Arts News

Shiloh Rules

By Amy Somensky Feb 21, 2006, 5:24 GMT

Photo by Kila Packett

New York: Flying Fig Theater and Middle Tennessee State University proudly present the NY Premiere of Shiloh Rules, written by Doris Baizley and directed by Michaela Goldhaber. This limited engagement will run from March 18th to April 9, 2006 with opening night set for March 24th at the Gene Frankel Theatre.
 
Shiloh Rules is a sharp satire set on the eve of one of the Civil War's bloodiest engagements, the Battle of Shiloh. Well, the reenactment of the Battle of Shiloh, that is. When rival, hardcore Civil War buffs begin the battle prematurely, it sets off a firestorm. Six women caught up in this madness, hilarity and drama fight each other, help each other and learn that there is more to remembering the American Civil War than Authentic costumes, bandages and chloroform. The play delves into the madness that drove American citizens to take up arms against each other in a bloody Civil War, and how, nearly 150 years later, we often find ourselves staring at each other over those same lines, re-enacting similar battles in our everyday lives.

Shiloh Rules was developed at The Mark Taper Forum in LA and had its world premiere at The Alabama Shakespeare Festival. Baizley's other works include Mrs. California and Catholic Girls.

The cast includes Gwen Eyster, Cordis Heard, Janine Kyanko, Judi Lewis Ockler, Samarra, and Kate Weiman. The production team is made up of Scott Boyd (Scenic and Lighting Design), Alisha Engle (Costume Design), Christopher Colucci (Sound Design), Chris and Judi Ockler (Fight Choreography).

Flying Fig Theater, led by Co-Artistic Directors/Producers Michaela Goldhaber and Heather Ondersma, is a non-profit theater company dedicated to producing compelling theatrical stories about women's lives. Flying Fig commissions new plays by contemporary playwrights and rediscovers plays of the past. The company challenges standards of beauty and social convention through non-traditional casting and unconventional performance spaces.

The Gene Frankel Theatre is located at 24 Bond Street between Lafayette & Bowery in NYC. Tickets are $18 and can be obtained by calling 212-868-4444 or visitting www.smarttix.com/show.aspx?showCode=SHI2. For more information on the company visit www.flyingfig.org.