Johnny Moreno and L. Peter Callender. PH: Seth Dickerman
Thick Description, Potrero Hill’s professional theater, presents the revival of the 1997 hit, BLADE TO THE HEAT by Oliver Mayer. Bursting through the brutality and prejudice of America in 1959, BLADE TO THE HEAT captures the sensual action of boxing and music. The multiple conflicts of love, cultural forces, athletic glory and humiliation culminate in a stunning fight to the end.
BLADE TO THE HEAT runs February 16 to March 16 at the Thick House, 1695 18th Street on Potrero Hill in San Francisco. Performances are Thursday through Sunday nights at 8pm. Tickets are $30-15, sliding scale; to purchase, call 415/ 401-8081 or visit www.thickhouse.org.
BLADE TO THE HEAT premiered at the New York Shakespeare Festival's...
L. Peter Callender (fgd), Michael Bellino, Johnny Moreno (bk) PH:S.D.
BLADE TO THE HEAT premiered at the New York Shakespeare Festival's Public Theatre under the direction of artistic director George C. Wolfe in 1994 and was produced at the Mark Taper Forum in 1996.
BLADE TO THE HEAT deals with latent homosexuality in the boxing world of 1959. Three Latino boxers vie for the middleweight championship. The vicious Wilfred Vinal (Victor Ballesteros) rattles reigning champ Mantequilla (L. Peter Callender) by accusing him of being gay. Pedro Quinn (Johnny Moreno) battles with his memories, his identity, and his ambiguous relationship with his friend Garnet (Vontress Mitchell), a lounge singer who makes ends meet by impersonating Jackie Wilson. The sensual action of boxing and music burst through the brutality and prejudice of America in 1959. The multiple conflicts of love, cultural forces, athletic glory and humiliation culminate in a stunning fight to the end. BLADE TO THE HEAT won Oliver Mayer an Obie Award for playwriting in 1995, and its first production won seven Audelco Awards. The Taper production in 1996 won eight Drama-Logue awards, including outstanding production and outstanding play. It is now in development as a film to be directed by Madonna. The writer prepared a revised text for Thick Description's 1997 production, which will also be used for this revival.
The production is directed by Tony Kelly (who also directed the production in 1997), and the cast includes L. Peter Callender, reprising his role as Mantequilla from the 1997 production, and Rhonnie Washington, reprising his portrayal of Three Finger Jack. Joining the revival cast are Johnny Moreno, Victor Ballesteros, Carlos Baron, Michael Bellino, Vontress Mitchell, and Melissa Navarro. Richard Olmstead, the scenic designer for the 1997 run at New Langton Arts, will design again - this time for the Thick House stage, Thick Description's home since 1999. Lighting design by Thick Description's Rick Martin, and costume design by Raùl Aktanov. The play is produced with San Jose Stage Company.
Thick Description's 1997 production of BLADE TO THE HEAT was a hit, playing to sold-out audiences for an extended run.
"A theater this small can scarcely be expected to contain the excitement generated by Tony Kelly's electrifying Thick Description production." - SF Examiner
"These two acts roll, punch, and psych out like championship material, and Tony Kelly's Thick Description staging makes the work look like a nobrainer TKO. " - The SF Bay Guardian
"Blade's thematic goulash of Latin jazz, boxing culture, sexual identity and R & B choreography becomes all the more concentrated...[in this] compact, tightly wound production that is all pit bull." - Mercury News
2nd Sundays: STEPHEN PELTON A monthly salon with Dancers' Group and CounterPULSE Sunday March 9, 2008 2PM CounterPULSE 1310 Mission Street (@9th) San Francisco
"...CHRISTMAS IS ALL ABOUT WHAT IS WRONG WITH OUR FAMILY; VALENTINE'S DAY IS ALL ABOUT WHAT IS WRONG WITH OURSELVES." - MAGDA GOMEZ
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LIES YOU CAN DANCE TO (premiere) Choreography by Jo Kreiter, in collaboration with the company April 24-26, 2008, 8pm Free Post show reception with the Artists follow each performance Co-Presented by ODC Theater and the Marsh At Project Artaud Theater 450 Florida Street, SF Tickets/ Information: http://www.odctheater.org
This new work explores the bending of democracy that currently surrounds us and how that resonates kinesthetically in the bodies of its citizens.
Featuring Kelly Kemp, Erin Okayama, Melissa Caywood, Annie Rosenthal Parr, Alayna Stroud and Jo Kreiter Original Music by Beth Custer Set Design by Figureplant and Gravity Design
"Lies you can dance to" is a commission of ODC Theater's Director's Fund, which is supported by a generous gift from the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation. Additional support is from Grants for the Arts/The Hotel Tax Fund, the Zellerbach Family Foundation and the Gerbode Foundation
"THE REVOLOTION WILL NOT BE MASCULINIZED" - TAYLOR MAC
