What's on the Menu this Evening?
Nat was incredibly, staggeringly honored to have been nominated for his fourth New York Innovative Theatre Award and second in the category of Outstanding Solo Performance (this time for Temerity Theatre's production of Edmond Malin's Generic Magic Realism, directed by DeLisa M. White).
Nat previously won the NY IT Award for Outstanding Solo Performance in 2011 for his Lovecraftian one-man show, I Am Providence, and for Outstanding Full-Length Script in 2009 for his The Reckoning of Kit & Little Boots. Nat was also nominated in 2009 for Outstanding Director for the premiere production of Any Day Now (which took home the award for Lead Actress, Elyse Mirto).
The awards ceremony were held on September 30th. Here is Playbill.com's article for a list of all the other nominees.
Nat previously won the NY IT Award for Outstanding Solo Performance in 2011 for his Lovecraftian one-man show, I Am Providence, and for Outstanding Full-Length Script in 2009 for his The Reckoning of Kit & Little Boots. Nat was also nominated in 2009 for Outstanding Director for the premiere production of Any Day Now (which took home the award for Lead Actress, Elyse Mirto).
The awards ceremony were held on September 30th. Here is Playbill.com's article for a list of all the other nominees.
UP NEXT:
TBA soon!
NOW RUNNING:
THEY WILL OUTLIVE US ALL
This past April, Nat filmed the upcoming horror-comedy THEY WILL OUTLIVE US ALL, directed by Patrick Shearer, written by Jessi Gotta, and produced by Gotta & Two Shearers Films. Screenings will be announced soon! In the meantime, check out its fantastic press, groove to its official website, and dig on the trailer and two teasers:
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"HIGH MAINTENANCE"
Nat was also thrilled to make a quick and dirty cameo in the smash webseries High Maintenance:
Nat is also excited to be working on several new scripts (including a couple musicals) and gearing up for several film projects. More on those puppies as they develop.
A puppy. Developing.
You just missed ...
LICKSPITTLES, BUTTONHOLERS & DAMNED PERNICIOUS GO-BETWEENS
A new play by Johnna Adams
Three extraneous Danish court officials: a professional loud mouth (the buttonholer), a kiss ass for hire (the lickspittle) and a successful dastard (the go-between) are tossed out of court just as Denmark's merchant fleet becomes of strategic importance in the Napoleonic war. The three men journey to France and meet Napoleon's top lickspittle, buttonholer and go-between, their female counterparts. Plots abound, flying machines are destroyed and the head of Marie Antoinette is discovered during the madcap struggle to save Copenhagen from British howitzers. The main characters speak in rhyming Alexandrine verse, while a host of supporting characters converse in sestinas, haiku, free verse, limericks and sonnets. In a rhyming, metered world, the offbeat rules.
Directed by John Hurley
Featuring:
Nat Cassidy*
Gavin Starr Kendall
Joseph Mathers*
Shashanah Newman
Kelley Rae O'Donnell*
Ridley Parson*
Amy Lee Pearsall*
Isaiah Tanenbaum*
Kristen Vaughan
Chris Weikel*
Stage Manager: Sarah Lahue
Assistant Stage Manager: David Gold
Costume Design: Cheryl McCarron
Lighting Design: Benjamin Weill
Props Design: Sara Slagle
Sound Design: Jacob Subotnick
Fight Direction: Michael Lawrence Eisenstein
Showtimes:
September 14th at 8pm
September 15th at 3pm
September 22nd at 7pm
September 24th at 8pm
September 26th at 8pm
October 3rd at 8pm
October 4th at 8pm
October 5th at 8pm
October 6th at 3pm
TheaterLab
357 W 36th Street, 3rd Floor
(Between 8th & 9th Aves)
NYC
LICKSPITTLES... ran in rotating repertory with TO FOOL THE EYE and CANDIDA
A new play by Johnna Adams
Three extraneous Danish court officials: a professional loud mouth (the buttonholer), a kiss ass for hire (the lickspittle) and a successful dastard (the go-between) are tossed out of court just as Denmark's merchant fleet becomes of strategic importance in the Napoleonic war. The three men journey to France and meet Napoleon's top lickspittle, buttonholer and go-between, their female counterparts. Plots abound, flying machines are destroyed and the head of Marie Antoinette is discovered during the madcap struggle to save Copenhagen from British howitzers. The main characters speak in rhyming Alexandrine verse, while a host of supporting characters converse in sestinas, haiku, free verse, limericks and sonnets. In a rhyming, metered world, the offbeat rules.
Directed by John Hurley
Featuring:
Nat Cassidy*
Gavin Starr Kendall
Joseph Mathers*
Shashanah Newman
Kelley Rae O'Donnell*
Ridley Parson*
Amy Lee Pearsall*
Isaiah Tanenbaum*
Kristen Vaughan
Chris Weikel*
Stage Manager: Sarah Lahue
Assistant Stage Manager: David Gold
Costume Design: Cheryl McCarron
Lighting Design: Benjamin Weill
Props Design: Sara Slagle
Sound Design: Jacob Subotnick
Fight Direction: Michael Lawrence Eisenstein
Showtimes:
September 14th at 8pm
September 15th at 3pm
September 22nd at 7pm
September 24th at 8pm
September 26th at 8pm
October 3rd at 8pm
October 4th at 8pm
October 5th at 8pm
October 6th at 3pm
TheaterLab
357 W 36th Street, 3rd Floor
(Between 8th & 9th Aves)
NYC
LICKSPITTLES... ran in rotating repertory with TO FOOL THE EYE and CANDIDA
OLD FAMILIAR FACES
A new play by Nat cassidy
An intertwining of the lives of Charles and Mary Lamb, the brother-sister team revered for their Tales from Shakespeare and plagued by a dangerous madness, and Lee and Oliver, two modern American actors whose difficult romance echoes that of another famous theatrical couple, Old Familiar Faces is a heartfelt examination of loss, love, insanity, and blank verse.
Produced by Tin Drum Productions
In association with FringeNYC, The Present Company
STARRING:
Tandy Cronyn*
Marianne Miller*
James Patrick Nelson*
Sam Tsoutsouvas*
*member, AEA
WHERE:
The Players Theatre (115 Macdougal Street, NYC)
WHEN:
August 11th (Sunday) - 12pm
August 13th (Tuesday) - 2pm
August 16th (Friday) - 9:15pm
August 18th (Sunday) - 7:30pm
August 24th (Saturday) - 5pm
Press:
Adam McGovern, Fanchild:
"[A] wise and moving new play ... Cassidy’s perception into a dimly distant time is matched by his insight into the always even harder truths to see about our own ... The frankness and feeling of now we get from both pairs of characters, behind the veil of legend and with the guard of the fourth wall down, is remarkable. ... [Old Familiar Faces features a] luminously shaded, humane and intrepid performance by Tandy Cronyn [and] a portrayal of astonishing wit and warmth by Sam Tsoutsouvas ... The play enacts some of the most tender connections and most honest and aware accounts of mental illness and disintegrating relationships I've ever seen ... As heartbreaking as anything in the theatrical canon."
Sarah Tuft, Usher Nonsense:
"[M]agical ... masterful direction by Cassidy ... [Shakespeare's] verse is so beautifully illuminated by Cassidy’s storytelling, knowledge of Shakespeare is not a pre-requisite for enjoying the show. But language is the real love object of this play. And the delight of Old Familiar Faces is the extent to which Cassidy’s own words resonate with poetry and meaning so much so, that he can move from Shakespeare’s words to his own without anyone but a Shakespeare scholar (or devoted theater artist) knowing where each begins and ends, much like the narratives themselves. ... [Moments are] so poetic, so full of insight and understanding, they felt like [Shakespeare's] 38th play and drew tears from my formerly chirpy friend. ... So much brilliance on stage. ... Old Familiar Faces is a can’t-miss show in the 2013 FringeNYC season."
Mitch Montgomery, Surreal Time Press:
"Brimming with acerbic wit ... Ingenious ... The counterpoint here is spectacular, not to mention ballsy. It takes a lot of nerve for a playwright to put his own text right next to – literally – the greatest words ever written for the theater. Cassidy pulls it off, mostly thanks to the dry sense of humor sneaking through the piece and giving it mischievous life. ... I will have to show up for Reverend Cassidy’s next sermon."
Nathaniel Kressen, nytheatre.com:
"Cassidy [is] a seismic talent ... He is a craftsman of the stage, and earns one’s trust from the start. ... He entrenches us in the dualities of mental illness and caregiving, pride and insecurity, all-consuming joy and outright hatred. Characters take flight and are racked with guilt. Others remain and are haunted by time passing. The world of this play is messy and of the gut, not the brain, and yet still manages to articulate the magic of Shakespeare’s work without resorting to didacticism. I can’t imagine another contemporary playwright who would think to use the slang, insults, and bawdy humor of Shakespeare as a way to inform the inner and outer lives of his non-Shakespearean characters. It’s a gutsy move characteristic of Cassidy, and one that perhaps only he could pull off successfully."
Susyanne Dottino, Show Business Weekly:
"Somewhere between madness and murder, loving and leaving is where the heart of [Nat] Cassidy’s impressionistic, funny and personal new play Old Familiar Faces lies. ... Led by a first rate cast, Nat Cassidy’s two-act play examines the difficulties, compromises and pain that come from loving, deeply. The stakes are naturally high and the lows are acutely felt ... Thanks to [Cassidy's] formidable gift with language, the effort these couples make to keep loving despite the difficulties, and harder still, when the love is no longer reciprocated, is playful, beautiful and decidedly worth it. ... Stripped of their 'language,' the holes in their relationship are exposed. Jealousy, lying, and deceit eat away at their relationship and so, they go their separate ways in what was surely the most gorgeously written scene of the play. "
Shawna Cormier, Theatre is Easy:
"This new play reinvents and thrills. ... Cassidy weaves an ornate tapestry full of little gems of searing humor, haunting violence, deep regret, and profound love. As the play unfolds you are constantly surprised how much in common you have with all the characters he has created. ... The non-linear structure hooks you in from the beginning, teasing you with bits and pieces of bait along the way. ... Cassidy's language envelops you. At times, it is reminiscent of Christopher Durang and even Tony Kushner. One moment you are laughing hysterically and the next you are questioning everything you know. ... As Mary Lamb tells her brother, 'Use your own words.' Cassidy does and it is a language I want to hear again and again. "
Wendy Caster, Show Showdown:
"Combining quotations from Shakespeare and his own blank verse, Cassidy presents us with much that is beautiful and moving. To combine his own writing with Shakespeare's takes, what?, daring, courage, ego, balls? But Cassidy pulls it off, and the play is an aural pleasure. ... I hope the future brings Old Familiar Faces back to New York for longer than a Fringe-length stay."
Maxamoo:
"We’re nearing the point that when Nat Cassidy is in something or writes something or produces something, we just show up without needing any further information."
Maxamoo (again!):
"Romeo & Juliet with Orlando Bloom and Condola Rashad is opening soon. But seriously, do we need another rendition of this play? If you, too, would rather see innovative, original work then head to Old Familiar Faces by Nat Cassidy. It will both satisfy your hunger for blank verse from the Bard and expose you to one of the hottest young playwrights in town."
Backstage:
10 Shows to See!
Culture Radar:
11 Shows Not to Miss!
NorthJersey.com:
Productions of Note!
Produced by Tin Drum Productions
In association with FringeNYC, The Present Company
STARRING:
Tandy Cronyn*
Marianne Miller*
James Patrick Nelson*
Sam Tsoutsouvas*
*member, AEA
WHERE:
The Players Theatre (115 Macdougal Street, NYC)
WHEN:
August 11th (Sunday) - 12pm
August 13th (Tuesday) - 2pm
August 16th (Friday) - 9:15pm
August 18th (Sunday) - 7:30pm
August 24th (Saturday) - 5pm
Press:
Adam McGovern, Fanchild:
"[A] wise and moving new play ... Cassidy’s perception into a dimly distant time is matched by his insight into the always even harder truths to see about our own ... The frankness and feeling of now we get from both pairs of characters, behind the veil of legend and with the guard of the fourth wall down, is remarkable. ... [Old Familiar Faces features a] luminously shaded, humane and intrepid performance by Tandy Cronyn [and] a portrayal of astonishing wit and warmth by Sam Tsoutsouvas ... The play enacts some of the most tender connections and most honest and aware accounts of mental illness and disintegrating relationships I've ever seen ... As heartbreaking as anything in the theatrical canon."
Sarah Tuft, Usher Nonsense:
"[M]agical ... masterful direction by Cassidy ... [Shakespeare's] verse is so beautifully illuminated by Cassidy’s storytelling, knowledge of Shakespeare is not a pre-requisite for enjoying the show. But language is the real love object of this play. And the delight of Old Familiar Faces is the extent to which Cassidy’s own words resonate with poetry and meaning so much so, that he can move from Shakespeare’s words to his own without anyone but a Shakespeare scholar (or devoted theater artist) knowing where each begins and ends, much like the narratives themselves. ... [Moments are] so poetic, so full of insight and understanding, they felt like [Shakespeare's] 38th play and drew tears from my formerly chirpy friend. ... So much brilliance on stage. ... Old Familiar Faces is a can’t-miss show in the 2013 FringeNYC season."
Mitch Montgomery, Surreal Time Press:
"Brimming with acerbic wit ... Ingenious ... The counterpoint here is spectacular, not to mention ballsy. It takes a lot of nerve for a playwright to put his own text right next to – literally – the greatest words ever written for the theater. Cassidy pulls it off, mostly thanks to the dry sense of humor sneaking through the piece and giving it mischievous life. ... I will have to show up for Reverend Cassidy’s next sermon."
Nathaniel Kressen, nytheatre.com:
"Cassidy [is] a seismic talent ... He is a craftsman of the stage, and earns one’s trust from the start. ... He entrenches us in the dualities of mental illness and caregiving, pride and insecurity, all-consuming joy and outright hatred. Characters take flight and are racked with guilt. Others remain and are haunted by time passing. The world of this play is messy and of the gut, not the brain, and yet still manages to articulate the magic of Shakespeare’s work without resorting to didacticism. I can’t imagine another contemporary playwright who would think to use the slang, insults, and bawdy humor of Shakespeare as a way to inform the inner and outer lives of his non-Shakespearean characters. It’s a gutsy move characteristic of Cassidy, and one that perhaps only he could pull off successfully."
Susyanne Dottino, Show Business Weekly:
"Somewhere between madness and murder, loving and leaving is where the heart of [Nat] Cassidy’s impressionistic, funny and personal new play Old Familiar Faces lies. ... Led by a first rate cast, Nat Cassidy’s two-act play examines the difficulties, compromises and pain that come from loving, deeply. The stakes are naturally high and the lows are acutely felt ... Thanks to [Cassidy's] formidable gift with language, the effort these couples make to keep loving despite the difficulties, and harder still, when the love is no longer reciprocated, is playful, beautiful and decidedly worth it. ... Stripped of their 'language,' the holes in their relationship are exposed. Jealousy, lying, and deceit eat away at their relationship and so, they go their separate ways in what was surely the most gorgeously written scene of the play. "
Shawna Cormier, Theatre is Easy:
"This new play reinvents and thrills. ... Cassidy weaves an ornate tapestry full of little gems of searing humor, haunting violence, deep regret, and profound love. As the play unfolds you are constantly surprised how much in common you have with all the characters he has created. ... The non-linear structure hooks you in from the beginning, teasing you with bits and pieces of bait along the way. ... Cassidy's language envelops you. At times, it is reminiscent of Christopher Durang and even Tony Kushner. One moment you are laughing hysterically and the next you are questioning everything you know. ... As Mary Lamb tells her brother, 'Use your own words.' Cassidy does and it is a language I want to hear again and again. "
Wendy Caster, Show Showdown:
"Combining quotations from Shakespeare and his own blank verse, Cassidy presents us with much that is beautiful and moving. To combine his own writing with Shakespeare's takes, what?, daring, courage, ego, balls? But Cassidy pulls it off, and the play is an aural pleasure. ... I hope the future brings Old Familiar Faces back to New York for longer than a Fringe-length stay."
Maxamoo:
"We’re nearing the point that when Nat Cassidy is in something or writes something or produces something, we just show up without needing any further information."
Maxamoo (again!):
"Romeo & Juliet with Orlando Bloom and Condola Rashad is opening soon. But seriously, do we need another rendition of this play? If you, too, would rather see innovative, original work then head to Old Familiar Faces by Nat Cassidy. It will both satisfy your hunger for blank verse from the Bard and expose you to one of the hottest young playwrights in town."
Backstage:
10 Shows to See!
Culture Radar:
11 Shows Not to Miss!
NorthJersey.com:
Productions of Note!
Honey Fist
A Play By August Schulenburg
Set outside of Boston, Honey Fist follows a group of old friends gathering for an annual bender honoring Justin, a high school buddy who died too young. An old adversary who turned Hollywood shows up with a movie star on his arm and a Porsche for the person who shares the best story about Justin. After the story-telling ends in a fight, the friends kidnap the movie star girlfriend as payback, and her presence unearths a painful truth about how Justin really died.
Honey Fist runs in rep with Johnna Adams' Sans Merci.
Press:
"The cast does an amazing job and all give phenomenal performances.
Each one locks onto the truth of their character."
- Gina Femia, New York Theatre Review
"Joey [is] played with convincing rawness by Nat Cassidy."
- Jon Sobel, Stage Mage
"Cassidy [is] full of nervous energy and desperation."
- Wendy Caster, Show Showdown
"Well acted by a cast of six ... all of whom bring their characters to raw and vivid life ...
[A]s stirring a theatrical experience as any on offer right now."
- Martin Denton, NYTheatre
"The actors are all deeply honest and real ... Cassidy is full of a barely
suppressed overwhelming desire that finally gets to explode in later scenes."
- Duncan Pflaster, Broadway World
Honey Fist
By August Schulenburg
Directed by Kelly O’Donnell
Produced by Flux Theatre Ensemble
APRIL 30 - MAY 18, 2013
Starring:
Matt Archambault
Nat Cassidy*
Lori E. Parquet*
Anna Rahn*
Isaiah Tanenbaum
Chinaza Uche*
*AEA-approved Showcase
Where:
4th STREET THEATRE
83 East 4th Street
Honey Fist runs in rep with Johnna Adams' Sans Merci.
Press:
"The cast does an amazing job and all give phenomenal performances.
Each one locks onto the truth of their character."
- Gina Femia, New York Theatre Review
"Joey [is] played with convincing rawness by Nat Cassidy."
- Jon Sobel, Stage Mage
"Cassidy [is] full of nervous energy and desperation."
- Wendy Caster, Show Showdown
"Well acted by a cast of six ... all of whom bring their characters to raw and vivid life ...
[A]s stirring a theatrical experience as any on offer right now."
- Martin Denton, NYTheatre
"The actors are all deeply honest and real ... Cassidy is full of a barely
suppressed overwhelming desire that finally gets to explode in later scenes."
- Duncan Pflaster, Broadway World
Honey Fist
By August Schulenburg
Directed by Kelly O’Donnell
Produced by Flux Theatre Ensemble
APRIL 30 - MAY 18, 2013
Starring:
Matt Archambault
Nat Cassidy*
Lori E. Parquet*
Anna Rahn*
Isaiah Tanenbaum
Chinaza Uche*
*AEA-approved Showcase
Where:
4th STREET THEATRE
83 East 4th Street
GENERIC MAGIC REALISM
Generic Magic Realism
A one-man play by Ed Malin
Directed by DeLisa White
Starring Nat Cassidy* (2011 NY Innovative Theatre Award winner for Outstanding Solo Performance)
*member, AEA
What happens when the magical world of your average South American person is transplanted to a more northern, less magical, more real location? Join Octavio as he discovers poetry, satire, love, birds, chocolate, hippies and explosives on the way from the Andes to San Francisco during the fragrant 1960s.
Stage Manager: Lauren Arneson
Graphic Designer: Kristina Leath-Malin
Bird Liaison: Wise Old Max
Press:
"It's amazing what can be accomplished on stage with nothing but an extraordinary actor, a guitar, and a generic black box. ... Malin's script is hilarious and insightful and wise, and Cassidy, directed stylishly and intelligently by frequent collaborator DeLisa White, is by turns luminous and illuminating as the cheerful, life-embracing South American wanderer. ... Cassidy invests Octavio with a childlike sense of wonder that's downright infectious; even though this is a performance that's highly physical and often outsized, he maintains a splendid and delightful intimacy with the audience. ... He also brings the other inhabitants of Octavio's tale to vivid life with strongly realized voices and characterizations. White and Malin shrewdly let the words and the speaker make the magic promised by the title, unfettered and free, just as Octavio himself longs to be."
- Martin Denton, nytheatre.com
GOLDSBORO
A Flux Theatre Ensemble Food:Soul Reading Event
Goldsboro
Written by Nat Cassidy
Directed by August Schulenburg
A potluck dinner followed by a staged reading – admission is FREE
Featuring: Ryan Andes, Pete Boisvert, Tandy Cronyn, Neimah Djourabchi, Ken Glickfeld, Rachael Hip-Flores,Will Lowry, Brian Silliman, Isaiah Tanenbaum and Shaun B. Wilson
The Story: In this world of satellite maps and global positioning, sometimes the country can feel so small, so thoroughly defined and categorized. The age of Manifest Destiny and exploration, it seems, is over. However, as an ambitious reporter and scientist are about to find out, there are still places in this land that have yet to be put on any map. And there are still people perhaps best left in the dark…
January 30, 2013
Judson Memorial Church
“Choir Loft” Space
55 Washington Square South
Written by Nat Cassidy
Directed by August Schulenburg
A potluck dinner followed by a staged reading – admission is FREE
Featuring: Ryan Andes, Pete Boisvert, Tandy Cronyn, Neimah Djourabchi, Ken Glickfeld, Rachael Hip-Flores,Will Lowry, Brian Silliman, Isaiah Tanenbaum and Shaun B. Wilson
The Story: In this world of satellite maps and global positioning, sometimes the country can feel so small, so thoroughly defined and categorized. The age of Manifest Destiny and exploration, it seems, is over. However, as an ambitious reporter and scientist are about to find out, there are still places in this land that have yet to be put on any map. And there are still people perhaps best left in the dark…
January 30, 2013
Judson Memorial Church
“Choir Loft” Space
55 Washington Square South
