Date: Mon, 17 Jan 2000 10:22:49 EST
Subject:  NYArts Magazine Newsletter for January 15,16,17


How can I get this listed in the Newsletter for upcoming events?

Marat Sade, directed by Artistic Director, Fred Newman, at the Castillo 
Theatre, Feb. 11- March 26.  500 Greenwich Street, NYC (212) 941-1234


More info:
NEW PRODUCTION OF AVANT- GARDE MASTERPIECE MARAT/SADE TAKES FRESH LOOK AT 
FRENCH REVOLUTION AND SIXTIES AMERICA 
***
Leading American Political Playwright And Director Fred Newman Sees New 
Production of Classic '64 Play As Reflection On Huey Newton And The 60s 

Playwright and director, Fred Newman, reflects on Black Panther Party founder 
Huey Newton and America in the 60s in a production of one of the most 
challenging and controversial plays of the last 50 years, Marat/Sade by Peter 
Weiss. The production, set to open the week of the 58th anniversary of the 
birth of the controversial Black Panther Minister of Defense, will be 
designed by award-winning conceptual artist/stage designer Sheila Goloborotko 
and under the musical direction of Dan Belmont.  Press preview for 
Marat/Sade, Thursday February 10 at 8:30 p.m. Gala opening Friday February 
11th at 8:00 p.m. at the Castillo Theatre, 500 Greenwich Street, between 
Spring and Canal Street. Closes Sun. March 26th.
Marat/Sade, the complete title of which is The Persecution and Assassination 
of Jean-Paul Marat, as Performed by the Inmates of the Asylum of Charenton 
Under the Direction of the Marquis de Sade, is set in 1808 in the bath hall 
of the French insane asylum of Charenton. In the play, one of the inmates, 
the notorious Marquis de Sade, leads an acting company of mental patients and 
political prisoners in an unusual retelling of the murder of the French 
revolutionary leader Jean-Paul Marat. The inmates' production is presented 
before an audience of French aristocracy put increasingly on edge by the 
alarming content of the play and the unpredictable behavior of the 
inmates/cast. Tension mounts as the Marquis' cast turns on its audience of 
privileged voyeurs and acts out its threats of physical violence. 
Fred Newman, artistic director of the Castillo Theatre and director of 
Marat/Sade has gained a reputation for writing and directing controversial 
and vivid stage works, from his collaboration with dancers Bill T. Jones, Amy 
Pivar and designer Goloborotko in Requiem for Communism which The New York 
Times dance critic Anna Kisselgoff called "energetic…admirable and 
indefatigable," to Sally and Tom (The American Way), Newman's musical 
concerning the relationship of Thomas Jefferson and his slave Sally Hemings 
which the Christian Science Monitor described as a "diamond in the off-off 
Broadway rough." 

"Marat/Sade is about many things," according to Newman. "One of them is 
reflection. It is an unusual reflection on a revolution that, in many 
respects, failed. Here, at the beginning of the 21st century, there has been 
an enormous amount of reflection on the 1960's, which many identify as a 
period of  "failed revolution." I see this play, itself a product of the 
60's, as a vehicle for reflection on that extraordinary decade, its promise 
and its failure."

Emmitt Thrower (Jean-Paul Marat) has, over the last decade, brought some of 
the most colorful - and revolutionary - figures of the last century to the 
stage including Paul Robeson, Malcolm X, Patrice Lumumba, Jackie Robinson and 
Satchel Paige. Mr. Thrower, the recipient of numerous Audelco acting award 
nominations (for excellence in Black theater), is portraying the character of 
Jean-Paul Marat.
Over the years, Castillo has become known as one of America's foremost 
political theatres producing works that provocatively tackle timely subjects 
while exploring the human side of the issues and their impact on the people 
involved. 

Marat/Sade is presented by the Castillo Theatre, 500 Greenwich Street, 
between Spring and Canal Sts. It opens Friday February 11 at 8:00 p.m. at the 
Castillo Theatre, 500 Greenwich Street, between Spring and Canal Street. 
Closes Sun. March 26. Performances Thurs, Fri, Sat. 8 p.m.; Sat and Sun 2:00 
p.m. Tickets $25. Group, senior and student discounts available. TDF 
accepted. Box office (212) 941-1234.
***


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