Archive for the '1' Category

23
Oct
26

DAVID SIMPATICO OCTOBER NEWSLETTER 10/26

Autumn in New York and the UK

Hi, friends. I hope this finds you enjoying the fantastic fall foliage gracing us in the Hudson Valley this year! I’m happy to share that I have several exciting projects going on at the moment.

In November, the staged reading of THE LAST SUPPER, a grand guignol love story. Sydnie Grossberg Ronga and Round the Bend Theater are holding this staged reading as a fundraiser for a full production. The cast is loaded with the local stars of the Hudson Valley theater community! https://www.centerforperformingarts.org/whats-playing/the-last-supper

In December, I’m off to England, where I have three separate productions up at the same time.

DISNEY’S HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL is having a spectacular 20th anniversary immersive production that takes place entirely on the basketball court, including audience seating. The team at Manchester’s Hope Mill Theatre, co-director/producers Joseph Houston and William Whelton, have created a highly entertaining revival. https://www.disneytickets.co.uk/high-school-musical-tickets

Opera Holland Park is producing my oratorio adaptation of DICKENS’S A CHRISTMAS CAROL, with a soaring, emotional score by Will Todd. This is the third straight year they are producing it at the historic Cadogan Hall, Sunday, Dec. 13 at 5pm. https://operahollandpark.com/productions/a-christmas-carol-2/

And up in Leeds, Opera North is producing a larger scale production of A CHRISTMAS CAROL Dec 18-24th. I can’t wait to see both productions, they are going to be quite different. https://www.operanorth.co.uk/whats-on/a-christmas-carol/

Stay healthy and happy as we wend our way to the new year!

Much love. David.

02
Oct
26

The Last Supper is coming….

AWARD-WINNING PLAYWRIGHT DAVID SIMPATICO BRINGS TIMELY ZOMBIE POLITICAL EPIC TO RHINEBECK FOR HIGH-TENSION POST-ELECTION CATHARSIS

Rhinebeck, NY — Just a few days after one of the most highly anticipated and fraught elections in modern history, Round the Bend Theater will present a special, immersive staged reading of The Last Supper: A Zombie Political Epic. Written by award-winning playwright David Simpatico (High School Musical stage version, The Screams of Kitty Genovese) and directed by Sydnie Grosberg Ronga, this dark comedy grand guignol love story will take the stage at the Center for Performing Arts in Rhinebeck,  on Saturday, November 7, 2026.

The event serves as a critical fundraiser to propel the play into a full, upcoming production. While The Last Supper delivers a massive dose of immersive undead fun, its narrative strikes a deep chord for this exact moment in American culture. Utilizing the beloved horror framework of a zombie apocalypse, Simpatico’s play explores a grand guignol love story at the end of the world, asking a vital question: When everything falls apart, what do we owe one another?

“With the upcoming elections, national tensions are incredibly high and fraught,” says Simpatico. “This moment is absolutely perfect for this kind of explosive catharsis, where we can experience laughter and screaming all at once in a shared theater. To be completely honest, I think this piece is just what the country needs right now—says me, and you can quote me!”

Round the Bend Theater invites the local community to step out of the post-election anxiety and into the theater for a night of brilliant storytelling, dark humor, and collective relief. The outrageous cast includes Lora Lee Ecobelli, Chantez Engleit, Norm Magnusson, Rick Meyer, James Occhino, Nicole Quinn, Phoenix Ra, Jared Reinmuth, John Remington, Bill Solley, Vinnie Velez and Emily Woolever.

All the info:

THE LAST SUPPER: A GRAND GUIGNOL LOVE STORY
by David Simpatico

Saturday, November 7, 2026 · 7:30 PM

Center for Performing Arts at Rhinebeck — Main Stage

$15 Fundraiser

Proceeds support efforts to mount The Last Supper as a full production in the Hudson Valley.

Presented by Round The Bend Theater, with the Center for Performing Arts at Rhinebeck.

25
Sep
24

THE LAST SUPPER

THE LAST SUPPER
A new play by David Simpatico

The guests are late, the grid is on the fritz, and sirens blast out dire warnings of impending doom as recently deceased corpses rise from the grave as UNDEAD CANNIBALS, devouring  humans and spreading the ZOMBIE VIRUS. The desperate survivors band together in the flux of what’s real and unreal, fighting for their lives against the undead, against the machines, and against each other. This aggressive black comedy explores the Great Replacement Theory to its logical, self-destructive ends.

First public reading on
Sunday, Oct. 20
3pm, $5
Stissing Center, Pine Plains

07
Jun
09

OUT IN THE CITY, gay/lesbian/trans documentary

Here’s a link to a wonderful documentary I am featured in, OUT IN THE CITY, a gay/lesbian/bi/trans love letter to the city of New York.

http://exposureroom.com/members/wideiris.aspx/assets/88bb152266da456291c1b5a8b7a83e9f

25
Mar
09

Wish Fulfillment

Wish Fulfillment
Video sent by davidsimpatico

Ten variations on a Son coming out to his Father.

03
Jan
09

my stage adaptation of Capote’s IN COLD BLOOD

Here is my stage adaptation of Truman Capote’s masterwork, IN COLD BLOOD. I was commissioned by Steve Beckler, and the Capote estate gave us permission to use the book. The rights have since reverted back to the estate, but I think this is one of my best pieces. Let me know what you think.

in-cold-blood-current-draft5

13
Nov
08

AUNT PITTIPAT IN THE TOWER, published in THE BEST MEN’S MONOLOGUES FOR THE 21ST CENTURY

I am deeply honored and thrilled to be included among the  many outstanding writers in this new publication of monologues for the stage. Here is my piece, AUNT PITTIPAT IN THE TOWER, that is included in the Extended Monologues section, right after Spalding Gray! Hope you enjoy.

 

26699454

 

auntpittypatworkingfinal

31
Oct
08

my stage adaptation of IN COLD BLOOD

I was commissioned a few years ago by Steve Beckler to adapt Capote’s non-fiction novel. We had the rights from the Capote estate, but the rights have since reverted back. I’m looking for a production of this somewhere that might induce the estate to give back the rights for a full production.

let me know what you think of it.

in-cold-blood-nov-1-draft

17
Oct
08

APOCALYPSE WOW, Rant 1: work-in-progress

This is a work-in-progress, the opening of a larger vaudeville about the end of the world. I wrote it, recorded it on my computer, sent it over to the UK where my brilliant partner Will Todd composed the underscoring over night. Let me know what you think.

Track1 Apoc Wow Rant 1:

14
Oct
08

my libretto for THE SCREAMS OF KITTY GENOVESE

This is the libretto for THE SCREAMS OF KITTY GENOVESE, a sung-thru music drama with a brilliant score by Will Todd.

nymf-production-draft3




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