The New York Stage And Film Company 2020 Winter Season will feature the writing and composing talents of Columbia alumni Kareem Fahmy ’07 and Christina Quintana ’13 alongside adjunct associate professor Leslie Ayvazian. The Winter Season runs for several weeks in January and February, and brings together a diverse group of professional artists in workshops, readings, and residencies that rehearse side-by-side in a rigorous and nurturing environment. The artwork is presented publicly free of charge. A Distinct Society by Fahmy will be presented February 27, Lovely Day by Ayvazian will be presented February 28, and the Happy Hour Cabaret will showcase Quintana’s songs on February 29.
In A Distinct Society by Kareem Fahmy, a quiet library that straddles the border of the U.S. and Canada becomes an unlikely crucible for five people from around the world. When an Iranian family, separated from one another by the "Muslim ban," use the library as a meeting place, the head librarian, a U.S. border patrol officer, and a local teenager have to choose between breaking the law and saving themselves.
In a Lovely Day by Leslie Ayvazian, as Fran and Martin celebrate their wedding anniversary, they learn of a military recruiter's visit to their only son's high school. Faced with the prospect of his enlistment, they find themselves on opposite sides of one of the most profound questions any mother or father can face. Ayvazian’s play was Initially produced in 2003 and this reading will initiate a reinvestigation of the text within the context of the present.
Quintana’s songs will be featured in the Happy Hour Cabaret, an acoustic concert of songs-in-process by some of today’s most exciting emerging songwriters for the theater. Quintana will be joined by fellow composers Migguel Anggelo, Khiyon Hursey, Jaime Lozano, Madeline Meyers, Brian Quijada, Zoe Sarnak, and Rona Siddiqu.
NYSAF’s Winter Season begins February 4 and concludes February 29. Free tickets can be requested on a first-come-first-serve basis.
