AUGUST 15th through AUGUST 26th, 2010

GirlPower: Survival of the Fittest, written by the 2009-2010 Project Girl Performance Collective and directed by Ashley Marinaccio and Jessica Greer Morris featured in the 2010 NY International Fringe Festival.

GirlPower: Survival of the Fittest is an empowering, ensemble-driven collection of words written and performed by teenagers, struggling with issues they face growing up in today's world. In deeply personal material based on real interviews and experiences, the young women explore topics such as peer pressure, body image, being an outcast, different, flawed, and full of dreams for the future. They share their perspectives on love, relationships, current events, the future and creating change. Audiences can expect to walk away with a renewed sense of their own empowerment, regardless of age and gender.The GirlPower: Survival of the Fittest website.

JUNE 15th through JUNE 24th, 2010

Decadent Acts, written and directed by Ashley Marinaccio will be featured in the Planet Connections Theatre Festivity.

Set in late 1980s New York City, Decadent Acts chronicles the story of a lesbian couple struggling against legislated discrimination. When television personality Farah White falls fatally ill, her partner, professor Jolene Shatila, along with their daughter Nicole, are faced with unexpected challenges that will change their lives forever. From child custody laws, to hospital visitation rights, Decadent Acts spotlights the harsh reality of discriminatory regulations against same-sex partners, plunging emotional and political depths with grace and searing honesty. At a time when the push for full equality is finally building real momentum across the country, this play couldn’t be timelier.

The show stars Anna Savant as Dr. Jolene Shatila, Hannah Rose Barfoot as Farah White and Beatrice Miller as their young daughter, Nicole. The ensemble is comprised of Mike Callahan, Joanie Fritz Zosike, Alex Herrald, C. Rose Kearns, Michelle Sims, Alionka Polanco, and David Roberts. Decadent Acts is written and directed by Ashley Marinaccio.

About Planet Connections Theatre Festivity:

The Planet Connections Theatre Festivity is New York's premiere eco-friendly theatre festival. Fostering a diverse cross-section of performances, the festival seeks to inspire artists and audiences both creatively and fundamentally, in a festive atmosphere. At the heart of the festivity are like-minded individuals striving to create professional, meaningful theatre, while supporting organizations, which give back to the community at large. http://www.planetconnectionsfestivity.com/shows/decadent-acts

APRIL 22nd through APRIL 25th, 2010

Decadent Acts, written and directed by Ashley Marinaccio debuts at the American Theatre of Actors

Set in late 1980s New York City, Decadent Acts chronicles the story of a lesbian couple struggling against legislated discrimination. When television personality Farah White falls fatally ill, her partner, professor Jolene Shatila, along with their daughter Nicole, are faced with unexpected challenges that will change their lives forever. From child custody laws, to hospital visitation rights, Decadent Acts spotlights the harsh reality of discriminatory regulations against same-sex partners, plunging emotional and political depths with grace and searing honesty. At a time when the push for full equality is finally building real momentum across the country, this play couldn’t be timelier. For more information and to reserve tickets, click here.

MARCH 2010

The Project Girl Performance Collective website is here!

Check it out by visiting www.projectgirlperformancecollective.org. Mark your calendar for April 10th's GirlPower Cabaret and Fundraiser which will feature performances, games, music and refreshments. All money raised will go to support the Project Girl Performance Collective! For more information on the benefit, click here.

FEBRUARY 8, 2010

Documentary: A Suicide Narrative featured in TADA! Youth Theater's 17th Annual Staged Reading Series

6:00 pm at TADA! Youth Theater (15 W. 28th Street). Tickets are free. Reserve tickets by e-mailing vshore@tadatheater.com. About the Staged Reading Series: Plays are selected through TADA!’s internationally recognized Semi-Annual One-Act Playwriting Contest and performed by members of TADA!’s Resident Youth Ensemble Program and adult professional actors. Each play is minimally staged in three to seven rehearsals with the actors performing the play script-in-hand. The Staged Reading Series is made possible with the support of the Gregory Millard Memorial Fund and The Dramatists Guild Fund, Inc.

JANUARY 29, 2010

Ashley's photography is featured on the cover and alongside article "Inside Columbus Highschool"

Pick up your free copy of The Indypendent at various locations throughout NYC or click here to see the most recent issue, www.indypendent.org.

DECEMBER 9TH 2009

GirlPower at the United Nations 

GirlPower will be performing as part of the United Nations "We Can Speak" Convention on Children's Rights from 10:00 am - 12:30 pm at the UN.

OCTOBER 31ST and NOVEMBER 1ST 2009

Democracy in America - "The Living Voter Guide"

Co-Op Theatre East reminds you that Tuesday, November 3 is Election Day — don't forget to vote!

We'll be encouraging participation in the democratic process with COTE's first foray into guerilla theatre, presented this weekend, October 31st & November 1st.

The audience will find Robby & Ashley with a soapbox and "all eight candidates for Mayor of New York City" at several different street fairs and festivals on the weekend before Election Day, offering the opportunity to hear about the issues "live" from "the candidates."

OCTOBER 9th and 10th 2009

GirlPower: Survival of the Fittest

Part of the Manhattan Theatre Source's 2009 Estrogenius Festival
GirlPower is a series of powerful written words performed by teen actors struggling with issues that they face in today's world. The actresses share the joys and troubles of growing up in today's generation with their experiences of love, relationships, parents, pain and success.

The Company:
Deanna Alexandra, Kaylyn O'Gara, Tess Cronin, Manya Saaraswat, Emily Rupp, Valerie Dent, Dailyn Santana, Camille Theobald, Michelle Lee and Beatrice Miller
 

                                             Directed by:
                                             GirlPower Alumni Andrea Panichi and Kezia Tyson
 
                                             Edited and Facilitated by:
                                             Ashley Marinaccio and Elizabeth Koke

                                             Click here to see pictures from this performance.

SEPTEMBER 17TH -20TH

Questionable Content

Co-Op Theatre East's annual one-act festival Questionable Content returns with four new one-act plays about life in these modern times. Last year’s show included mysterious power brokers, children debating cultural tradition, and cats caught in their own mousetraps—check out what we have this time around:

– Steve Koppman's futuristic (prescient?) Homage to Catatonia envisions a world where we're all plugged in, and questions the cost. Directed by Ashley Marinaccio.
– Craig Abernethy's sharp comedy Do/Don't Do turns the playwright's incredible eye for social commentary on a (not so) ordinary street crossing. Directed by Robert A. K. Gonyo.
– In Reina Hardy's classic tale of truth versus fiction, Smooth Criminal, a writer of a fraudulent       blog is forced to choose between integrity or a book deal. Directed by Casey Cleverly.
– And in COTE Artistic Director Robert A. K. Gonyo's Urinal Play, a young man must deal with his impertinent boss who has run out of toilet paper. Directed by Robert A. K. Gonyo.

Click here to view photos from Questionable Content.

AUGUST 17th 2009

GirlPower: Voices of a Generation opens in the NYC Fringe Festival!

Bold. Smart. Fresh. For teens, by teens. GirlPower: Voices of a Generation is an empowering, ensemble-driven collection of words written and performed by teenagers, struggling with issues they face growing up in today's world. Through monologues and spoken word, the young women share their perspectives on love, relationships, the future, creating social change and finding power through theatre. Audiences can expect to walk away with a renewed sense of their own empowerment, regardless of their age and gender. Not only does the cast of GirlPower discuss the problems plaguing their generation, but they present audiences with solutions and ideas for action that can start upon leaving the theatre.

To reserve tickets, visit http://www.fringenyc.org/ 

AUGUST 8, 2009

Lincoln Center Directors Lab

Ashley has just completed the 2009 Lincoln Center Theater Director's Lab! The LCT Directors Lab is a developmental program for nurturing stage directors from around the country and around the world. It is a series of workshops, readings, rehearsals, investigations, roundtable discussions, and studio productions to provide young directors with an intensive study of their craft while fostering collaborative relationships among a peer community of artists. http://www.lct.org/directorsLabMain.htm