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CLOUDGATE THEATRE ANNOUNCES THE WORLD PREMIERE OF
STRANGE HEART BEATING,
JULY 9 – JULY 28 AT THE FRONTIER
A Dark Fantastical Look at the Rural Midwest and the Prejudices that Lie Beneath
Written by Cloudgate Theatre Artistic Director and Kennedy Center’s
Paula Vogel Playwriting Award Recipient Kristin Idaszak
and Directed by Addie Gorlin
(L to R) Jyreika Guest (Teeny), Leah Raidt (Lena), Brandon Rodriguez (Ramon)
and Stephanie Shum (Lake)
A world premiere, Strange Heart Beating is a darkly fantastical look at the rural Midwest, the murky nature of justice, and the prejudices that lie just beneath the surface. Teeny and Lena grew up together in a rural midwestern town, dreaming of leaving for the big city. But now Teeny is the town sheriff and Lena is a newly single mother. When the body of Lena’s daughter is found near the lake outside of town, their friendship is stretched to the breaking point. But Teeny’s investigation raises more questions than it answers: Have girls been going missing for years? Why are the loons acting so strange? What is the town hiding? Strange Heart Beating is a play about holding vigil, bearing witness, and unburying the truth.
The cast for A Strange Heart Beating includes: Jyreika Guest (Teeny), Leah Raidt (Lena), Brandon Rodriguez (Ramon) and Stephanie Shum (Lake).
The production team includes: Kristin Idaszak, playwright; Addie Gorlin, director; Elena Gonzalez Molina, assistant director; Tara Branham*, casting director; Tanuja Jagernauth*, dramaturg; Lila Gilbert*, production manager; Angela McIlvain, scenic designer; Anna Wooden*, costume designer; Kaili Story, lighting designer; Averi Paulsen, sound designer; Jay Epps, stage manager; Dominic DiGiovanni*, technical director; and Shane Kelly (producer). * Indicates Cloudgate Artistic Associate
ABOUT KRISTIN IDASZAK, playwright
Kristin Idaszak is a playwright, dramaturg, and Cloudgate’s artistic director. A two-time Playwrights’ Center Jerome Fellow, Idaszak has received the Kennedy Center’s Paula Vogel Playwriting Award and the Jean Kennedy Smith Playwriting Award. Her play, Another Jungle, (Relentless Award Honorable Mention) received its world premiere with Cloudgate Theatre and The Syndicate in April 2018. She was the Shank Playwright in Residence at the Goodman Theatre and a member of the 2017-2018 Goodman Playwrights Unit. She has received commissions from EST/The Sloan Foundation, Cleveland Play House, and Shakespeare Festival St. Louis. Her work has been produced or developed by the Goodman Theatre, La Jolla Playhouse, Pasadena Playhouse, Ensemble Studio Theatre, SPACE at Ryder Farm, Williamstown Theatre Festival, Renaissance Theaterworks, The Drama League, and WildClaw, among others. Idaszak is also a resident playwright at Chicago Dramatists and adjunct faculty at The Theatre School at DePaul University. Previously, Idaszak served as associate artistic director/literary manager of Caffeine Theatre and associate artistic director of Collaboraction.
ABOUT ADDIE GORLIN, director
Addie Gorlin hails from Minneapolis and is a director, educator and aspiring artistic director invested in the regional theater movement. Her most recent directing credits include Next to Normal (Brown University undergrad mainstage), Good Person of Szechwan, Eurydice, Twelfth Night, and Streetcar Named Desire (Brown/Trinity), Charm and According to Coyote (Mixed Blood Theatre), Laramie Project (Children’s Theater), I and You (Phoenix Theater), and Five Tries (Cutting Ball Theatre). Gorlin has developed new work at The Playwrights Center, The Lark, Mixed Blood, Riverside Theater, Ivoryton Playhouse, Brown University, and has served as assistant director at The Guthrie, The Public, and Trinity Rep among various others. Fellowships include Artistic Management and Directing at the Cutting Ball Theater and the National New Play Network (NNPN) Producer-in-Residence grant through which she apprenticed in artistic direction at Mixed Blood Theatre. While not in school and freelance directing, Gorlin stays actively engaged in civic theater practice, is a member of the NNPN's Affiliated Artist Council and strategic planning committee and continues to teach: she holds a credential as a 6-12th grade English and Drama teacher which she obtained via Teach for America. B.A. Dartmouth College. M.F.A. candidate Brown/Trinity 2019.
ABOUT CLOUDGATE THEATRE
Cloudgate Theatre produces fiercely theatrical new plays from a queer feminist lens. Prioritizing sustainability and harm reduction, Cloudgate focuses on human-centered artistic practices. It believes that caring for and listening to the artists they work with engenders vibrant, dynamic experiences for its audiences. With each production, the company starts by asking how best to serve the needs of its collaborators and to take its audience on a uniquely theatrical journey.
Cloudgate Theatre creates theatre and performance that challenge the norms of American theatre through intersectional queer feminist narratives. It believes that the theatre is the place to imagine a more liveable world, and work to make it real. The company seeks to create theatrical experiences that foster community, question authority, and offer meaning.
