NNPN Announces the Rolling World Premiere of THE GHOSTS OF LOTE BRAVO by Hilary Bettis
Washington, D.C. - The National New Play Network, the country's alliance of nonprofit theaters that champions the development, production, and continued life of new plays, announces The Ghosts of Lote Bravo by Hilary Bettis as its 56th Rolling World Premiere. The play will receive three productions at NNPN Core Members Borderlands Theater (Tucson, AZ, April 14-May 1, 2016), Unicorn Theatre (Kansas City, MO, April 20-May 8, 2016) and Cleveland Public Theatre/Teatro Publico de Cleveland (OH, March 2017).
NNPN provides production support to the playwright and the partnering theaters, including assistance with the creation and the contracting of the premiere agreement, collaborative interactions between the theaters, and funds for the playwright's residency in each city to further develop the play.
ABOUT THE GHOSTS OF LOTE BRAVO
In Juárez, Mexico, the most violent city in the world, Juanda’s daughter goes missing from the sweatshop they work in. When the crooked policia refuse to help, Juanda's only hope is to ask the dark saint, La Santa Muerte, to guide her. Charging through dreams and visions, Juanda must risk everything if she ever hopes to see her daughter again in this riveting production.
Bettis first developed The Ghosts of Lote Bravo at Juilliard PlayLab and the 2014 MFA Playwrights’ Workshop, hosted each summer by the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival and NNPN. It went on to a reading at the 2014 NNPN National Showcase of New Plays before securing a grant from the NNPN Collaboration Fund to support the script’s translation into Spanish and a workshop in Mexico City in partnership with El Círculo Teatral. NNPN is pleased to be working with American Theatre Wing on several episodes of its Working in the Theatre series, which will document the piece on its Roll across the country.
ABOUT HILARY BETTIS
Hilary Bettis’s plays include: Blood & Dust, The Ghosts of Lote Bravo, The History of American Pornography, Alligator, Dakota Atoll, Mexico and American Girls. Residencies, awards, fellowships, commisions and workshops: Blue Ink Playwriting Award Runner-Up, Audrey Residency at New Georges, Playwrights’Week at The Lark, SPACE at Ryder Farm, Cape Cod Theater Project, The Lark/NYSF at Vassar, Alliance/Kendeda Prize Runner-Up, Leah Ryan Prize Runner-Up, DNA Series at La Jolla Playhouse, Nuestras Voces National Playwriting Competition Runner-Up, NNPN National Showcase of New Plays, O’Neill NPC, Kennedy Center/NNPN, 2050 Fellow at NYTW, Sloan/EST Commission, NYFA Fellow and Crossing Borders Festival at Two River Theater. She has had multiple plays on The Kilroys List and Honorable Mention List. Her play The Ghosts of Lote Bravo will receive an NNPN Rolling World Premiere in 2016-2017 at Borderlands in Tucson, AZ, Unicorn in Kansas City and Cleveland Public in Cleveland, and her play American Girls was recently produced at The Edge in Denver. She is currently working on several feature and short film projects, and has had short films selected for mutliple international festivals. She is a member of EST, Project Y’s writer group, a New Georges Affiliated Artist and a NYTW Usual Suspect. Hilary currently has a TV series in development with Alyssa Milano and NBC. She is a recent graduate of the Lila Acheson Wallace Playwriting Fellowship at The Juilliard School. CAA/Grandview.
ABOUT BORDERLANDS THEATER
Borderlands Theater is a professional theater company recognized nationally and internationally for the development and production of theater and educational programs that reflect the diverse voices of the U.S./ Mexico border region. Its mission is to champion the development and production of new plays while producing plays by established playwrights whose work resonates with the diversity of its audiences; partnering with regional civic organizations to foster diversity in play development and productions; and producing diverse and quality programs for youth.
ABOUT UNICORN THEATRE
Founded in 1974, Unicorn Theatre enhances Kansas City by developing and producing professional, provocative new plays. Unicorn Theatre chooses new plays, most of which are less than five years old, that have never been performed in Kansas City, or often anywhere in our Midwest region or anywhere at all. We look for plays about strong female characters, people of color, LGBT, and any marginalized group. We believe that as theatre artists we should take responsibility for illuminating significant issues and initiating change. Our hope is that every time you come to the Unicorn, you discover something about yourself you did not know before you walked in. Unicorn Theatre is under the artistic and executive leadership of Producing Artistic Director Cynthia Levin, who joined the company in 1979. We have produced more than 300 productions, with 20 percent of those being world premieres. From our home in the Midtown neighborhood of Kansas City, Missouri, the Unicorn houses two intimate stages —The Levin Stage (formerly The Main Stage) and The Jerome Stage (added in 2008).
ABOUT CLEVELAND PUBLIC THEATRE/TEATRO PUBLICO DE CLEVELAND
Cleveland Public Theatre’s mission is to raise consciousness and nurture compassion through groundbreaking performances and life-changing educational programs. CPT develops new, adventurous performance and nurtures Northeastern Ohio artists — particularly those whose work is inventive, intelligent, and socially-conscious. CPT’s acclaimed education programs engage underserved communities in devising new works that speak to contemporary issues, and empower participants to work for positive change in our community. In 2013, Cleveland Public Theatre launched Teatro Publico de Cleveland, a Cleveland-based Latin American theatre ensemble, whose work reflects the artistic goals, interests and ideals of its members. The purpose of this theatre ensemble is to share the rich diversity and perspectives of Latino-Cleveland culture towards fulfilling CPT’s core mission.