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For Imediate Release:


Tom X. Chao

Resident Artist since 2002

 

Horse Trade Theater Group Presents
A Tom X. Chao Production
Cats Can See the Devil
Written by Tom X Chao
Directed by John Harlacher

October 24,25, 31 and November 1,7,8,14, 15 @ 10:30pm and Sunday November 16 @ 5pm
Tickets: Adults $12 / Students & Seniors $8

 

“Cats Can See the Devil is part puppet show, part surrealist deconstruction, part exploration of the deepest anxieties of the subconscious mind, part desperate cry for help, part blatant exploitation of beautiful actresses, and mostly, very funny.”

Joshua Tanzer
offoffoff.com

Click on image for 300 dpi version (L to R) Elizabeth Schmidt, Andrea Ryder, Barbara P. King, Kim Katzberg, Paige Young

Photographer: Beowulf Sheehan

"Chao’s writing and his stage persona . . . are both, thank God, awfully damn funny. . . . the show span[s] great comedic heights."

Jeff Lewonczyk, NYTheatre.com

The script of Cats Can See The Devil has been selected for inclusion in Plays and Playwrights 2004!

Cats Can See the Devil begins as a puppet show. But it's not for children. It doesn't have a lot to do with cats, or the devil; but there is a self-hating talking cat, along with some of the strangest puppets you may have ever encountered.

This wildly inventive theater piece combines this unique visual humor with Tom X. Chao's signature deadpan stage persona, delivering a hilarious and surprisingly touching story of The Narrator (Chao) confronting his loneliness. Chao and director John Harlacher fuse the two disparate stories using brave and honest writing paired with fearless stylistic leaps. Or you may wish to attend because we have five beautiful actresses. who chide, cajole, and full-on attack The Narrator!

Damn straight!

(L to R) Andrea Ryder, Barbara P. King, Elizabeth Schmidt, Kim Katzberg, Paige Young

Photographer: Beowulf Sheehan

(L to R) Barbara P. King, Kim Katzberg, Paige Young, Andrea Ryder, Elizabeth Schmidt

Photographer: Beowulf Sheehan

Join the puppeteers as they recount "The Story of the Abstract Geometrical Shapes With No Allegorical Content." Somewhere along the way, all of the Narrator's carefully constructed plans go to hell when the Nude Puppeteer leads a mutinous rebellion, leaving The Narrator to pick up the pieces of his puppet show. But what about the mysterious N. Semble who watches over The Narrator in his semi-conscious state? And who is the beautiful and winsome clinical psychologist, Dr. Evelyn Florentine?

(L to R) Andrea Ryder, Elizabeth Schmidt, Paige Young, Barbara P. King, Kim Katzberg

Photographer: Beowulf Sheehan

But what about the mysterious N. Semble who watches over The Narrator in his semi-conscious state?

And who is the beautiful and winsome Dr. Evelyn Florentine?...

King, Andrea Ryder, Paige Young, Elizabeth Schmidt, Kim Katzberg

Photographer: Beowulf Sheehan

Five Beautiful Actresses:

Kim Katzberg (Tuesday Arc-Weld) originated the role of Tuesday in Cats Can See The Devil during the summer of 2003. She got her BFA from the Experimental Theatre Wing at NYU. She collaborated with five other actors to create the show Eat Me which appeared in the New York International Fringe Festival of 2000. She has acted in independent films as well as a variety of plays throughout the city. She also hosted the internet TV show "Heavy Petting." Recently she performed at the Knitting Factory, playing the fake bass for the band Liquid Tape Deck, as well as performing some original work at Deep Dish Cabaret. Thanks to Tom and John for their dedication to Cats Can See The Devil.

Barbara P. King’s (N. Semble) "bitingly funny" (The New York Sun) dance-theatre extravaganza, "Maiden America," which she wrote, choreographed and directed just closed after a run in the New York International Fringe Festival and extension at the West Side Dance Project. Also in the Fringe Festival, she choreographed Inverse Theatre’s well-renowned musical, "Lost," which also boasted an extension. Other choreography of hers has been performed in and about downtown Manhattan at venues including PS122, HERE, 45 Bleecker, The Present Company Theatorium and Dance Space Center. Barbara has acted in numerous short independent flicks (look for her on the Independent Film Channel,) and she is a recent graduate of the Experimental Theatre Wing at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts. Aside from acting and choreography Barbara loves to read, write, compose and update her website: www.barbaraking.com

Andrea Ryder (Lauren Trabuco)--A fledgling actor from Miami, Florida, Andrea relocated to New York to study at the Neighborhood Playhouse. She is thrilled to be a part of Cats Can See The Devil, and happy to be putting her training to such good use. She thanks everyone for their kindness and support.


Elizabeth Schmidt (Adrianne Goodge)--New York theatre credits include Tea Among the Tamaracks (Samuel French Short Play Festival--Critics' Choice Winner); In the Wire (New York International Fringe Festival 2002); Southpaw (Singularity Stage '02 Festival); and Garbagemen of the Old West. Television credits include "Guiding Light," and she has been in many student and independent films. A native Californian, she performed in the Bay Area for ten years while growing up and was awarded the Governor Arts Scholar Medallion for Dramatic Arts. Elizabeth is a graduate of Northwestern University's theatre program, her credits there including Hedda Gabler (Hedda) and Picnic (Rosemary). She is a member of the Harbor Theatre Company, has worked with Raw Impressions and the Columbia MFA Directors Lab, and is thrilled to be part of the zany Cats Can See The Devil ensemble. www.elizabethschmidt.com

Paige Young (Dr. Evelyn Florentine) is very excited to be working with Tom Chao and John Harlacher on their extended run of Cats Can See The Devil. She is a native of Canada and has been living in NYC for five interesting years. She is a graduate of The American Musical and Dramatic Academy and has studied with several renowned teachers in NY. Her Off-Off-Broadway debut was in The Match Game at the Producer's Club II. She was last seen on the Elmwood stage in Nyack, NY as Rose in A Shayna Maidel. She is forever grateful to her family and loving husband for supporting her in this crazy business. And of course, Jen!