Theatre Exile Presents
Hunter Gatherers
By Peter Sinn Nachtrieb
Directed by Deborah Block

Theatre Exile invites you to explore your carnal cravings with the Philadelphia premiere of Peter Sinn Nachtrieb's Hunter Gatherers. Directed by co-artistic director Deborah Block, Hunter Gatherers runs October 29th through November 22nd at the Adrienne Theatre (mainstage) . Hunter Gatherers is recommended for mature audiences. The first production of Theatre Exile's 13th season, Hunter Gatherers is a "bitingly hilarious black comedy [that] spares neither savages nor saints" (LA Times). Hunter Gatherers "explores what happens when the thin veneer of civilization melts away," says director Deborah Block, "and our primal urges bubble to the surface." Richard, Pam, Wendy and Tom have been the "Fab Four" since prom night 17 years ago. Even through the bedlam of being 30-something, successful urban professionals, the two married couples still find time amidst the Reiki sessions, novel writing and organic food shopping to gather for a yearly dinner. As the smell of their freshly killed dinner fills the room, their culturally savvy world is threatened by the animal instincts that lurk inside every sophisticated scenester.

Theatre Exile and Flashpoint Theatre Company partner to offer a rare opportunity to immerse yourself in the work of this rising-star playwright: while Hunter Gatherers runs downstairs at the Mainstage, Flashpoint presents Peter Sinn Nachtrieb's boom October 28th through November 21st at the Adrienne's Second Stage. For one weekend only, Theatre Exile invites audiences to meet Peter Sinn Nachtrieb in person! San Francisco-based Nachtrieb will be our guest the weekend of November 7th and 8th. On Saturday, November 7th, come see Hunter Gatherers at 8pm and stay for a post-show talkback. Join us Sunday, November 8th for a 1:30pm pre-show brunch before the matinees of boom at 2:30pm and Hunter Gatherers at 3pm. Another talkback follows this boom matinee.

Nachtrieb is available for advance phone or email interviews; please contact Tenley Bank at 215.218.4022 to schedule.

Cast & Designers

Theatre Exile has gathered a gifted ensemble for our season opener, featuring Barrymore Award winner Amanda Schoonover, star of Exile's Mr. Marmalade and Killer Joe, as the sensitive software specialist Pam. Exile's own associate artistic director and winner of the 2008 F. Otto Haas Award for Emerging Theatre Artist, Matt Pfeiffer, follows his critically acclaimed direction of Exile's American Buffalo last season to return to the stage as the embittered doctor Tom. Exile is pleased to welcome Sarah Sanford, member of the award-winning Pig Iron ensemble, nominee for 2009 F. Otto Haas Award, and Philadelphia Magazine's Best of Philly 2009 Up-and-coming Theater Talent, as the voracious masseuse Wendy and Ross Beschler, recently with People's Light & Theatre Company in End Days and last seen in Cabinet of Wonders at Gas and Electric Arts, as the testosterone-driven artist Richard. Exile's Co-artistic director Deborah Block directs this uproarious and surprising look at two couples teetering between virility and middle-aged panic.

Exile welcomes set designer Meghan Jones, who designed Hamlet and the Barrymore-nominated The Hothouse for The Lantern Theater Company last season. This season's costume designer Alison Roberts is in her tenth year with the Arden Theatre Company and has designed for 1812 Productions, Rowan University, and Jeanne Ruddy Dance. Veteran Exile lighting designer Paul Moffitt has also designed for Celebration Theatre Company, Headlong Dance Theatre, The Wilma, Intrepid Theatre Company, Zen One Dance Collective, Philadelphia Theater Company, Mayflower Theater Company, Nichole Canuso Dance Company, and Azuka Theatre, as well as in New York and internationally. Sound designer Mikaal Sulaiman most recently co-sound designed Fatebook for the 2009 Live Arts Festival and designed Cabinet of Wonders for Gas and Electric Arts, and is currently co-sound designing at The Flea Theatre in Tribeca, NYC. Fight choreographer John Bellomo returns to Exile after fight choreographing previous productions including Killer Joe, for which he was Barrymore Award-nominated.

Director

Deborah Block has been a consistent figure in the Philadelphia arts community for over 20 years as a director, dramaturg, producer, curator and educator. She has been involved in the creation of many professional productions including directing over 50 shows with an emphasis on new plays and movement based theater, and has received much recognition for her professional and educational work. She has directed scores of educational productions and has taught at many local universities including Rowan University and the University of the Arts, and has been a guest at Villanova University and the University of Pennsylvania among others. A recipient of the Lambda Award, The Albert Benzwie Memorial Scholarship in Playwriting and Independence Fellowship in the Arts, she is also one of the founders of the Philadelphia Live Arts Festival and Philly Fringe and was the program director for ten years. She currently teaches at Temple University where she received her MFA. Block has previously directed Kick Me, Sole Searching, Roosters and dark play or stories for boys for Theatre Exile.

Playwright

Peter Sinn Nachtrieb is a San Francisco-based playwright whose works include boom, Hunter Gatherers, Colorado, T.I.C. (Trenchcoat In Common) , and Multiplex. His work has been seen off-Broadway and across the country at Ars Nova, SPF, Woolly Mammoth Theatre, Seattle Repertory, Actors Theatre of Louisville, Cleveland Public Theatre, Brown/Trinity Playwrights Rep, the Bailiwick Theatre, Wellfleet Harbor Actor's Theatre, Dad's Garage, and in the Bay Area at Encore Theatre, Killing My Lobster, The Magic Theatre, Impact Theatre, and The Bay Area Playwrights Festival. Hunter Gatherers received the 2007 American Theatre Critics Association/Steinberg New Play Award for best new play to premiere outside of New York and the 2007 Will Glickman Prize for best new play in the Bay Area. He is under commission from South Coast Rep and is a Resident Playwright at the Playwrights Foundation, San Francisco. Peter holds a degree in Theater and Biology from Brown and an MFA in Creative Writing from San Francisco State University. He likes to promote himself online at www.peternachtrieb.com.

FACT SHEET

What: Hunter Gatherers by Peter Sinn Nachtrieb

Where: The Adrienne Theatre
2030 Sansom Street
Philadelphia, PA 19103

Who: Director: Deborah Block
Set Designer: Meghan Jones
Costume Designer: Alison Roberts
Lighting Designer: Paul Moffitt
Sound Designer: Mikaal Sulaiman
Production Manager: Sarah Chandler
Technical Director: Doug Smullens
Stage Management: Debby Lau
Fight Choreographer: John Bellomo

Cast: Pam: Amanda Schoonover
Richard: Ross Beschler
Wendy: Sarah Sanford
Tom: Matt Pfeiffer

When: October 29 -- November 22, 2009
Wednesdays, Fridays, and Saturdays at 8pm
Thursdays at 7pm, Sundays at 3pm

First preview: Thursday, October 29, 2009
Opens: Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Closes: Sunday, November 22, 2009

Meet-the-Artists Night: November 11, 2009
Exile Night: November 18, 2009
Artist Talkbacks: Thursday, November 12, 2009
Sunday, November 15, 2009

Nachtrieb events:
Hunter Gatherers talkback: November 7, 2009
boom talkback: November 8, 2009
pre-matinee brunch: 1:30pm November 8, 2009

TICKET INFO:
Call 215.218.4022 or on the web at www.theatreexile.org. Ticket prices are $15-$30, Opening Night is $40. Call for specific prices and dates. Season subscriptions and student tickets are available. Substantial savings are offered for groups of 10 or more, please call for details.

Theatre Exile
1340 S. 13th Street
Philadelphia, PA 19147
215.218.4022
www.theatreexile.org

Producing Artistic Dir.
Joe Canuso

Co-Artistic Director
Deborah Block

Managing Director
Bryan S. Clark

Associate Artistic Dir.
Matt Pfeiffer

Artistic Associate
Brenna Geffers

External Relations Dir.
Tenley Gwen Bank

Administrative Office
215.218.4022

Website
www.theatreexile.org

For press photos or interviews
Contact Tenley Bank
215.218.4022 or
tenley@theatreexile.org

THEATRE EXILE ARTISTIC STATEMENT

Theatre Exile has proven to be a place where local artists can take their biggest risks. We match challenging scripts with Philadelphia's top talent, continually bringing immediate and dangerous performances to our audiences. Theatre Exile approaches our craft with a no-nonsense, no-holds-barred style of storytelling. The stories that Exile brings to our audiences demand that our actors live in a moment of truth, despite the peril and the violence that such honesty demands. Armed with our bare-knuckled acting style, we bring you the voices of today's most gifted playwrights with cutting-edge scripts that challenge the expectations of a commercial theater.