Edit Annie
by The Vortex
Sep. 09 - Sep. 24, 2022
Thursdays-Sundays
Agoraphobic video editor Annie finally meets Clara, the #influencer she’s been editing remotely for years. As their relationship blossoms, Clara seems to be the salvation Annie's been waiting for—but her best friend Dana isn't so sure. This dark comedic thriller descends deep into Annie’s mind and interrogates the loneliness of living with screens, the implications of being able to edit every aspect of yourself, and what’s “real” in a digital age. Our increasingly-digital landscape invites us to do this revising: to erase imperfections, delete all but the highlight reel, and be lulled into the picture-perfect version of the story. But what wounds does this erasure carve onto our psyches? For all of its theatrical elements, Edit Annie is a story about loneliness and longing to connect.
Edit Annie defies genre; it is a dark comedic queer rom-com psychological social media thriller. On the surface, Edit Annie is about video editing, social media, and the relationship between a video editor and the #influencer she co-creates. At its core, Edit Annie is about our minds—their endless power to create, warp, and destroy, all in the name of protection. By incorporating video, live feed, movement choreography, and claymation, Edit Annie reflects us: living straddled between digital and 3D worlds and altering “reality” with the press of a button. Edit Annie asks us to question which version of us is true? Which version is real, and how can we be sure? What does it mean to be authentic, when everything we do is edited for public consumption?
Starring Alaithia Velez as Annie. Jacqui Calloway as Clara. Erin McNellis as Dana. Dane Parker as Jackson.
Directed by Will Detlefsen.
Scenic Design by Alex Cassillas and Demetri Bellini. Lighting Design by J Mwaki. Sound Design by Malyssa Quinn. Costume Design by Madison Murrah. Video Design by Mary Glen Fredrick, Claymation Design by Sofia Canestaro, and projection engineering by Johann Solo. Poster Design by Melissa Vogt.
Production Manager, Katie Hamilton. Stage Manager, Monica Kurtz. Assistant Director, Jelena Stojiljkovic Rhynes. Assistant Stage Manager, Dow Zabolio. Financial Director, Krystle Cline. Managing Director, Melissa Vogt. Producing Artistic Director, Bonnie Cullum.
Edit Annie is funded and supported by VORTEX Repertory Company, National New Play Network, The O’Neill Theatre Center, Six Square Austin’s Black Cultural District, The Texas Commission on the Arts. NNPN.org
About the Playwright: Mary Glen Fredrick (she/they) is a New York-based writer, actor, and video editor. A writer for both theatre and film, she creates kinetic, femme-centric stories that dance with the absurd, the imaginative, and the dystopian. Her plays include Edit Annie (2022 O’Neill semifinalist, Leah Ryan’s FEWW finalist, Neukom Literary Arts Award finalist), Anarchy (New Perspectives Theatre Women’s Work Short Play LAB and 2021 Festival), and fire work (LOM Ensemble Playwright Lab Residency, Fault Line Theatre Irons in the Fire finalist). Her short film script Anything Valuable was selected for the 2021 Tribeca x Chanel Through Her Lens Women’s Filmmaker Program and her feature script Kin has been developed with the Eastern Frontier Society and NYC’s Filmshop. She received her BA in Comparative Studies in Race and Ethnicity from Stanford University and her MFA in Acting from UC San Diego. You can check out more of her work and self at heymaryglen.com.
About the Director: Will Detlefsen (he/him) hails from the Bay Area, CA. Will trained at the Playwrights Horizons Theater School at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts and received his Masters in Directing at UC San Diego. This is his seventh time collaborating with Mary Glen Fredrick. Previous productions include Our Town (NYU Strasberg Institute), Pippin (Five Towns College), The Straights by T. Adamson (JACK), I am a positive person by Danny Rocco and You’re Gonna Be Famous by York Walker (Atlantic Theater School), and The Brewery by Manning Jordan (Dixon Place). Will lives in Harlem, NY, with his husband and his puppy, Oprah Winfrey.
The VORTEX Mission: We conjure urgent, unashamed art to create action in a shifting age. We embrace diverse communities, break down barriers, and elevate inclusive discourse from our cultural harbor in Austin, Texas. We enliven humanity with magical green new theatre at our Butterfly Bar and Sanctuary.
The VORTEX Core Values: Our core values are encompassed by the Pentacle of Integrity: Transformation, Magic, Community, Diversity, and Earth. Integrity lives at our core. We engage in radical transformation through edge-walking artistic creations and innovations. Magic emanates from our cultural harbor, engaging Spirit. Our space and our culture support expanding circles of inclusive community. Our art reflects diversity of people and voices from the global majority. Sustainability and environmentalism center Earth at our foundation.
ABOUT THE VORTEX:
● a fearless theatre exchange for a shifting age
● change-makers and truth-tellers for more than three decades
● anti-racist lens reflects diversity of people and voices of the BIPOC global majority
● expanding circles of inclusive communities
● a catalyst for change, providing theatrical art characterized by direct impact
● stimulating inquiry and challenging white supremacy
● a unique regional theatre
● a cultural harbor in Six Square Austin’s Black Cultural Arts District
● radical transformation through edge-walking artistic creations and innovations
● ensemble-generated, aesthetically diverse world premiere plays and musicals
● hundreds of awards for artistic excellence.
● a leader in the growth of the arts and economic stability in Austin
● striving for an equitable, life-sustaining civilization
● centering Earth at our foundation
● Green Business Leaders with Recycling and Composting
● spacious Butterfly Sanctuary
● Garden Stage
● The Butterfly Bar
● Patrizi’s
● The Eloise Brooks Cullum Stage
Edit Annie
by Mary Glen Frederick
The Vortex
September 09 - September 24, 2022
September 9-24, 2022
Thursdays-Saturdays 8 pm Sundays at 6 pm
Live-Streamed Thursday, September 15, 2022
ASL-Interpreted Saturday, September 17, 2022
Wednesday, September 21 8pm “Industry Night”
COVID Safety Protocols: Masks required in the theatre.
The Eloise Brooks Cullum Stage @The VORTEX
2307 Manor Rd. Austin, TX 78722
Free Parking. Bus Route.
The Butterfly Bar @ The VORTEX opens nightly with a full bar, hand-crafted cocktails, and snacks. Patrizi’s @ The VORTEX opens nightly with delicious homemade Italian food.
Tickets: www.vortexrep.org or 512-478-5282
Reserved Seating.
Tickets: $37-$15
$37 Benefactor, $27 Supporter, $15 Discount/Child/Artist/Student/Senior
www.vortexrep.org or 512-478-5282
Advance Reservations Recommended.
Blue Star Theatre: Discounts for Military, Veterans, and their families.
2-for-1 admission with donation of 2 cans for SAFE Austin (Wed. Thurs. Sun.)
Radical Rush Free Tickets: Limited free tickets for each performance in the spirit of sustainability, accessibility, and the gift economy. Radical Rush tickets released one hour before the show--in-person only.
