Short Summary
In 1996, the Greater Rochester Repertory Companies (GRRC) was founded to provide an environment for actors, musicians, and all theatre practitioners to teach and learn. Along with that mission, we vowed to give a voice and venue to local and regional authors.
For 17 years we have produced original works by many aspiring playwrights. The most recent of these is "The Life of Leo Wool," a play by Rochester native Nina Alvarez.
Some of you may know Nina, some may not. For the uninitiated, her play's staged reading for the 2012 Fringe Festival received an excellent reception and enthusiastic audience feedback.
"The Life of Leo Wool" leaves people talking, debating, and exploring their judgments, desires, and personal relationships. Some responses have been:
“Leo Wool addresses the timeless truths of the written word's relationship to the human condition, made genuinely interesting and broadly accessible by Ms. Alvarez." -Jeremy Sniatecki
“The author, Nina Alvarez, a most talented, Virgilian tour guide, shines light upon the dark memories consigned to the corners of its closets. She empties out the repressed contents of its locked cabinets. And, finally, she exhumes, with reverence, the faded remains of a love, long hidden beneath carefully forgotten floorboards. If, within your own house, you have ever struggled, even for a moment, to find the balance point between HONESTY and COMPASSION, this tour (de force) is one you ought to take!” - Michael Haugh
"The Life of Leo Wool" will be directed by Chair of the SUNY Brockport Theatre Department, P Gibson Ralph, and will feature the well-known local talents of Jack Simel, Diane Chevron, Jessica Drew-Cates, Jason Alexander Holmes, as well as a debut performance by Nancy Berg.
To read more about how "Leo" came to be, check out this article in Her Rochester.
What We Need & What You Get
The GRRC is a nonprofit organization and we run on support from people like you who donate, come to shows, and help get the word out. Our goal is to raise $1,500 by May 19 to cover the theatre rental expenses for six performances of "The Life of Leo Wool."
We have some great perks for contributors, including free tickets to upcoming shows and personal recognition before performances.
The Impact
"The Life of Leo Wool" is about an aging, eminent literary critic who doesn't have time for "new" work. But we know better than Leo. New writers can't become the great writers of tomorrow without support. Nina is one of Rochester's most exciting emerging playwrights and we want to give her show the best possible step forward. Your contributions will help up with stage rentals, thereby allowing every aspect of the show to run more smoothly.
About the GRRC
Nina's dedication to working with the actors and board to develop and promote this show reflects the collective sensibility of the GRRC. Our actors, board, and director all donate a lot of time, energy, and talent to making this show a hit. Please help us by contributing to this campaign, coming to a show, or even just spreading the word. You can easily do that online by use this page's tools to spread the word on: Facebook, Twitter, and Email.
And nothing beats word of mouth!
About Nina Alvarez
Nina Alvarez is a published short ficition writer and award-winning poet, as well as a writing coach, editor, and award-winning teacher.
Show times: Performances are May 10*, 11, 17, & 18 at 7:30 pm and May 18* & 19 at 2:00 pm.
*Discussion with the author immediately following performance.
Location: The East End Theatre 727 E Main St. Rochester
Pricing: Tickets are $20 General Admission and $15 Seniors and Students, and are available at all area Wegmans stores or by calling the East End Theatre box office at (585) 325-3366.
Special Discounts Available!
For Everyone: In the literary spirit of the play, GRRC is offering $5.00 off the regular ticket price if you bring to the Box Office an appropriate book to be donated in GRRC’s name to the Rochester City School District libraries. Please call the Box Office for details.
For Members of Writers & Books: Friday, May 17, Writers and Books Night. Members/students, etc. of Writers & Books get $5 off regular ticket price.
Show Synopsis
Literature is dying, and so is Leo Wool, the last American superstar literary critic. When he is visited in his study by the ghost of his dead wife portending the visit of three writers with bones to pick, Leo must confront the real life he has led and what he may have sacrificed in search of the sublime.
