More Kinderspiel in the blogosphere

In a recent post on the nytheatre i, Martin mentions Kiran's name (and Stolen Chair's Kinderspiel) as an example of the many sociopolitically engaged playwrights working in New York's indie scene.

On the blog "next door," Michael Criscuolo's nytheatre mike, Michael extends his congratulations for Stolen Chair's New York Press "Best Of..." Award.

Finally, in some random googling for "stolen chair kinderspiel," I found this fantastic essay on Kinderspiel by Stephanie Vella over at Blackbox. Given the fact that it's a critical essay, we will not likely be pulling quotes for our press pages, but it's truly a great read and a terrific companion piece to the production. Here's a snippet:

"As it turns out, people with nothing to live for will pay good money for the opportunity to waste there time on meaningless frivolities. It also turns out that a thorough grasp of dialectical materialism can be more useful to the seller than the sold."

She had me at "dialectical materialism." :)

Just two shows left. Get your name on the waiting list now by emailing me.

We're the best!

In this week's New York Press (links are mine):

BEST GENRE-BENDING NONPROFIT THEATER
Stolen Chair Theatre Company

Every creative artist thinks their über-wacky parody of noir is one for the ages. Not Off-Off-Broadway’s Stolen Chair Theatre Company, which gave such pretentiousness the bird when it premiered Kill Me Like You Mean It earlier this year, the second installment in its “CineTheatre tetralogy.” Their trick is the opposite of being derivative: They smash genres in a theatrical supercollider and see what happens, such as noir being fused with the idiocy of Ionesco in Kill Me. Stage Kiss, meanwhile, fused Charles Ludlam’s theatre of the ridiculous with Elizabethan blank verse; The Man Who Laughs was a silent film for the stage. Stolen Chair’s latest, Kinderspiel (subtitle: “all art is useless”), currently at the Kraine [CORRECTION: Under St. Marks], is yet another genre-bender: a drop of Weimar cabaret in political drama.

Thanks, New York Press!

Ausverkauft

Google tells me this is how you say SOLD OUT in German. I don't trust Google's translations all that much, but I do trust SmartTix's box office report which says we are now officially out of tickets for Kinderspiel. Do not despair, though, because we usually end up releasing between 5 and 10 tickets at the door. So, if you want to catch one of the final three performances, please arrive at the theatre at 7pm to make sure your name gets on the waiting list for no-shows or overflow seating.

We're #2! We're #2!

Check it out over at indietheater.org.

Now all we have to do is find a way to dispose of those Jersey Boys :)

Just 12 tickets left for the run. Buy your tickets online this instant!

I'll be posting a photo album of our "Get Drunk and Play" night in the next few days. Good times...we'll definitely have to throw another one of those sometime very soon.

4 Stars from Time Out NY

UPDATE: The online edition is up. Read it here.

Though the TONY online edition hasn't yet been posted, here's a snippet of Raven Snook's 4-star review of Kinderspiel:

"The inventive folks at the Stolen Chair Theatre Company explore the [Weimar] era with the existential KINDERSPIEL; think NO EXIT decked out in fishnets and Art Deco decay...Jon Stancato directs Kiran Rikhye's unsentimental script with a minimum of fuss...The overall effect is haunting. Watching these slightly cracked adults play with desperate abandon reminds us that the worst of times may bring out the best in artists, but in the end it's the politicians who get to rule (and ruin) the world"

A flavorful pill to swallow

Pardon the painful pun, but here's what Flavorpill's Mr. Paschalides had to say about Kinderspiel:

"There's a delightful irony in watching Kiran Rikhye's delectable frolic of a play Kinderspiel: audiences sit in a musty — yet appropriately atmospheric — basement to watch a play about a bunch of Weimar-era demimonde oddballs who sit around and play like children while customers pay to watch. The playwright provides insight into a glorious era of Berlin history, contrasting it with the economic depression and political upheaval of its time and drawing parallels to contemporary affairs. The childlike idiom is brilliantly developed and performed by the talented cast, leaving Under St. Marks' crowd wanting more."

Pick of the Week

Kinderspiel marks Stolen Chair's third "Pick of the Week" over at nytheatre.com.

Check it out here.

Thanks, Martin.

Get Drunk and Play w/Stolen Chair

"GET DRUNK AND PLAY" NIGHT
Thursday, Oct 18 @ 10pm

Remember transforming your family's old refrigerator box into a dungeon?

The Stolen Chair Theatre Company has spent the past 6 months training to play like kids for KINDERSPIEL ("Child's Play"), a provocative and playful new production running every weekend in October. We've had such a great time "kinderspieling" that we want to invite everyone we know to come join us for a playdate. We've got loads of free wine and a stage filled with fun objects, and we invite you to get drunk and play with us. Or skip the drinks and just play with us. Or skip the playing and drink all you want while you watch other people play with us. Or sit in a corner and play by yourself while knowing that there are people drinking and watching you play.

$10 gets you the open wine bar and about two hours to recapture your youth in the company of friends and complete strangers.

Space is extremely limited so please RSVP by contacting jon@stolenchair.org.

You can find out more about Kinderspiel at www.kinderspiel.us, where you can also click through to SmartTix and purchase your ticket for the show that Martin Denton calls "required viewing for the theatrically adventurous and those in search of the most provocative and thought-provoking work that indie theater has to offer."

Rants and Raves

Martin Denton from nytheatre.com calls it "required viewing for the theatrically adventurous and those in search of the most provocative and thought-provoking work that indie theater has to offer." (Read more...)

Jerry Portwood from Backstage calls it "obnoxious." (Read more...)

Come to the show and decide for yourself. You can buy your tickets here.

FREE WINE and rave review

If you're dance card's not too full, come on down to the Village tonight and catch the 7:30pm performance of Kinderspiel. We're bringing a case of wine in and we want to leave empty handed so it's your civic duty to come and drink our free wine.

And while you go order your tickets, make sure to browse Aaron Riccio's rave review of the show over at New Theater Corps. A snippet:

Stolen Chair bills itself as a company dedicated to the "theft" of "historical performance styles," but it's a crime for which they'd never be convicted. Between this and their recent Commedia dell'Artemisia, they're dramatic Robin Hoods, stealing from a rich theatrical past and producing for a poorly educated present, and I look forward to their next production.

Open for business

Nice loud house last night and we have a big Friday night crowd waiting for us tonight.

I'll post thoughts on the weekend as a whole this Sunday, but here is what the esteemable Mister John Clancy had to say (full disclosure: in addition to being the co-founder of FringeNYC, an Obie-Award winning director, the author of the totally kick-ass Fatboy, and the first winner of the Edinburgh International Festival Award, John and his wife Nancy have been Stolen Chair's consultants for about a year now, advising us as we move forward to the company's 2nd five years):

"Once again, Stolen Chair demonstates what a company can achieve when it commits to the discipline and sacrifice of the laboratory process. Kinderspiel has all of this company's burgeoning trademarks: exquisite, surprising language, fluid, meticulous direction and mesmerizing and courageous performances from an outstanding ensemble. It is a pleasure to watch this young company grow in strength and confidence."

Only 11 performances left! Buy your tickets now...

My goodness that Jon Stancato is a handsome fellow

Check out the Horse Trade roundtable from NYtheatrecast, featuring Stolen Chair's director Jon Stancato chatting about Kinderspiel (have you bought your tickets yet? We open in a few hours...) and the rest of Horse Trade's October productions with tech god Justin Sturges, director johnmichael rossi, and writer/director Todd Michael.