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Naked Angels is an American
"Tuesdays@9"
cold reading series, where new playwrights, novelists, short-story writers, and actors get together to review work that is still being written. In 2005, the company partnered with Fox Broadcasting Company to produce Naked TV, an annual showcase of short plays by emerging playwrights. Based on these stagings, Fox executives chose to turn some of the one-act plays into pilot scripts for the primetime network. Known for "glamorous parties" and "provocative productions", after the first decade the group seemed to have lost the focus on theater. In 1995 the venue on 17th Street (often called "The Place") was closed. By that time many of the early members had gone on to fame in Hollywood or on
The New York Times, May 14, 2006 People identified as co-founders include: ''playwright'': *
A Downtown Firmament
April 19, 1993, Newsweek, By Marc Peyser
Naked Angels Theater Company official websitemore on Naked Angels Tuesdays @ 9Naked Angels records, 1987-2013
held by the Billy Rose Theatre Division,
Naked Angels is an American theater
Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The perform ...
company founded in 1986 and based in New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...
. It was named after John Tytell's book about the Beat Generation, ''Naked Angels''. It has produced plays on controversial social topics such as the critically acclaimed Broadway transfer ''Next Fall
''Next Fall'' is a play written by Geoffrey Nauffts. The play is about two gay men in a committed relationship with a twist, with one, Luke, being devoutly religious and the other, Adam, an atheist. The play revolves around their five-year relat ...
'', and featured many Hollywood stars.
Naked Angels originated in a former picture-frame factory on West 17th Street in Manhattan
Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...
. It "soon became the 'it' place for a generation of about-to-be famous young actors and playwrights."
One of the company's longtime efforts is "The Issues Project", featuring plays or groups of plays focusing on socially relevant issues, often in collaboration with organizations like Amnesty International, The Center for American Progress
The Center for American Progress (CAP) is a public policy research and advocacy organization which presents a liberal viewpoint on economic and social issues. It has its headquarters in Washington, D.C.
The president and chief executive offic ...
, Project A.L.S. and The Culture Project. Also known are the group's long-runnin"Tuesdays@9"
cold reading series, where new playwrights, novelists, short-story writers, and actors get together to review work that is still being written. In 2005, the company partnered with Fox Broadcasting Company to produce Naked TV, an annual showcase of short plays by emerging playwrights. Based on these stagings, Fox executives chose to turn some of the one-act plays into pilot scripts for the primetime network. Known for "glamorous parties" and "provocative productions", after the first decade the group seemed to have lost the focus on theater. In 1995 the venue on 17th Street (often called "The Place") was closed. By that time many of the early members had gone on to fame in Hollywood or on
Broadway
Broadway may refer to:
Theatre
* Broadway Theatre (disambiguation)
* Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S.
** Broadway (Manhattan), the street
**Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...
.
Participants
The theater company has a long list of co-founders and participants in its many productions over the years.For Naked Angels, the Party's Over. Time to Get Serious Again.The New York Times, May 14, 2006 People identified as co-founders include: ''playwright'': *
Nicole Burdette
Nicole Maria Burdette (born December 24, 1963) is an American playwright and actress. She is also an assistant professor at The New School for Drama.
Early life and education
Burdette was born in San Francisco, the first of two children of Elle ...
''Actors and directors'':
* Jon Robin Baitz
Jon Robin Baitz (born November 4, 1961) is an American playwright, screenwriter and television producer. He is a two time Pulitzer Prize finalist, as well as a Guggenheim, American Academy of Arts and Letters, and National Endowment for the ...
* Ned Eisenberg
Ned Eisenberg (January 13, 1957 – February 27, 2022) was an American actor known for his recurring role on '' Law & Order: Special Victims Unit'' as Roger Kressler.
Early life and education
Eisenberg grew up in the Riverdale neighborhood of ...
*director Jenifer Estess (Producing Director until 1993)
*director Pippin Parker
Pippin Parker (born June 22, 1969, in Syracuse, New York) is an American playwright and theatre director. He is Dean of The New School for Drama.
Career
Parker is an American playwright and director. He is the former Dean of the School of Writ ...
(former Artistic Director)
*actor and singer Toby Parker
Timothy Britten Parker (born February 8, 1962), also known as Toby Parker, is an American actor.
Background
Parker was born in Iowa City, Iowa and raised in Cincinnati, Ohio. He moved to New York City with his family in 1977 as he began pursui ...
*actress Gina Gershon
Gina L. Gershon (born June 10, 1962) is an American actress. She has had roles in the films ''Cocktail'' (1988), ''Red Heat'' (1988), '' Showgirls'' (1995), '' Bound'' (1996), '' Face/Off'' (1997), '' The Insider'' (1999), '' Demonlover'' (2002 ...
*actor Rob Morrow
Robert Alan Morrow (born September 21, 1962) is an American actor and director. He is known for his portrayal of Dr. Joel Fleischman on '' Northern Exposure'', a role that garnered him three Golden Globe and two Emmy nominations for Best Acto ...
*actress Mary Stuart Masterson
Mary Stuart Masterson (born June 28, 1966) is an American actress and director. She has starred in the films '' At Close Range'' (1986), '' Some Kind of Wonderful'' (1987), '' Chances Are'' (1989), ''Fried Green Tomatoes'' (1991) and '' Benny & ...
*actress Helen Slater
Helen Rachel Slater (born December 15, 1963) is an American actress and singer-songwriter. She played the title character in the 1984 film ''Supergirl'', and returned to the 2015 TV series of the same title, this time as Supergirl's adoptive mot ...
*actor and producer Fisher Stevens
Fisher Stevens (born Steven Fisher; November 27, 1963) is an American actor, director, producer and writer. As an actor, he is best known for his portrayals of Ben in ''Short Circuit'' and '' Short Circuit 2'', Chuck Fishman on the 1990s televi ...
*actress Marisa Tomei
Marisa Tomei ( , ; born December 4, 1964) is an American actress. She came to prominence as a cast member on '' The Cosby Show'' spin-off '' A Different World'' in 1987. After having minor roles in a few films, she came to international attentio ...
*actress Nancy Travis
Nancy Ann Travis (born September 21, 1961) is an American actress.
She began her career on Off-Broadway theater, before her first leading screen role in the ABC television miniseries ''Harem'' opposite Omar Sharif. Her breakthrough came in 198 ...
*actor Gareth Williams
*actor Jeff Williams
*actor Bruce MacVittie
Bruce James MacVittie (October 14, 1956 – May 7, 2022) was an American actor. He was known for playing Danny Scalercio in the fourth season of ''The Sopranos'', Mickey Mack in ''Million Dollar Baby'', and Detective Eastman in '' Lonely Hearts'' ...
People associated with the company:
*actor Matthew Broderick
Matthew Broderick (born March 21, 1962) is an American actor. His roles include the Golden Globe-nominated portrayal of the title character in '' Ferris Bueller's Day Off'' (1986), the voice of adult Simba in Disney's ''The Lion King'' (1994) ...
and his wife actress Sarah Jessica Parker began dating at Naked Angels where Sarah's brothers Toby and Pippin were co-founders
*actor Chris Stack
Christopher Stack (born June 13 in Chicago, Illinois), is an actor who took over the role of Michael McBain, replacing Nathaniel Marston, on the ABC soap opera ''One Life to Live'' from December 3, 2007, to June 17, 2009. Stack temporarily retur ...
*playwright Frank Pugliese
*playwright Kenneth Lonergan
Kenneth Lonergan (born October 16, 1962) is an American film director, playwright, and screenwriter. He is the co-writer of the film ''Gangs of New York'' (2002), and wrote and directed '' You Can Count on Me'' (2000), ''Margaret'' (2011), and ' ...
*actor Joe Mantello
Joseph Mantello (born December 27, 1962) is an American actor and director known for his work on Broadway productions of '' Wicked'', '' Take Me Out'', and ''Assassins'', having gained notoriety in the 1993 cast of ''Angels in America''.
Early l ...
References
{{reflistA Downtown Firmament
April 19, 1993, Newsweek, By Marc Peyser
External links
Naked Angels Theater Company official website
held by the Billy Rose Theatre Division,
New York Public Library for the Performing Arts
The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts, Dorothy and Lewis B. Cullman Center, at 40 Lincoln Center Plaza, is located in Manhattan, New York City, at the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts on the Upper West Side, between the Metro ...
Arts organizations established in 1986
1986 establishments in New York City
Theatre Ensemble in New York City