About the Play
"The Lives We Lead" is about two
employees at a diner discussing their relationship during closing. When he expresses
a need for change, she must make a choice about love.
The play was written by me, Jessica Lehman, in fall 2013 as part of a playwriting class. It was then performed in March 2014 as part of Quinnipiac University's New Play Festival at the Abingdon Theatre in NYC.
Now the play is part of Manhattan Repertory Theatre's Fall One Act Competition. It will receive four performances in a night with four other shows. Each night, the audience ranks the shows and the play with the most points at the end of the run advances to the finals.
Meet the Cast and Crew
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Jessica Lehman (Writer/Director) is thrilled to have her play, "The Lives We Lead," appearing in Manhattan Repertory Theatre's Fall One Act Competition to kick off her new life in NYC. She is a recent graduate of Quinnipiac University with degrees in Theater and Film, Video, and Interactive Media. She had the pleasure of seeing this play performed in Quinnipiac University's New Play Festival at the Abingdon Theatre this past spring where she also directed
Count. Jessica is also an actor and most recently spent the summer as an apprentice at the Williamstown Theatre Festival.
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Holly Linneman (Woman) is thrilled to be performing in her first official NYC production! She met the awesome Jessica and Deane at Williamstown Theatre Festival, where she performed in
Drunk (Jen) and the Williamstown Late-Night Cabaret. Other favorite roles include Babe in
Crimes of the Heart (Princeton Summer Theater), Dot in
Sunday in the Park With George (Princeton University), and Mrs. Squeamish in
The Country Wife (LAMDA). Holly is a recent graduate of Princeton University, where she studied English and Theater.
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Deane Sullivan (Man) is a recent graduate from the University of Southern California's School of Drama. A native Bostonian, he is very happy to be part of this production. He loves New York, but his loyalties will forever remain true with the Red Sox.
Why We Need You
Manhattan Repertory Theatre provides the performance space, lights, sound, and set pieces for the production. Everything else, we're on our own. As a recent college grad who just moved to NYC, funding this production is a large expense. Your donations will go toward:
- Rehearsal Space: $800 -- Putting up a play requires a lot of rehearsal and those rehearsals require a space. In addition, the space needs to be large enough to fit or match the dimensions of the stage we will be performing on. This is our largest cost.
- Programs: $300 -- We must provide all the copies of the program for our audiences at each performance.
- Participation Fee: $150 -- In order to be part of the festival, we had to pay Manhattan Repertory Theatre a $150 participation fee that goes to putting on the shows.
- Props and Costumes: $100 -- Most of the props and costumes will come from things we already have but some of the items will need to be bought. These items are important for helping to create the world of the play and improve your audience experience.
- Indiegogo's Fees: $60-$135 -- Depending on whether or not we meet our goal, Indiegogo will take either 4% or 9% of what we raise, meaning we need to raise a little extra to make sure our productions costs are covered.
- The rest of the money will go to things like shipping fees for the rewards and any other costs that pop up. If we advance to the finals, it will cover additional rehearsal space rentals. In the event that we raise more money than we need to cover our expenses, it will be evenly divided as stipends for the cast and crew so they can do what they love and get paid.
- This is a competition we are part of so if we win in the finals, we will receive $1000. This is the only way we receive any money from Manhattan Repertory Theatre. In the event that we win, the money will first go to covering any remaining costs. Anything left over will be evenly divided as stipends for the cast and crew so they can do what they love and get paid.
We would greatly appreciate your support and, in return, we have some exciting rewards for you! You can see the full list to the right, but some highlights include:
- Cast and Crew Provided Rewards -- a story from Jessica, a spicy song from Holly, and a picnic with Deane!
- Everyone who donates $5 or more will receive a thank you from the cast and crew in a thank you video we will make just for our donors!
- If you fund our full amount, not only do you get all the previous rewards, but we will treat you to some drinks after the show!
- Check out the rest of the great rewards you can receive for supporting us in our theatrical endeavors!
If you can't donate, there are still other ways you can help and support us! Please share this link with your friends and encourage them to donate to our production.
If you're in the NYC area, come to the show September 17-20 @ 6:30pm! Tickets are $20. Reservations can be made ahead of time by emailing mrtreserve@gmail.com.
Thank you for your support!