4615 to Present Repertory Premiere of PAPER BACKS and LIFE JACKET Next Month

The first production to be mounted since Founding Artistic Director Jordan Friend's departure from his leadership of the company sees a return to the repertory programming with which the company made its name.

The two plays will be performed back to back in a single evening, creating both exciting contrasts and intriguing synergy. While Willis' paper backs takes place in a shared apartment, Svich's Life Jacket is set on the ocean, The two are united, however, by an exploration of the relationship between their respective characters, and also their relationship to the world they occupy.

4615's Resident Director Stevie Zimmerman will be directing paper backs : "I have lived with this beautiful, tender story of the cyclical nature of love and art for over a year now, since it was shut down by Covid in 2021. I can't wait to get back into the rehearsal room and rediscover its subtleties and surprising depths with these two remarkable actors."

Jordan Friend returns as a guest director to helm - appropriately - the world premiere of Caridad Svich's Life Jacket. Having previously worked on Svich's work for the Housewarming Festival, Friend is both honored and excited to again tackle the playwright's remarkable language and vision. In playwright Svich's words the play is: "a tale of the ties that bind, the stuff in our lives that fray the social fabric, and how two friends weather a storm." She adds: "Life Jacket's premiere at 4615 brings one of the plays that are part of my seven-play cycle, American Psalm, to life. It's a joy to share this working class story of love and survival with audiences in Maryland (as well as DC and Virginia). At a time when so much in society feels and/or is broken, being able to share a new play that seeks to both expose societal wounds and offer spiritual healing, with humor and a dynamic approach to characters, Life Jacket is a metaphorical safety net for those without one."

Previews begin Feb 9, and opening night will be held on Feb 11.

For more information please contact paige@4615theatre.com

TICKETS/LOCATION

Performances at The Writers' Center, 4508 Walsh Street, Bethesda, MD 20815

Tickets are $20. A limited number of Pay-What-You-Can tickets are also available. They can be purchased at www.4615theatre.com/tickets

VENUE INFO

Parking/Transport/Food: The Writers' Center has metered parking across the street, which is free on Sundays. The venue is a 10-15 minute walk from the Bethesda metro stop on the Red Line. There are plenty of great dining options around the corner on Wisconsin Ave, including Persimmon, Moby Dick, and Maki Bar.

Accessibility

The front entrance of The Writer's Center features an ADA-compliant ramp.

PERFORMANCE SCHEDULE

SHOW RUNS APPROX 2 hours including a 15 minute intermission

• Previews Feb 9, 10
• Opening night Feb 11 with performances Thursday, Friday, Saturday at 8pm and Sunday at 3pm through Feb 26

ABOUT THE COMPANY

4615 Theatre began when a group of emerging artists staged a Jacobean tragedy in multiple rooms of a suburban home. In just a few years since, the company has rapidly expanded from backyards and basements into a thriving professional theatre; a hub for both reinvigorated classics and ferociously bold new works. 4615 creates "inverted epics": large, narrative-driven stories brought to new life in an up-close setting. In 2020, the company won the John Aniello Award for Outstanding Emerging Theatre

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