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REC ROOM ARTS ANNOUNCES 2023 SEASON OF PLAYS IN DOWNTOWN HOUSTON A NUMBER
by Caryl Churchill directed by James Black JANUARY 2 - 25
Caryl Churchill
WOLF PLAY
by Hansol Jung directed by Lily Wolff APRIL 6 - 29
Hansol Jung
HEROES OF THE FOURTH TURNING
PETER PAN
Will Arbery
J.M. Barrie
by Will Arbery directed by Sophia Watt OCTOBER 5 - 28
Adapted from J.M. Barrie directed by Matt Hune DECEMBER 7 - 30
HOUSTON, TX - (Dec 16, 2022) - Rec Room Arts (Artistic Director Matt Hune, Associate Artistic Director Sophia Watt, Managing Director Stefan Azizi) announced the line-up for Rec Room Arts’ 2023 mainstage season of plays at their treasured downtown theater on 100 Jackson Street, with a broad slate of courageous local premieres and re-imagined classics. Along with its signature Green Room Bar, Rec Room has championed itself as Houston’s tiny but mighty theater that presents powerful productions of the highest caliber. Along with the four mainstage productions in 2023, Rec Room will also continue Rec Room Writers’ Group, an initiative that supports the development of new plays by Texas writers. The mainstage productions include Caryl Churchill’s award-winning science-fiction thriller A Number, directed by James Black; the acclaimed regional premiere Wolf Play by Hansol Jung, directed by Lily Wolff; Will Arbery’s Pulitzer Prize finalist Heroes of the Fourth Turning directed by Sophia Watt; and the re-imagined classic Peter Pan for the holidays, adapted from J.M. Barrie to be directed by Matt Hune. “Our 2023 line-up is a radical look into our families, ideologies, and the often dreaded act of growing up,” said Matt Hune. “The artists we are gathering at Rec Room are hardwired to tell stories and the 2023 season is an inquisitive attempt at using stories to deepen an understanding of ourselves.” Hune continued, “Rec Room exists to be an artistic home for Houston artists and audiences that is both inspiringly unconventional and endearingly accessible. Our 55-seat theater and bar are unlike anything else in the city. Our 2023 artists are bringing to life four compelling stories that confront fundamental questions about how we live and what that means for our future. We hope our offerings this year will provide our city the opportunity to come together and reflect through imagination, myth, adventure, and celebration.” In an effort to make theater, and more specifically Rec Room events, more accessible to more people, Rec Room will be providing the following initiatives: Wednesday Fiver - tickets to the first Wednesday of each of the four productions will be $5; first come, first served. $10 Previews - preview performances will be available for purchase online (anytime) and at the box office (one hour before showtime) for $10. Rec Room Arts is committed to welcome audiences back to its beloved downtown home. To play our part in helping to protect everyone as we return, Rec Room requires complete vaccination and negative COVID-19 tests for all artists and staff. If possible, audiences are strongly recommended to stay up to date on COVID vaccinations and boosters. Face masks are not required. All policies are subject to change and are dependent on CDC guidance. Treat yourself to theater and become a subscriber today at www.recroomarts.org
2023 SEASON REC ROOM ARTS’ 2022 THEATRE SEASON: Winner! 2002 Evening Standard Award for Best Play Nominee: 2022 Olivier Awards for Best Revival
A NUMBER
Written by Caryl Churchill Directed by James Black February 2 - 25, 2023 Every parent makes mistakes. But what if you could fix them? Redo the moment? Would you? A psychological thriller that blends scientific speculation with a stunning portrait of the relationship between fathers and sons. Caryl Churchill’s A Number is a powerful, unpredictable and devastating play that delves into the morality of genetic experiments, the essence of paternal love and the debate of nature versus nature. Over multiple meetings Salter reconnects with his sons, grappling over the lies and truths of their shared and uncanny past. Houston Premiere
WOLF PLAY
Written by Hansol Jung Directed by Lily Wolff April 6 - 29, 2023 Robin wants a kid. But she’s not doing it the old-fashioned way. She’s found him online. And now he’s here. In this theater. And her wife is not on-board. The impacts of Robin’s decision ripple through her newly-formed family creating consequences animal in nature. Caught in the middle, the child launches himself on a lone wolf’s journey to find a pack he can call his own. In this wildly theatrical tale about the families we choose and unchoose, Hansol Jung’s Wolf Play hunts for familial connection in the wilds of 21st century America. Houston Premiere Pulitzer Prize Finalist
HEROES OF THE FOURTH TURNING
Written by Will Arbery Directed by Sophia Watt October 5 - 28, 2023 Can you debate your way through pain and fear? Argue the nation into stability? On the edge of the wilderness, four friends gather at a backyard party to honor their mentor and the newly inaugurated president of a conservative Catholic university. It has been years since they last met and as the celebration runs deep into the night, their reunion spirals into spiritual chaos and a vicious fight to be understood. Will Arbery’s haunting play offers grace and disarming clarity, speaking to the heart of a country at war with itself, and a generation facing the demons of the modern American experience. Holiday Production
PETER PAN
Adapted from J.M. Barrie Directed by Matt Hune December 9 - 30, 2023 You will not live forever. At 12 years old what do you do with this knowledge? A festival of disobedience, magic, and makebelieve pulled from J.M. Barrie’s original story about a strange boy who comes through the window of an ordinary family and takes the children on an adventure. Set in a London Victorian flat in 1980, before the loss of imaginative play at the onset of the internet. An enchanted production about bedtime and storytime, of defiance and humility, of prudent girls, lost boys, pirates, ticking crocs, going home, mothers, fathers, dogs, dreams, and the infamously horrendous grown-up Captain Hook. A nearly impossible piece to stage at Rec Room, which is why the creative team has jumped at the chance to dream up an inventive and wild adaptation of the beloved classic.
2023 SEASON ONGOING PROGRAM AT REC ROOM ARTS: REC ROOM WRITERS GROUP is a long-term writers group for Houston playwrights to develop and workshop new plays. The program provides essential support to emerging writers including; space, time, mentorship, and community in order to foster the future of American theatre. Meeting bi-weekly for 8 to 9 months, the playwrights gather at Rec Room, reading and offering critical and supportive responses to each other’s work. The group culminates in a collection of public readings. Writers are selected yearly, and after the first year of residency members have continued access to advocacy and resources for the creation of new work in Houston and beyond. Members of the group are invited to special events and receive complimentary tickets to Rec Room productions. TICKETS AND INFORMATION: Single Tickets can be purchased online by visiting www.recroomarts.org or in-person at the box office one hour before curtain. Single ticket prices range from $15 - $40. Season Tickets for the four-show season are available for purchase online at www.recroomarts.org or in-person at the box office. Each production runs Wednesday - Saturday evenings with showtimes at 7:30 every night. All shows are downtown at Rec Room, 100 Jackson Street, Houston, TX 77002 ABOUT REC ROOM ARTS: Rec Room Arts is a non-profit theatre organization whose mission is to develop innovative performances by emerging and established artists in order to energize a new generation of audiences for the arts. Rec Room Arts is interested in providing unique and enjoyable experiences through theatre that enhance the cultural imagination and social wellbeing of Houston. Rec Room believes in the theatrical examination of individual experiences and operates under the principles that theatre shapes behaviors, patterns, and the collective unconscious. Furthermore, Rec Room believes in the importance of making the overall experience of going to the theatre pleasurable. Therefore, audiences are invited to arrive early and stay late to socialize in our bar. Matt Hune is Artistic Director/Co-founder; Stefan Azizi is Managing Director; Sophia Watt is Associate Artistic Director. ###