City Solo: August 1, 15, 22

CITY SOLO
Featuring the Bay Area's finest up-and-coming solo performers

August 1, 15, 22
Sundays at 7pm
Off-Market Theater, San Francisco


CITY SOLO is a fresh series featuring a rotating cast of Bay Area solo stars. Each show features a dynamic line-up of four short pieces, written and performed by the solo artists themselves. CITY SOLO brings together top-rate talent for a night of comedy, drama, and everything in between.

Performers include:

Sunday, August 1 at 7pm
MARY SAMSON ~ "Bedside Drawer"
THAO P. NGUYEN ~ "Fortunate Daughter"
HOWARD PETRICK ~ "Rambo: The Missing Years"
ZAHRA NOORBAKHSH ~ "All Atheists Are Muslim"


Sunday, August 15 at 7pm
DEIRDRE KENNEDY ~ "Not THAT Irish"
COKE NAKAMOTO ~ "Soft Tissue: Secret Agent Bucket"
JAWAD ALI ~ "Earthquake"
MARTHA RYNBERG ~ "Lady Parts"


Sunday, August 22 at 7pm
MICHAEL MCCARRIN ~ "The Girl From California"
JAWAD ALI ~ "Earthquake"
DEIRDRE KENNEDY ~ "Not THAT Irish"
THAO P. NGUYEN ~ "Fortunate Daughter"



WHAT:
CITY SOLO
With performances by Thao P. Nguyen, Zahra Noorbakhsh, Colleen "Coke" Nakamoto, Martha Rynberg, Mary Samson, Howard Petrick, Jawad Ali, Deirdre Kennedy, and Michael McCarrin.


WHEN:
August 1, 15, 22
Sundays at 7pm


WHERE:
Off-Market Theater
965 Mission St, SF
Between 5th & 6th St
1.5 blocks from Powell BART
http://www.cafearts.com/offmarket_205.php


TICKETS:
$20 General Admission
$15 Students / Seniors / Low-income
http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/116807



ABOUT THE PERFORMANCES / PERFORMERS:


"All Atheists Are Muslim." It's just a matter of physics, a pre-engagement ceremony, and a sacrificial lamb. Written & performed by ZAHRA NOORBAKHSH. Performing 8/1. Zahra (http://www.zahracomedy.com) is a stand-up comic, writer, and performer who is currently performing as a member of "DIS-ORIENTED" (a performance troupe of Asian-American women solo artists) getting ready to debut her one hour solo show entitled, "All Atheists Are Muslim."


"Bedside Drawer." A tour of an adolescent girl's psyche, masturbation, and confusion: shiny packets, Joan's magic pillow, and all that follows. Written & performed by MARY SAMSON. Performing 8/1. Mary has been exploring the human condition since 1980, when she began performing in community theatre in Lincoln, Nebraska. Mary is currently developing a new full-length solo show, "Bedside Drawer".


"Fortunate Daughter." Thao, 25, wakes up on a good morning in Vietnam, dons her full-metal jacket and goes deer hunting on Hamburger Hill with Forrest Gump and Martin Sheen. Only she survives. Later, her mom takes her to meet her grandmother for the first time. Written performed by THAO P. NGUYEN. Performing 8/1 & 8/22. Thao has been writing and performing solo shows since she joined the Solo Performance Workshop in 2007. She also co-produces two monthly solo performance series in San Francisco: "Words First" at CounterPULSE and "City Solo" at Off-Market Theater.


"The Girl From California." The improbable true story of two plus-sized Americans who find love -- and each other -- on the highway outside of Bakersfield. Written & performed by MICHAEL MCCARRIN. Performing 8/22. Michael manages the website for Small Desk Press, and works days at Pottery Barn, where he converts the paragraphs that describe the products in their catalog into the bulleted lists that describe those products on their website. His writings are available for free online at http://www.potterybarn.com.


"Lady Parts: Parts #5 and #14." It isn't the show you think it is. Mostly it's about mom-thighs, hair-plucking on public transportation, and life-saving liposuction after heroically taking a bullet. There's really only a little bit of vagina in this show -- because contrary to public assumption, a woman is more than the sum of her 'lady' parts. Written & performed by MARTHA RYNBERG. Performing 8/15. Martha is the original director of the acclaimed "W. Kamau Bell Curve", a facilitator of the Solo Performance Workshop since 2008, and a prolific performance artist gone bananas for the solo genre.


"Not THAT Irish." Deirdre recounts her conflict growing up as a first generation Irish immigrant in Swinginâ Sixties London. Written & performed by DEIRDRE KENNEDY. Performing 8/15 & 8/22. Deirdre is a long-time writer and public radio reporter for National Public Radio, Deutsche Welle, and the BBC World Service, among others. Born and raised in London, she now lives in San Francisco.


"Rambo: The Missing Years." This is the humorous story of the military bureaucracy and a draftee who, without breaking the rules, spoke out against the war to his fellow GIs and anyone else who would listen. Written & performed by HOWARD PETRICK. Performing 8/1. Howard is currently working on Rambo: The Missing Years, an autobiographical piece about his experiences speaking out and organizing against the Vietnam War while in the US Army. He will be performing at the San Francisco Theater Festival on August 8th and the Boulder and Chicago Fringe Festivals in August and September.


"Soft Tissue: Secret Agent Bucket." 7-year old Bucket wants to know how a girl becomes a woman, and sneaks underneath her piano teacher's dress for the answer. Written and performed by COLLEEN "COKE" NAKAMOTO. Performing 8/15. Coke is a writer, solo performer and improvisational dancer who has presented original works in Los Angeles, Carmel and the Bay Area. She is a proud member of the Asian American women's solo-trio DIS-Oriented and the Wing It! Performance Ensemble. Coke is currently working on a full-length solo project, "Soft Tissue," directed by W. Kamau Bell.



WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING:

"City Solo is an adventure. It’s funny, then heartfelt, then funny again. I’ve never seen solo shows done like that before." -- Dave Chappelle, Comic (Feb-2010)

City Solo is "a series featuring a rotating cast of the Bay Area's solo stars." -- SF Weekly (Apr-2010)

"Don't miss: City Solo" -- SF Chronicle, 96-Hours (May-2010)

City Solo has "a rotating line-up of comics and actors... that animate these performances." -- East Bay Express (Jun-2010)

"These giggles are yours to enjoy!" -- SF Weekly (Jun-2010)