Ancient Rome, Noir, and Pulp themes reign as Dialogue with Three Chords begins 9th season of theatre
BRONX, N.Y.: Dialogue with Three Chords (D3C) brings their original plays and themed performances back to lower Manhattan for their ninth year of independent theatre. The first of these, THE EMPIRE NEVER ENDED, stages two new works written by Stephen Gracia and directed by Michael LoPorto set in Ancient Rome. The show starts at 8pm on Thursday, August 22, and features the music of the acoustic-Riot Grrl-pop-punk duo Dolltits. Admission is free, just head downstairs at Von Bar on 3 Bleecker Street, New York, NY 10012.
THE EMPIRE NEVER ENDED includes two shorts that center on arguments, "The Moment Before the Die is Cast" and "Nicaea." The former is a dramatization of a debate on the senate floor between Gaius Julius Caesar and Cato the Younger, while the latter features Emperor Constantine and his mother Helena moderating two very different discussions on Christianity, divinity, and the seeds of the Holy Roman Empire. Dolltits, the NY Times notable musicians, return by popular demand to perform songs between the scenes.
In September, D3C will present THOSE WHO LIVE, LIVE OFF THE DEAD, a night of Noir theatre. Influenced by French dramatist Antonin Artaud, Gracia explains that the performance will include plays that follow the stories of two detectives, one "with a past who finds himself across the desk from a pulp era Persephone, and one with no future at all who ponders the implications of a day without murder."
D3C closes out the first half of season nine at Von Bar with THE WAYS A BIT OF STRANGENESS CAN IMPACT A NORMAL LIFE. According to Gracia, this collection centers on Pulp themes which include masked vigilantes, the checkered legacy of of Sax Rhomer's Fu Manchu novels, and a pulp writer who speaks with his famous creations as he prepares to end his life.
Gracia and LoPorto co-founded D3C at Mr. Dennehy's in 2011. Previous D3C shows have featured musicians, poets, and burlesque. They've partnered with local independent theatre groups to produce innovative, challenging, free theatre to New York. They will expand their theatrical reach to include a special performance in Hoboken before the end of 2019.
More information on Dialogue with Three Chords: https://www.facebook.com/dthreec
More information on Dolltits: http://www.dolltits.com/
Dialogue with Three Chords was founded by Stephen Gracia and Michael LoPorto and applies the do-it-yourself philosophy of punk to the stage with short plays and live music. Their work has been produced at HERE Arts Center, Dixon Place, The SOHO Gallery of Digital Art, Sargent Theatre, Makor Theater, DUMBO Theatre Exchange, Levenson Hall at Brooklyn College, and the Theaters at 45 Bleecker.
