
Calendar of Events
Previews: August 26-27
Opening: Friday, August 28
Closing: Sunday, September 13
Performance Calendar
Wednesday at 7:30 pm: August 26, September 2, September 9
Thursday at 7:30 pm: August 27, September 3, September 10
Friday at 8:00 pm: August 28, September 4, September 11
Saturday at 8:00 pm: August 29, September 5, September 12
Saturday Matinee at 2:00 pm: September 12
Sunday Matinee at 2:00 pm: August 30, September 6, September 13
Talk Backs with the cast, playwright and director post-performance: September 3 and 10. The Town Hall Meeting on Immigration is 4-6 PM before the performance on September 5.
Cast
Roberto Castillo Carlos Lacámara
Gary Dobbs Stewart Zully
Pilar Romina Sacre
Jesus Gustavo Heredia
Montoya David Arca
Production Team
Laura Margolis, Director
Frank DenDanto III, Lighting Design
Randall Parsons, Set Design
Jeffrey Leppendorf, Sound Design
Janet Sussman, Costume Design
Phil Elman, Technical Director
Jennifer Schilansky, Stage Manager
Steven Hosking, Assistant Stage Manager/Understudy
Nick Chiaro, Lighting/Sound Technician
Tickets
For tickets or information, contact Stageworks by mail at 41-A Cross Street, Hudson, NY 12534 or call the box office at (518) 822-9667. For further information, visit the website at www.stageworkshudson.org.
Single ticket prices are:
$18 for preview performances
$24 for Weekdays, Matinees and Sundays
$29 for Friday and Saturday evening performances.
Discounts are available for groups of 10 or more and there are special rates for students and seniors.
Visit Stageworks’ home page for more details at www.stageworkshudson.org.
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