THE (Curious Case of the) WATSON INTELLIGENCE
By Madeleine George
Directed by Jean Dobie Giebel
Featuring: Christopher Dippel, Claire Engel*, and Peter Friedrich*
Tickets $25 | Students and Senior Citizens $15 (with ID)
LIMITED ENGAGEMENT
Opens: 7/10
Closes: 7/14
"MARVELOUS AND FILLED WITH MARVELS. In the Stoppardian world of The Watson Intelligence, Madeleine George's human, dramatic play takes surprising turns."
- New York Magazine
Showtimes
Wednesday, July 10 @ 8:00 PM
Thursday July 11 @ 8:00 PM
Friday July 12 @ 8:00 PM
Saturday July 13 @ 8:00 PM
Sunday July 14 @ 2:00 PM
The (curious case of the) Watson Intelligence tells the story of four Watsons: the trusty sidekick to Sherlock Holmes; the loyal engineer who built Bell’s first telephone; the unstoppable super-computer that became reigning Jeopardy! champ; an amiable techno-dweeb who, in the present day, is just looking for love. These four constant companions become one in this brilliantly witty, time-jumping, loving tribute (and cautionary tale) dedicated to the people—and machines—upon which we all depend. (SamuelFrench.com)
The play originally premiered at Playwrights Horizons in 2013 and went on to be a finalist for the 2014 Pulitzer Prize in Drama and the winner of the 2014 Outer Critics Circle John Gassner Memorial Playwriting Award. The Chain Theatre revival, under the direction of Jean Dobie Giebel (Chasing the River, Bright and Brave, A Stain Upon the Silence: Not I and Footfalls), features Christopher Dippel, Claire Engel*, and Peter Friedrich*.
Madeleine George’s plays include Hurricane Diane (NY Times Critic’s Pick), Seven Homeless Mammoths Wander New England (Susan Smith Blackburn Award finalist), Precious Little, and The Zero Hour (Lambda Literary Award finalist). Madeleine is the recipient of a Whiting Award, the Princess Grace Playwriting Fellowship, and two MacDowell Fellowships, and she holds commissions from the Sloan Foundation/Manhattan Theatre Club, the Big Ten Theatre Consortium, and the Children's Theater Company in Minneapolis. She was a founding member of the Obie-Award-winning playwrights' collective 13P (Thirteen Playwrights, Inc.), and was the Mellon Playwright in Residence at Two River Theater in Red Bank, New Jersey.
"[Madeleine George] juggles several deep themes with grace, wit and intellectual verve."
- Time Out New York
Jean Dobie Giebel (Director) previously served as an Associate Director for The Mint Theatre and Riverside Shakespeare Company. She has acted Off-Broadway, Off-Off-Broadway and in Regional theater as well as in numerous TV commercials. Directing credits include productions at the New 42nd Street Theatre, The Mint Theatre, Pulse Ensemble Theater, Riverside Shakespeare Company, the ATA Chernuchin Theater, 45th Street Theatre and Dixon Place. Jean is a Professor of Drama and Associate Dean for Curriculum and Personnel for the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences at Hofstra University where she has directed over 40 collegiate productions. Her new play, Chasing the River, has been optioned for TV. Member: SAG/AFTRA, SDC, and DG. More info at jeandobiegiebel.com
Christopher Dippel (Merrick) is a founding member of the New York Neo-Futurists, who have been performing weekly at the Kraine Theater since 2006. His other New York credits include productions at the Cherry Lane, Lucille Lortel, Dixon Place and HERE. His regional credits include Indiana Repertory Theatre, Brown County Playhouse and Trinity Rep as part of the Providence Improv Festival. His original works for Too Much Light Makes the Baby Go Blind and The Infinite Wrench have been produced in New York, Chicago, San Francisco, and Australia as part of the Melbourne International Comedy Festival. He holds an MFA in Acting from Indiana University, Bloomington. Chris teaches Acting at Hofstra University.
Claire Engel* (Eliza) was last seen as Arlene in Baby with the Broadway Training Center of Westchester. New York credits include: The Producer's Club, New 42nd Street Theater, and APAC. Claire’s Regional credits include: The Old Globe, The Odyssey, The Phoenix, Berkshire Theatre Festival, and Indiana Repertory Theatre. She has toured with The Windy City Players and appeared in the outdoor drama, Tecumseh!. She is an alum of Occidental College, and earned her MFA in Acting from Indiana University, Bloomington.
Peter Friedrich* (Watson) is a professor and community theatremaker from Jackson, Mississippi. He has worked at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival and the Goodman Theater, along with various colleges, refugee asylum centers and federal prisons. His most recently led work, Purple vs. White, was created by the men’s football team at Millsaps College. Acting credits include a Lincoln Center national tour of Wendy Wasserstein’s The Sisters Rosensweig, Saturday Night Live and Sesame Street. A loyal clown devotee of Christopher Bayes and Zach Fine, he received his MFA from the American Conservatory Theatre.
Emilio "Max"well Cerci (Lighting and Sound Design) is a socially and politically charged director and light designer based in New York. Max currently works as an Assistant to Tony Award winning producer, Hunter Arnold on both Hadestown and Frankie & Johnny in the Clair de Lune on Broadway. His most recent design credits include: Spring Awakening (LD) at Irondale Center, Grounded (AD) at Irondale's "On Women" Festival, The Life of Galileo at The Irondale Center (ALD), The Puppet Master at La MaMa's Puppet Slam (Directing), Perry Street Theatrical's Chasing the River (Light Design), Ron Fassler's Up in the Cheap Seats at 54 Below (AD). Max is a graduate from Hofstra University with a BFA in Theater Arts with a concentration in Directing and Light Design. More info at EmilioMaxwellCerci.com
Katelyn Quinones (Costume Design) is a BFA performance major at Hofstra University where she has appeared as Joan of Arc in The Saint Plays, Van's sister in Dog Sees God, and the Milky White puppeteer in Into the Woods. Her costume credits include assistant costume design for Hofstra's Two Gentlemen of Verona, costume design for Masquerade Theatre Company's production of American Idiot, and Costume Coordinator for Dixon Place Theatre's Bright and Brave: a New Musical.
The (curious case of the) Watson Intelligence is underwritten, in part, by a Hofstra University Faculty Research and Development Grant. Hofstra University is a private institution whose primary mission is to provide a quality education to its students in an environment that encourages, nurtures, and supports learning through the free and open exchange of ideas, for the betterment of humankind.
*appearing courtesy of AEA / Equity approved showcase