Announcing residency of Playwright Peter Kim George

ArtYard and Brave New Works are pleased to announce Korean diaspora playwright Peter Kim George will be in residence in Frenchtown this fall to develop Empire Liquor, culminating in a staged reading at 2 PM on Saturday, Sept. 20.

Empire Liquor, directed by Nana Dakin, is a caustic satire about race, colonial violence, bad water pressure, and the absurdity of making art. The staged reading will be followed by a talkback with the playwright and creative team at the McDonnell Donnell Theater at ArtYard, 13 Front St., Frenchtown, NJ.

This daring play was the 2022 recipient of the Dr. Kerry English Award at the Ojai Playwrights Conference and was also developed at La Jolla Playhouse’s DNA New Work Series.

This residency is a partnership between ArtYard and Brave New Works, a unique new work incubator that re-invigorates theater as a primary cultural influence by putting a new play “in conversation” with other art forms and artists.

THE PLAY

Winter 2021. A Korean American playwright gathers friends in a borrowed Scottish manor to workshop a play about the 1992 LA riots. Part performance art and part spirited farce, the process grows and deepens, spurring humor and horror as these friends and actors confront difficult questions around race, history, empire, and how much is a ticket out of here? When the line between actor and role gets blurry, they wonder: what do we do with the anger we inherit? Empire Liquor’s caustic satire illuminates the beauty and absurdity of making art.

THE PLAYWRIGHT

Peter Kim George is a Korean diaspora playwright born in California and based in New York. He did his PhD in English Language and Literatures at Brown University before writing for the stage. His plays include EMPIRE LIQUOR (formerly TO RED TENDONS) (Ojai Playwrights Conference Dr. Kerry English Artist Award, La Jolla Playhouse DNA New Work Series, Relentless Award Honorable Mention, Bay Area Playwrights Festival Finalist), MEN ACCUMULATE (Bay Area Playwrights Festival Finalist, Princess Grace Award Semi-Finalist, NormalAve NAPseries), and THREE BROTHERS (Ojai Playwrights Conference Finalist, Circle X Theatre Emerging Playwrights Group).

THE PRODUCERS

Brave New Works is a new play development initiative co-founded by dramaturg/producer Sasha Emerson and director/producer Casey Stangl to nurture the early life of plays and the artists who create them. Our thoughtfully curated events feature play readings and multi-disciplinary programming that amplifies the plays’ themes. We connect writers, directors, actors, and dramaturgs with engaged audiences.

ArtYard is an incubator for creative expression and a catalyst for collaborations that reveal the transformational power of art. An interdisciplinary alternative contemporary art center in Frenchtown, NJ, ArtYard is comprised of an exhibition space, theater, and residency program, dedicated to presenting transformative artwork, fostering unexpected collaborations, and incubating original new work.