Every day is opening night.

Waterwell Announces Monthly Residency of “Goodbar” at Ideal Glass in Manhattan

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Rick Miramontez / Elizabeth Wagner
rick@oandmco.com / elizabeth@oandmco.com
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE, PLEASE

WATERWELL
ANNOUNCES MONTHLY RESIDENCY OF
“GOODBAR”
AT IDEAL GLASS IN MANHATTAN

PERFORMANCES FIRST MONDAY OF
DECEMBER, JANUARY AND FEBRUARY

New York, NY – Waterwell, one of the Village Voice’s Best Arguments for Devised Theater (2010) and creators of #9 and The|King|Operetta, has announced a monthly residency of its latest drop, the live concept album Goodbar, at Ideal Glass (22 East 2nd Street) in downtown Manhattan. Performances will be the first Monday of December, January and February at 7:30 p.m.

Created in collaboration with NYC glam-punk band, Bambï, Goodbar blurs the boundaries between music and theatre while tackling one of the most controversial cult artifacts of the '70s: Looking for Mr. Goodbar. Riffing wildly on both the film starring Diane Keaton and the novel by Judith Rossner, Bambï and Waterwell crank the amps up to ten and launch a full frontal assault on modern myths of sex, independence and persona.

Directed by Waterwell co-founder Arian Moayed (Musa in Broadway’s upcoming Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo), Goodbar features words and music by Bambï, video design by Alex Koch and the onscreen talents of Ira Glass, Bobby Cannavale and Moby, among others. Waterwell ensemble members Hanna Cheek (Hostage Song, The Pumpkin Pie Show) and Kevin Townley (Shockheaded Peter, My Super Ex-Girlfriend), handle lead vocals, backed by Bambï bandmates Cara Jeiven (Drums), Jimmie Marlowe (Guitar) and Tobi Parks (Bass). Rounding out the cast are dancers Kelly Hurt, Aleta Lanier, Sara Pauley and Emma Walton.

The design team that created the original version of Goodbar at City Park Foundation’s SummerStage this August reprises its roles: Nick Benacerraf (Scenic Design), Adam Frank (Lighting Design) and Erik Bergrin (Costume Design). Waterwell ensemble member Robert Signom III also returns as Stage Manager.

Performances at the Ideal Glass are the first Monday of each month starting on December 6 at 7:30 p.m. Following shows are Monday, January 3 and Monday, February 7. Tickets are $20 (complimentary drink included) and are available first come first serve at the door only. Ideal Glass is located at 22 East 2nd Street in New York, NY. For more information, visit http://www.waterwell.org.

Bios____________________________________________________________

Hanna Cheek (Vocals) has devised and performed roles in Waterwell’s #9, The|King|Operetta, Marco Millions (based on lies), The Persians, Sweetness & Light, and Chill & Serve. Also a core member of the critically acclaimed Pumpkin Pie Show, Cheek has performed in: Commencement, Hostage Song, Junta High, Cardiac Shadow, Ringside Seats, Rise Perverts Rise, Big Top and The Birds and the Bees. Other NYC credits: Artifacts of Consequence, The Amulet, First You’re Born, and Broken Boughs. TV: “The West Wing,” “Titus,” and MTV’s “Undressed.” She also can be seen singing with Kevin Townley in their band, Bambi. www.bambirocks.com.

Cara Jeiven (Drums) got her chops playing clubs like New Jersey’s famed Stone Pony and the punk rock dive Connections before she reached drinking age. As a founding member of queer-girl favorite NYC new wave pop band P.I.E., she played up and down the East Coast, opening for acts like The Butchies. While still rocking out with P.I.E., Cara toured the Midwest with garage rock band The Ritchies. She also gained a huge following in the New York punk scene for her explosive beats in the all-girl band Lady Unluck. They shared a Warped Tour stage with Paramore, and played CBGB’s in a revival show with the New York Dolls. Cara’s rock/punk/pop background is a perfect fit for bambï’s eclectic style.

Jimmie Marlowe (Guitar) comes from Tacoma, Washington and originally moved to San Diego with Metal band Malachi Crunch. He worked with Jay Gordon of Orgy, played with notable bands such as Incubus, System Of A Down, Suicidal Tendencies and Far, and signed with Indie label Edge Records. Jimmie got tired of playing the guitar and decided to try a hand a being a front person. He created Murder My Love, which one San Diego magazine said “possessed a unique ability to both soothe and abuse their audiences.” They quickly took San Diego by storm and were opening for metal bands such as As I Lay Dying, Bleeding Through, Zao, Hatebreed, Avenged Sevenfold and 18 Visions. Having built a following, they toured around the west coast, but when the time was to call it quits (in the midst of an album release), Jimmie soon decided to leave the west coast in pursuit of a different lifestyle. He arrived in New York and decided it was time to go back to guitar, this time to create his true love, pop music. He created a larger than life 80s arena rock band, Wildstreet, with Eric Jayk which he currently still plays with. He also played guitar with teen singers Katie Neil and Kyle Lardner. He also continues to play guitar with award winning theatre troupe Waterwell for The/King/Operetta.

Tobi Parks (Bass) has played with such acts as the Midwest avant punk bands The Star Death, Is That You? and psych-alt-country favorites, Grandpa’s Ghost, which was described by the Village Voice as “…one of America’s best bands.” In November 2009, she joined The Cliks along with Lucas Silveira and Brian Viglione (Dresdon Dolls). These various projects have toured/played with indie rock luminaries such as Fugazi, the Gossip, Mike Watt (ex-Minutemen/ Firehose), Andrew Bird, Cyndi Lauper, and the New York Dolls. As a solo artist and improviser she has performed with such players as Darin Gray (Dazzling Killmen, You Fantastic, On Fillmore), Tim Garrigan (Dazzling Killmen, You Fantastic), Keith Rowe, Toshimaru Nakamura, Mark Shippy (U.S. Maple), and experimental video artist James Fotopoulos. Additionally, she has done session work for artists such as Cyndi Lauper and Margaret Cho. The music press has favorably compared her playing style to that of Mike Watt and Dave Allen (Gang of Four) due to her aggressive yet funky style. As a composer, she has composed for both television and film.

Kevin Townley (Vocals) A mainstay of the downtown New York theatre scene, Kevin Townley has worked with such legends and notables as John “Lypsinka” Epperson (My Deah), Harry Koutoukas (Ring of Death), Wynn Handman and Suzanne Shepherd. He was a featured actor in Oskar Eustis and John Guare's directing lab at The Public Theater, and is a member of the acclaimed theatre company, Waterwell. Along with the British cult band, The Tiger Liliies, he appeared in the international hit Shockheaded Peter. He has been seen on the big screen playing a young Eddie Izzard in Ivan Reitman's My Super Ex-Girlfriend and on the small screen in numerous Law & Orders. In 2011 he will appear alongside Sam Rockwell and Jonah Hill in 20th Century Fox’s The Sitter. He also hosts the monthly variety show, The Talent Show, with Elna Baker, which has featured Ira Glass, John Hodgman and many others. The Associated Press has called him “Magnetic” and “Fabulous.”

Alex Koch (Video Designer) directs production and post-production tasks for video installations, short subject films, and theatrical projections. He recently opened ReEntry at CenterStage in Baltimore and continues to support and evolve his design for the South American tour of Caridad Svich's La Casa de los Espíritus. Projections design credits on Broadway; Irena's Vow. Off-Broadway and downtown; ReEntry, The Oxford Roof Climber's Rebellion (Urban Stages), Pantaleon Y Las Visitadoras, La Casa de los Espíritus (RepertorioEspanol), Lenin's Embalmers (Ensemble Studio Theatre), Ghost Light (59e59), #9 (Waterwell), Safe Home (Royal Family Productions),The Dark Heart of Meteorology (The Assembly), Balaton (Electric Pear). Associate design and technical work with Jay Scheib, New Georges at 3LD, Caden Manson and Big Art Group. His work was seen alongside Andrey Bartonev's Shaking Angles at the National Arts Club in 2008. www.alexkochdesign.com

Arian Moayed (Director) is honored to be directing Goodbar again. Acting Credits: Broadway’s Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo (director, Moises Kaufman and Robin Williams). Center Theater Group: Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo (Mark Taper Forum, Kirk Douglas). Off-Broadway: Mahida's Extra Key to Heaven (Epic Theater), Fever Chart (Public Theater, director, Jo Bonney), Queens Blvd (Signature), Masked (Drama Desk nomination), American Pilot (MTC, director, Lynne Meadow), Jeff Daniels’ Apartment 3A, Kite Runner (national tour, director, Wynn Handman) and Homebody/Kabul (BAM & Steppenwolf, director, Frank Galati). Films: Roadie, The Christians, Arranged and Church Story. TV: MONY (pilot series regular, director, Spike Lee), White Collar, all the Law & Orders and Six Degrees. Arian is co-founder of the critically-acclaimed theatre company Waterwell. He has acted/devised eleven Waterwell drops including The Persians…, Marco Millions (based on lies) (Drama Desk nomination), The|King|Operetta, #9 and is currently developing two new musicals. www.waterwell.org. Also, his first full-length screenplay, This Island Made Me, starring Campbell Scott, is in development.

Bambï is a NYC based rock band, dual-fronted by Kevin Townley and Hanna Cheek with Cara Jeiven (drums), Jimmie Marlowe (guitar) and Tobi Parks (bass). Their sound and infamous live shows have all the energy and theatricality of an exorcism, mashing up elements of punk, girl group, disco, new wave and heavy metal. Their debut album, Bad News In A Party Dress, was produced by Chicago icon, Bobby Conn. They are the house band for The Talent Show.

Waterwell is a New York-based company of artists dedicated to the collaborative creation of new works for the theatre. It was founded in 2002 and since then has created eight original plays, two cabarets and a staged reading. Its continually evolving body of work encompasses original plays, adaptations of classic texts, solo shows and performance pieces. For each venture the actors, writers, directors, composers, musicians and designers work collectively to build the piece from the ground up. The Village Voice has called them, “Dynamic, resourceful and relentlessly entertaining.” And TheaterScene says, “There's no way a written description can do justice to their blazing energy and inventiveness.” Using a combination of research, improvisation and source texts, the ensemble devises each drop over the course of an extended rehearsal period. The resulting mixture of drama and vaudeville uses music and comedy as access points to address larger issues of power, class and race. The New York Times hails the work as, “Brilliant, original and inspired. Alive enough to surprise even the performers themselves,” and Theatermania writes, “Waterwell has artfully staked a claim on our collective conscience.”

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