Fight Fest

The Brick Theater, Inc.

in association with

Art Meets Commerce

presents

Theater is dangerous.

Bring a weapon.

DECEMBER 1-20 @ THE BRICK

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Read Press about the fest here!

FIGHT FEST is a theater festival dedicated to showcasing the art of stage combat, curated by Timothy Haskell (creator of Road House, the stage version of the cinema classic; Nightmare: New York's Most Horrifying Haunted House and The Jaded Assassin), Abby Marcus and Qui Nguyen of Vampire Cowboys Theatre Company (Fight Girl Battle World and Soul Samurai), and the staff of The Brick (creators of The Kung Fu Importance of Being Earnest and Macbeth Without Words).

Stage combat is one of the unsung arts of the theater. While martial arts have taken the film world by storm in recent years, stage fight direction remains less celebrated. The Brick Theater Inc. will continue the “fight” to change that in December 2009 with FIGHT FEST—a three week theater festival of fight choreography.

Famed fight companies and artists will present work for the first time ever under one roof. From Rapier, to Chainsaw, Martial Arts, Trash Cans, Pirate Skirmish, Firearms, Brawling Broads, Cartoon Violence, Simian Combat and everything in between…all forms of stage battle will be represented. We expect to bring the festival back continually as the demand for Fight Plays expands. As The NY Clown Theatre Festival at The Brick has become the international destination for Clown Theater arts every Fall, so FIGHT FEST promises to become the primary destination for stage combat arts around the world. If you have never seen a Fight Play, think of it as a musical in which characters break into fights, rather than songs.

For FIGHT FEST SCHEDULE BY DATE, click HERE.

Festival Events:
	FIGHT FEST Cabarets: Free Preview Cabaret Tue, Dec. 1 at 8pm FREE! Five-minute excerpts of Mainstage Plays, followed by the Opening Night Party! Free tickets will be gone before you finish this sentence. Reserve online immediately! (Limited number of additional tickets will be released at 7:55pm on December 1st.) Fight Fest Cabaret Saturday, Dec 19 at 8pm Youngblood returns to The Brick! New York's most exciting troupe of emerging playwrights bring the fury with five brand new short plays featuring beatings, mayhem and assorted onstage violence. Catch six new plays from writers of Youngblood! plus *The Zombie Project: The Story of Icarus Phoenix* Written, Directed and Fight Directed by Stephanie Cox-Williams A glimpse of what will hopefully be a full-length production in the near future. The Zombie Project: The Story of Icarus Phoenix details the beginning of the zombie attacks and the creation of someone who could be the savior of the world. A girl has to decide if she gives up or if she will use her self-taught skills and wits to overcome the situation into which she's been thrown. (a short work) $18 FIGHT FEST Party: Saturday, Dec 5 from 9:30pm to Midnight Details TBA!

Mainstage Shows:

	Butterfly, Butterfly, Kill Kill Kill! In 1967, Japanese B-movie director Seijun Suzuki was fired by Nikkatsu Studios for turning standard yakuza-flick scripts into frenetic works of cinematic invention, which the studio called "incomprehensible." Forty years later, Depth Charge presents a whirlwind theatrical concoction inspired by Suzuki’s accidental masterpiece Branded to Kill. Presented by Depth Charge Fight Directed by Patrick Harrison, Adam Mazer, Ian Picco Written and Directed by Patrick Harrison Visit the Facebook Page! See rehearsal footage! Tue Dec 8 @ 10pm Wed Dec 9 @ 10pm Sat Dec 12 @ 9:30pm Sun Dec 13 @ 7pm Tickets: $12 35 minutes

	The Buccaneer Presented by FightO LLP Written, Fight/Directed by Jacob Grigolia-Rosenbaum Fight Director Jacob Grigolia-Rosenbaum (Sailor Man, Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson) takes you back to a time when the men were strong, the women were tough and everyone was armed to the teeth! In this first installment, our hero awakens to find himself blade-to-blade with the Red Leather Fox, an assassin hired by his jilted bride. The Buccaneer must use all his wits to win back his true love's heart while staying one step ahead of the nefarious plots of the evil Queen of Spain. Visit the Facebook Page! Thu Dec 3 at 7pm Sun Dec 6 at 3:30pm Sun Dec 6 at 8:30pm Tickets: $18 45 minutes

	Craven Monkey and the Mountain of Fury The creators of Macbeth Without Words bring you a Darwinian martial-arts fairy tale in which monkeys and monsters beat the crap out of each other. Can one perverted Simian overcome his family, a gang of grotesque predators and Mother Nature herself to evolve to the next level of life? Or will he end up just another damn dead monkey? Presented by Piper McKenzie Productions Conceived by Hope Cartelli and Jeff Lewonczyk Written and directed by Jeff Lewonczyk and created by the Company Fight Directed by Qui Nguyen and Adam Swiderski www.pipermckenzie.com Visit the Facebook Page! Tue Dec 8 at 8pm Fri Dec 11 at 10:30pm Sun Dec 13 at 1pm Thu Dec 17 at 7pm Fri Dec 18 at 8pm Tickets: $18 80 minutes

	Deck the Hallmans! Deck The Hallmans! is an improvised holiday sitcom (with fights) revolving around Bob & Carol Hallman's Christmas celebration. It's shaping up to be a traditional holiday with the whole Hallman family together! Hopefully no one from their past will ruin this perfect occasion. Who would fight on Christmas? Before the evening is over you, too, will want to Deck The Hallmans! Presented by Ten Directions Improvised by the ensemble from a concept by Audrey Crabtree Directed by Audrey Crabtree Fight Directed by Adam Swiderski www.tendirections.net Visit the Facebook Page! Sun Dec 6 at 6pm Wed Dec 9 at 8pm Sat Dec 12 at 11pm Sun Dec 13 at 8:30pm Sat Dec 19 at 11pm Tickets: $18 80 minutes

	Evolution Evolution presents a creative imagining of the genesis of the "badass" from the dawn of man through modern day. A cast of 24 fighters using martial arts, broadswords, spears, guns, rapiers, axes, katanas, switchblades, clubs, smallswords, tomahawks, rocks and anything we can get our hands on explores fighting techniques that have helped shape history…and "badassery!" Presented by En Garde Entertainment Fight Directed by David Dean Hastings Conceived & Written by Alexandra Hastings and David Dean Hastings Directed by Alexandra Hastings Visit Evolution on Facebook! Fri Dec 11 @ 8pm Sat Dec 12 @ 7pm Mon Dec 14 @ 8pm Thu Dec 17 @ 10:00pm Tickets: $18 80 minutes

	Last Life In a borderless, burnt-out world the few remaining inhabitants are at the end of a long, indefinable war. The survivors, not knowing what they are even fighting for, vow to destroy each other and wrest control for what remains. The new fightsical from the creator of Road House: The Stage Play and starring Taimak (of the legendary fight film, The Last Dragon). Presented by Big Time Action Theatre Fight Directed by Rod Kinter Written by Eric Sanders Directed by Timothy Haskell www.lastlifetheplay.com Join the Facebook Fan Page! Fri Dec 4 @ 7pm Sat Dec 5 @ 4pm Sat Dec 5 @ 8pm Thu Dec 10 @ 7pm Wed Dec 16 @ 9:30pm Sat Dec 19 @ 2:30pm Tickets: $18 70 minutes

	The Ninja Cherry Orchard In turn-of-the-century Russia, the Ranevsky country estate must be sold for debts. But will the family sell their beloved cherry trees? Will the lovelorn affections of a fading aristocracy triumph over common sense? Or will a 14th-Century Japanese assassin slaughter everyone? From the creators of The Kung Fu Importance of Being Earnest. Presented by The Brick Theater, Inc. Fight Directed by Qui Nguyen and Alexis Black Assistant Directed by Gyda Arber Written and Directed by Michael Gardner www.bricktheater.com/ninjacherryorchard Visit the Facebook Page! Friend The Ninja. (At your peril.) Thu Dec 10 @ 9:30pm Sun Dec 13 @ 4pm Fri Dec 18 @ 11pm Sun Dec 20 @ 4pm Tickets: $18 90 minutes

	Power Burn 3 When two women must compete for the same promotion at a fitness company, corporate in-fighting spills out of the conference room and onto the mean streets. These ladies don't mind a few broken heels - or broken ribs. They will exercise their right....to fight! Presented by Cat Fight Productions Fight Directed by Carrie Brewer Written by Alana McNair and Kate Wilkinson Directed by Stephen Brackett Join the Facebook Fan Page! Tue Dec 15 at 8pm Wed Dec 16 at 7pm Sat Dec 19 at 5:30pm Sun Dec 20 @ 1pm Tickets: $18 80 minutes

Fight Fest has been chosen as a member of WNYC’s STAR Initiative!

Fight Fest is made possible by the NYC Department of Cultural Affairs.

FIGHT FEST is represented by Emily Owens PR.