The Hypothetical Theatre Company presents the New York premiere of by Melanie Marnich from February 13 to March 10, directed by Amy Feinberg. With this hilarious and moving production, The Hypothetical Theatre showcases a female playwright of growing prominence, perhaps best known to-date for "Blur," her quirky, humorous, emotionally rich comedy staged last spring at The Manhattan Theatre Club. The New York premiere of Quake has been eagerly awaited since its production at the 25th annual Humana Festival last February.

Quake tells the story of Lucy, who traverses the continent in search of an elusive balance between independence and committment, career and family, extraordinary achievment and ordinary existence. In a succession of surreal, contorted affairs, she fails to reconcile her driving need for ideal love with the realities of modern romance. On her way, she is distracted by an obsession with 'That Woman,' a notoriously brilliant serial-killer and astrophysist -- America's Most Wanted Woman. 'That Woman' coaches Lucy as she zags across the continent and zigs through her many relationships in search of 'The Big Love.'

Melanie Marnich belongs to that contingent of American playwrights whose trademark utilization of language weaves a tapestry that infuses the theatre with a poetic spell, enmeshing their characters and hypnotizing the audience. In Quake, Ms. Marnich's protaganist wars with gravity as she attempts to reconcile society's star-bound ideals of love and romance with the mundane, earthbound realities and brutalities of human interaction.

Ms. Marnich was the only new playwright at the Humana Festival at Actors Theatre of Louisville February, 2001 with Quake. This was auspicious in itself, since Humana often marks the top NY and regional plays for following seasons. She caught the spotlight again when her play Blur was included in the Public Theater's New Work Now Festival and premiered at Manhattan Theater Club in April-June, 2001, directed by Artistic Director Lynne Meadow. Quake was also selected for the Fall 2000 A.S.K. International Writers Exchange held at London's Royal Court Theatre.

Marnich's other plays include Tallgrass Gothic, Beautiful Again, and Season. Marnich's major awards include two Samuel Goldwyn writing awards, two Jerome Fellowships, a McKnight Advancement Grant, inclusion in Lincoln Center's American Living Room festival, and the Francesca Primus Award. After ten years as an advertising copywriter, Ms. Marnich attended graduate school and earned her M.F.A. in playwriting from the University of California, San Diego. She now lives in Minneapolis where she writes and teaches.

This fall, when Amy Feinberg directed the West Coast Premiere of Quake with Theatre Pangea at the Hollywood Court Theatre, it was to unanimously favorable reviews. L.A. Weekly (Neal Weaver) called Lucy a "naive, spunky female Candide" and commended director Feinberg for capably highlighting the comedy. Backstage West (Scott Proudfit) praised its "Eric Ehn-like dialogue" and called the play amusing, visually arresting and poetic. The L.A. Times (Jan J. Molni) deemed it a "fittingly quirky presentation of Melanie Marnich's abstract comedy."

Lucy will be played by Dannah Chaifetz and "That Woman" will be played by Jacqueline Bowman. The ensemble also includes Irene McDonnell, Jonathon Gentry, Robert Bowen Jr., John Kevin Kennedy and Matt Seidman. Set design is by Mark Symczak. Lighting design is by Randy Glickman. Sound design is by Tim Cramer. Costumes are by T. Michael Hall.