Theatre 4the People makes their post-COVID return with UNDER THE DRAGON’S TAIL, 4 SHORT PLAYS
New York, New York — Theatre 4the People and Matthew Corozine Studio Theater present the world premiere of UNDER THE DRAGONS TAIL, 4 SHORT PLAYS, written and directed by Isaac Byrne. UNDER THE DRAGONS TAIL begins performances on Wednesday, July 20 for a limited engagement through Sunday, August 14. The performance schedule is Wednesday – Thursday at 7:00 p.m.; Friday – Saturday at 8:00 p.m.; Sunday at 3:00 p.m. Please note, there are no performances on Wednesday 8/3 & 8/10 and Thursday 8/4 & 8/11. Performances are at the Matthew Corozine Studio Theater (357 West 36th Street, 2nd floor; between 8th & 9th Avenues). Tickets are $35; Wednesday are pay-what-you-can at the door. For tickets and more information visit Theatre4ThePeople.org.
Snakes, myths, space, and self-help gurus collide in four tragicomic short plays. After a heist gone wrong, three criminals wrestle with trust, truth, and terrible choices in Ophiology. In The Golden Fleece, Jason (of the Argonauts) finally tells the full truth of what happened with Medea. A unwilling cosmonaut fights to survive space and find their own way home in Letters to a Young Cosmonaut. In One.Two.Three., two ex-lovers search for answers and meaning from the objects of their past in a battle between philosophy and self-help. In each of these plays, criminals, heroes, cosmonauts, and lovers struggle to find hope and meaning in an absurd and chaotic world.
Playwright and director Isaac Byrne has long been considered a “play whisperer” among the downtown theater community, heralding a score of plays from their development to critically acclaimed runs in New York City and beyond, including The Other Mozart (“strikingly beautiful,” New York Times; Drama Desk nomination), Sara Fellini's In Vestments, and Desiree Burch’s Tar Baby.
During the COVID pandemic, Byrne turned to writing to grapple with the growing isolation, mental health struggles, and grief the health crisis brought. The result is these four short plays — some silly, some searing — thematically linked together by our country’s growing mental health epidemic and our burgeoning relationship with self-help platitudes.
The cast features Aubrey Clyburn (Slow Jam at Kennedy Center), Kat Donachie,
EvanSimone Frazier (Croaks at The Tank), Danielle Grisko (Dex & Abby at Ground Floor Theatre), Conor Hamill (Hamlet, dir Darko Tresnjak, at Harford Stage Company), Mel Mattos, Ksjusha Povod, and Haley Rice. The lighting and scenic designer is Joshua Rose. Sound Design by Chris Cornwell.
Isaac Byrne (playwright/director) has been awarded the NYIT for Outstanding Direction twice and productions he has directed have been nominated for a Drama Desk Award, Off Broadway Alliance award, and 29 NYIT awards. Credits: The Other Mozart, In Vestments, To Nineveh, Tar Baby, Rusalka, and AMP. He has spent decades developing new plays—including notable playwrights Bekah Brunstetter, Chisa Hutchinson, Desiree Burch, Sara Fellini, Sylvia Milo, and Dan Kitrosser. This is his first production as a playwright.