SAN FRANCISCO (February 22, 2008) – San Francisco’s Guerrilla Rep is proud to present the world premiere of hotshot, an award-winning tragicomedy written by Terrence Beswick. This no-holds-barred take on “partying” in the gay community plays April 3–26 (Thursdays through Saturdays) at Mama Calizo’s Voice Factory at 1519 Mission Street in San Francisco. (Press opening is Thursday, April 3, 8pm).

Directed by John Caldon, hotshot goes in for a close-up and relentless look into the darkly comic lives of three San Francisco men driven together and ultimately betrayed by their boundless obsessions – for sex, for love, and for crystal meth.

For tickets ($15 general, $12.50 students, seniors and TBA, $10 groups of 10+), the public may call 800-838-3006 or visit www.guerrillarep.org.

“I think of hotshot as a cinematic, slice-of-life sort of play. And like life, it has elements of tragedy and comedy – only heightened and made surreal by this particular poison,” says director John Caldon. “hotshot takes a raw look at the lack of connection in this world of connectivity, illustrating how our preoccupation with immediate gratification and avoidance of true intimacy leads to loss of fulfillment.”

hotshot won San Francisco State University’s 2007 James Highsmith Playwriting Award, a prize given annually to a new play with an LGBT theme. San Francisco’s Guerrilla Rep, dedicated to staging innovative and provocative new works from Bay Area playwrights, is presenting hotshot as its inaugural production in residency at Mama Calizo’s Voice Factory (the former Jon Sims Center).

Guerrilla Rep’s production features performances by Juan Carlos de la Rosa, Greg Gutting, Price Troche and Edie Burns. Designers include Dillon Thomas (video), Alison Jones-Manson (sets), Matt Stines (sound), Mark Koss (costumes), and Margaux Hodges (lighting). Adrian Hernandez assistant directs.

25 percent of ticket sales from all four Thursday night performances of hotshot will benefit four community organizations: tweaker.org, the Castro Country Club, AIDS Housing Alliance/SF, and the Dan Collins Memorial Scholarship Fund.

(Note: Due to strong language, drug and sexual content, this production is not recommended for theatergoers under the age of 16.)

ABOUT THE ARTISTS

Terrence Beswick (playwright) is an MFA candidate in playwriting at San Francisco State University. His first full-length work, hotshot was awarded the school’s James Milton Highsmith Playwriting Award last year. A Bay Area native, Beswick’s other plays include two one acts: Gobsmacked in the Grand Canyon, produced as part of the 2007 SFSU One Act Fringe Festival and directed by John Caldon, and The Will and Woody Show, which Beswick directed in SFSU’s Brown Bag Theatre, also in 2007.

John Caldon (director) most recently staged Tony Kushner’s Homebody monologue and To Tame a Shrew, his own conceptual adaptation of Shakespeare’s work, for the SFSU Brown Bag Theatre Company’s 2007 season. Caldon co-directed the 2007 SFSU One-Act Fringe with preeminent Chicano playwright and director Roy Conboy. Previously, he assistant-directed the SFSU Main Stage production of The Karamazovs, Bill Peter’s adaptation of the Dostoevsky novel, and directed the staged reading of his own first full-length play, Third Eye: the b-side monologues. Caldon comes from a background in theater and film production, working with The Western Stage in Salinas, with Royal Caribbean International, and as Executive Producer for Amedias Motion Pictures. He is a recent graduate of the SFSU Creative Writing program.

Juan Carlos de la Rosa (Marty), a native of Ciudad Juarez, recently played Gabriel in New Conservatory Theatre's production of In Gabriel's Kitchen. Last year, he played the title role in Teatro Esperanza’s Tailor From Chihuahua. He originated a leading role in the South American tour of Teatro Arcoiris' Poeta Pan, for which he was given a cultural enrichment award by the city of El Quisco, Chili. de la Rosa has also worked with several dance companies including University Dance Theatre, Paco Gomes and Dancers, Se.Da.Co., and Bodypoetics. He recently completed Bachelor’s degrees in Theatre Arts and Dance from San Francisco State University, where he performed in Orpheus In The Underworld, West Side Story, Pinocchio, and Raised In Captivity.

Greg Gutting (Christian) most recently appeared as Butch Manley in Real/Not Real (Custom Made Theatre Company, 2007), The Pet Dog in The Pet Dog and the Lady (Unidentified Theatre Company, 2007), The Referee in The Sentimental Boxer ( Three Wise Monkeys, 2006), and as Nathan in Strange Bedfellows (2006).

Price Troche (Booster) is studying theatre at San Francisco State University. Somewhat of a newcomer to acting, his first show was during his freshman year when he played the part of Baby John in SFSU's production of West Side Story. Troche has also appeared in productions of Floyd Collins and Urinetown.

Edie Burns (Maria), a fifth-generation resident of Western Sonoma County, is studying theater and art history at Santa Rosa Junior College where last fall she played "Abuela" in Luis Alfarro's Electricidad.

ATTENTION CALENDAR EDITORS: Please list under Stage / Theatre

WHO:            San Francisco’s Guerrilla Rep, in residency at Mama Calizo’s Voice Factory

WHAT:          hotshot, a tragicomedy written by Terrence Beswick, looks into the secret lives   of three men obsessed with sex, love, and crystal meth. The world premiere is directed by John Caldon.

 (Note: this production includes graphic images and adult content)

 
WHEN:                Thursdays – Saturdays, April 3-26, 8pm

 
WHERE:              Mama Calizo’s Voice Factory, 1519 Mission Street (at South Van Ness Avenue) in San Francisco

 
TICKETS:            $10-15. TBA/student/senior/group discounts. Tickets: Visit www.guerrillarep.org or call Brown Paper Tickets at 800-838-3006.

                                      INFO:                  www.guerrillarep.org