GAYFEST NYC, INC. FIFTH FESTIVAL OF PLAYS PRESENTS “MOONLIGHT AND LOVE SONGS” BY SCOTT C. SICKLES DIRECTED BY STEVEN PETRILLO

GAYFEST NYC, INC.

FIFTH FESTIVAL OF PLAYS

PRESENTS

“MOONLIGHT AND LOVE SONGS”

BY SCOTT C. SICKLES

DIRECTED BY STEVEN PETRILLO

FEATURING NICK BAILEY, D.H. JOHNSON, KATHRYN MARKEY,

GERALD MCCULLOUCH, ROBERT MEKSIN, COREY RICHMOND SKAGGS

AND CHRISTINE VERLENY

PERFORMANCES BEIGN MAY 23, 2013

AT ABINGDON THEATRE ARTS COMPLEX

OPENING NIGHT SET FOR MAY 24, 2014

TICKETS NOW ON SALE

New York, NY (May 20, 2013) – GAYFEST NYC, Inc. (Bruce Robert Harris and Jack W. Batman, Producers;  Craig Wesley Divino, Associate Producer), the country’s premier producer of new LGBT-themed plays, present the Fifth Festival of Plays, a four-week event filled with powerful theatre works spotlighting gay issues. The Festival opens with New York premiere of Moonlight and Love Songs written by Scott C. Sickles.  Directed by Steven Petrillo, the 7-member cast featuresNick Bailey, D.H. Johnson, Kathryn Markey, Gerald McCullouch, Robert Meksin, Corey Richmond Skaggs and Christine Verleny. Performances begin Thursday, May 23 and will continue through Sunday, June 2, 2013 at the Abingdon Theatre Arts Complex (312 West 36^th Street).  Opening night is Friday, May 24, 2013 at 7:30 p.m.  All proceeds from GAYFEST NYC benefit the Harvey Milk High School.

Moonlight and Love Songs finds forty-five and alone, architect Harry Wallace’s romantic dreams come true when he falls in love with Jim, a young college student. Their romance seems motion picture-perfect until a staggering revelation causes it to implode. Public outrage follows as Jim attempts to repair the damage caused by his betrayal and Harry finds himself complicit in the deception.

The creative team includes Michael Bottari and Ronald Case (Set and Costumes), and John Eckert (Lighting).  The Production Stage Manager is Amy Francis Schott.

Single tickets are priced at $25 and are available at www.Theatermania.com or by calling 212-352-3101. For additional information log onto: www.GAYFESTNYC.com. 

The 2013 GAYFEST NYC Festival continues with the world premiere of The Loves of Mr. Lincoln written by David Brendan Hopes and will be directed by Sidney J. Burgoyne.  Performances begin Thursday, June 6, 2013 and will continue throughSunday, June 16, 2013.  Opening Night is set for Friday, June 7, 2013 at 7:30 p.m.

In addition, the Festival will present a special event:  The BaSiC Theatre Project production of Gross Indecency: The Three Trials of Oscar Wilde, written by Moisés Kaufman and directed by Zi Alikhan. Performances are set to begin Thursday, May 30, 2013 for a limited engagement through Sunday, June 16, 2013.  Openinig night is Friday, May 31, 2013 at 8:00 p.m.

Hit the Hall began previews at the Barrow Street Theatre on Tuesday, February 19, 2013

Hit the Hall began previews at the Barrow Street Theatre on Tuesday, February 19, 2013, with an official opening night on Sunday, March 10, 2013

It’s the early hours of June 28, 1969 when a routine police raid on The Stonewall Inn, a popular underground gay bar in Greenwich Village, sparks a full-scale riot.  Violent protests and street demonstrations continued for the next several days in what became known as The Stonewall Riots, thrusting a group of unlikely revolutionaries onto the frontlines of history and igniting one of the most influential social and political movements of the 20^th Century. Hit the Wall focuses on that wild and enigmatic first night of the riots, placing the audience just on the periphery of the conflict.   With an imaginative and theatrical blend of history and mythology, Hit the Wall shines a contemporary light on the legacy of Stonewall.

The ensemble of Hit the Wall includes Nick Bailey, Jessica Dickey, Ben Diskant, Nathan Lee Graham, Matthew Greer, Gregory Haney, Sean Allan Krill, Rania Salem Manganaro, Jonathan Mastro, Ray Rizzo, Carolyn Michelle Smith, Arturo Soria and Indigo Street.  Ms. Manganaro and Mr. Soria reprise their roles from the critically acclaimed World Premiere of Hit the Wall, developed and produced in 2012 by The Inconvenience as part of Steppenwolf’s Garage Rep. series in Chicago.

The creative team also includes Lauren Helpern (Set), David Hyman (Costumes), Keith Parham (Lighting), Daniel Kluger and Brandon Wolcott (Sound), J. David Brimmer (Fight Director), and Pat McCorkle (Casting).  The Production Stage Manager is David M. Beris.

Hit the Wall is presented Off-Broadway by Scott Morfee, Jean Doumanian, Tom Wirtshafter, Patrick Daly, Burnt Umber, Roger E. Kass, Starry Night Entertainment, BarLor Productions, Christian Chadd Taylor, Marc and Lisa Biales.

Hit the Wall is performed at the Barrow Street Theatre (27 Barrow Street, at 7^th Avenue South), just steps away from the Stonewall Inn.