See PUTIN AND THE SNOWMAN On-Demand

PUTIN AND THE SNOWMAN Written by Robert Kerbeck
Directed by Jessica Schechter

Edward Snowden has been granted asylum in Russia. He’s also been given a new job that brings a whole new meaning to the term “whistleblower.”

Watch it On Demand at https://vimeo.com/ondemand/putinandthesnowman

Each ON DEMAND Viewing counts as a vote for your play.

The play with the most On Demand Views wins a spot in the FINALS.

The Top 5 On Demand Plays will get extra votes added to the total votes in the festival.

Voting Ends July 26th at 8pm

The FINALS for the Strawberry One-Act Festival is on

Thursday, July 28th at 7pm at the Theatre at St. Clement's

423 West 46th St, NYC

For tickets go to https://www.therianttheatre.com/item.php?date=2016-07-28

 

PUTIN AND THE SNOWMAN by Robert Kerbeck

PUTIN AND THE SNOWMAN by Robert Kerbeck

Edward Snowden has been granted asylum in Russia. He’s also been given a new job that brings a whole new meaning to the term “whistleblower.”

Tuesday, July 19th at 7pm

Wednesday, July 20th at 9pm

Thursday, July 21st at 9pm

For tickets go to https://www.therianttheatre.com/item.php?id=272

At the Theatre at St. Clement’s, 423 West 46^th Street, NYC
The Riant Theatre’s Strawberry One-Act Festival

PUTIN AND THE SNOWMAN Program Information, Creative Team and Actors

PUTIN AND THE SNOWMAN By Robert Kerbeck
Directed by Jessica Schechter

Time: The Present.  Place: The locker room of a Moscow hockey rink.

Characters in order of appearance

Edward Snowden                 Ralph Schneider

Vladimir Putin                       David Oscar     

Russian Bodyguard              Damian Bailey

Who’s Who. .

Ralph Schneider (Edward Snowden) has been a student of TGW Acting Studio for the past 3 years, playing the role of Hortensio in their off-Broadway Taming of the Shrew.  You might have seen him in Inspector Descending as part of the UnFringed festival, or in the 13th street Rep's Rapunzarella White. Ralph has also acted in various shows at Baruch College, including Suddenly Last Summer, Rent, and Lysistrata. He recently started work at Theatre Row on the children's show The Very Hungry Caterpillar. Ralph aspires to run his own children's theater. Thank you to family and friends for your support! 

David Oscar (Vladimir Putin) So I have no doubt (how could there be) that Bill said it best: "suit the action to the word, the word to the action.”

Damian Bailey (Russian Bodyguard) has been acting for 25 years in numerous film/TV/theatre productions. His company Glory 2 God Productions has produced 8 plays, 2 short films and 3 feature films. His feature film directorial debut Gang Girl (distributed by Maverick Entertainment) has been nominated for Best Picture in the Soho International Film Festival. Damian is happy to be a part of this play and to be directed by the wonderful Thomas Waites. www.damianleadingman.com 

Robert Kerbeck (Playwright) Based on his short stories, Robert was selected for mentorship by the managing editor of Tin House. His non-fiction piece about O.J. Simpson was featured on Narratively, and his personal essay about George Clooney and Yoko Ono can be read on Word Riot. He is the winner of the 2016 upstreet short fiction scholarship for this summer’s VCFA writer’s conference. A member of the Actors Studio, Robert has worked extensively in theater, film, and television, appearing in lead roles and earning several awards, including an L.A. Weekly award and a Drama-Logue award. Thanks to Michael & Holly Gerbino at Archigrafika for our poster! www.robertkerbeck.com

Jessica Schechter (Director) has an MFA in Directing from the Actors Studio Drama School and a Bachelors degree in Educational Theatre from NYU.  She is a certified theater teacher and adjunct professor teaching Public Speaking, Interpersonal Communication, and Modern Drama.  Jessica is a freelance theater director and works as a private acting and speech coach in NYC.  She is currently co-producing and acting in the new comedic web series Soon By You. www.jessicaschechter.com

PUTIN AND THE SNOWMAN by Robert Kerbeck

Edward Snowden has been granted asylum in Russia. He’s also been given a new job that brings a whole new meaning to the term “whistleblower.”

Tuesday, July 19th at 7pm

Wednesday, July 20th at 9pm
Thursday, July 21st at 9pm

For tickets go to https://www.therianttheatre.com/item.php?id=272

At the Theatre at St. Clement’s, 423 West 46^th Street, NYC
The Riant Theatre’s Strawberry One-Act Festival

A Putin/Snowden Locker Room Pairing: PUTIN AND THE SNOWMAN by Robert Kerbeck

By Gini Chang

Gini Chang

Critics of international politics have had the vast canvas of the Internet to paint their complaints and opinions upon. These criticisms come in the form of text, image, and even video.  For example, in countries such as the US, people have the privilege of being able to Google “Putin memes” and seeing hundreds of thousands of pictures that make fun of Russia’s President. Many of these images have been deemed so offensive that they’re illegal in Russia for portraying a political figure in a negative way. In America, however, political cartoonists are protected by the first amendment that gives them freedom of expression-the right to make fun of whoever they want. 

That’s why America is praised as the country of freedom, because artists, political dissenters and combinations of the two are are able to create work that is uncensored, even if censorship would benefit the government. In fact, there are many things our government isn’t allowed to do- restricting citizens’ rights being only one- and that is why America represents a land of freedom and opportunity when compared with more oppressive governments in countries such as China, North Korea, and Russia. America is a country in which anyone who has an opinion is free to speak. However, on July 21st, 2013, a man named Edward Snowden was charged with theft of government property and Violation of the Espionage Act because while working for the CIA, he discovered classified information about how the National Security Agency was searching through private emails and instant messages as well as tracking cell phones of citizens who were completely unaware of this broach in privacy. After leaking this information to the press, he has fled the country to avoid prosecution. Ironically enough, Snowden was granted asylum by the Russian government. In the midst of this scandal, America was left wondering what could possibly become of this strange alliance between Snowden and Russia. Snowden has been called both hero and traitor for his actions, but his rebellion against his country’s government seems to go against everything that the meme banning Russian government is trying to achieve. 

In Putin and the Snowman, Robert Kerbeck explores a fascinating relationship between Snowden and Putin by placing both characters in a sweaty hockey locker room. Putin is the star player of the hockey team and Snowden is his new social media consultant. Watching Putin and Snowden’s strange interactions, the audience gets to see the figure of Putin in a new perspective, as well as understand his flawless reasoning of why he decided to take Edward Snowden under his wing. Kerbeck’s take on their politically charged relationship is hilarious and thoughtfully crafted. 

What’s your favorite Putin meme? Are he and Snowden meant to be? Comment below or tweet us @RiantTheatre and come see Robert Kerbeck’s Putin and the Snowman at the Strawberry One Act Festival on Saturday, July 16th at 3pm; Tuesday, July 19th at 7pm; Wednesday, July 20th at 9pm; and Thursday, July 21st at 9pm at the St. Clements Theatre: 423 West 46^th St, NYC between 9^th and 10^th Ave.