For its first live, in-person family theater production in more than 15 months, Adventure Theatre MTC (ATMTC) is premiering Fairy Tales in the Sun outdoors at Glen Echo Park, with a preview performance on July 10, 2021, and opening day July 11. The production, directed by Stan Kang, will feature two new one-acts, The Flood in the Future, by Lyra Yang, and From Cinders to Ella, by Michelle Lynch.
“We’ve missed the energy of actors, audience, and compelling scripts,” says Artistic Director Chil Kong. “Marking Adventure’s return from the pandemic with new plays written by these talented women and reflecting other culturess takes on these stories is the perfect relaunch for our theater and for our community.”
In Lyra Wang’s The Flood in the Future, a young girl decides to give up her youth to save the world after being warned by a goddess of an apocalyptic flood that results from water contamination. However, the girl soon learns that an individual’s power is never enough.
Michelle Lynch’s From Cinders to Ella is a play about putting in the hard work to forge your own happily ever after. Ella’s desire to rid her life of grief and hardship leaves her at a crossroads, where running from home just might mean running from what she needs most of all: a family.
While the production will be outside, in the grassy field next to ATMTC and the Irish Inn, mask protocols will still be followed. Explains Executive Director Leon Seemann: “Because most of our audience is not yet vaccine eligible and we want to protect the most vulnerable members of our community, we are requiring masks of all patrons during the show while we’re grouped together to watch this world premiere performance.”
Academy Director Margo Brenner Collins first had the idea to do short versions of fairy tales that could be compared and contrasted in the classroom. Kong selected themes and commissioned local writers, and the new and varied fairy tale productions began rehearsing nine months ago. ATMTC then developed multiple unique versions of fairy tales that were adapted to film during the pandemic, and are now being staged live, restoring the artists’ original vision.
Fairy Tales in the Sun runs July 11 to September 6, 2021, at Adventure Theatre – 7300 MacArthur Park Boulevard, in Glen Echo, MD. For tickets, call the box office at (301) 634-2270 or go online. For more information, visit adventuretheatre-mtc.org.
Lyra Yang (The Flood in the Future) is a DMV-based playwright and screenwriter hailing from China. She is a recipient of Judith Royer Excellence in Playwriting Award, and a playwright fellow at Horticultural Playwrights Workshop. She has had plays developed and presented with the Kennedy Center’s Page-to-Page festival, Cherry Lane Theatre, Miranda Theatre, Round House Theatre, Spooky Action Theatre, Avant Bard Theatre, Silk Road Rising Theatre, Nothing without a Company , etc. MFA in Writing for the Screen and Stage from Northwestern University.
Michelle Marie Lynch (From Cinders to Ella) is a DC-based playwright and dramaturg with a passion for the creation of new works. As a dramaturg, Michelle has collaborated with theaters such as The Kennedy Center, Adventure Theatre MTC, and 4615 Theatre. Michelle’s practice is centered on using theater as a tool to return a voice to the voiceless.
Stan Kang (Director), a native of Arlington, is a professional actor, director, and teacher. Most recently, Stan directed Affinity Lunch Minutes at the Garden. During the COVID quarantine, he has also directed pieces featured in the DMV QFest 2.0. He co-directed his first film, DoubleTap, and his favorite theater role was David Henry Hwang in Yellowface at Theater J. As a stage actor, Stan has worked with many local DC theaters, such as Washington Shakespeare Company, Studio Theater, Horizons Theatre, Washington Stage Guild, Scena Theater, and the Kennedy Center. He teaches directing at HB Woodlawn in Arlington, VA, and has worked as a director with Asian Stories in America (ASIA), where he directed Big Hunk of Burning Love and The Theory of Everything. Stan is a founding member and executive director of the Educational Theatre Company (ETC). He is also a board member of Convergence Theatre, Hope for Grieving Families, and Friends of Arlington Student Film Festival and is also an advisory board member of Washington Stage Guild and Diversity Works.
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Adventure Theatre MTC educates and inspires new generations of theater artists and audiences with exceptional theatrical experiences.
