off the WALL productions at Carnegie Stage A Pittsburgh Theater

Written by:  Virginia Wall Gruenert Directed by:  Robyne Parrish With:  Karen Baum, Erika Cuenca, Virginia Wall Gruenert, Robyne Parrish  Off the Wall’s Theater’s highly successful debut production, Shaken & Stirred, is back! Voted Readers’ Choice “Best of 2007″ in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette , Virginia Wall Gruenert’s powerful play recounts the stories of indomitable women struggling with the toll alcohol has taken on their lives, and the lives of those they love. Carrying all the despair, devastation, and fear that accompany addiction, these ladies valiantly attempt to summon up the strength to overcome. Don’t miss the re-staging of this compelling play before its New York City premiere at Theatre 54.

NOTES FROM THE AUTHOR Bowery Bum. That’s the politically incorrect term that could have applied to my paternal grandfather James, except that he didn’t come from the Bowery. He came, originally, from County Galway in Ireland to the great city of New York. His wife, my grandmother Catherine, came from County Monaghan. Grandpa James didn’t live in the Bowery, either. He and my grandmother settled into a tenement on West 51 st  St. in a neighborhood affectionately known to this day as Hell’s Kitchen, which at the time – the time being the late 19 th , early 20 th  century - was a bastion of poor and working class Irish immigrants. James, Catherine, and their three boys fell under the category of “poor.” In fact, I believe “dirt poor” would be a more accurate description. You see, James could not hold down a job to support his family – he was an active alcoholic. So when Catherine had finally had enough, she showed the iron backbone with which God blessed all Irish women an

Our fifth season is off to a great start. Stage construction is nearly finished, rehearsals are in full swing and the cast and crew are highly motivated. Stay tuned for upcoming interviews with the playwright and the director and cast. The stakes are high. After our three week run at Off The Wall Theater the play moves with the original cast and set to Theatre54 on 54 th Street and Broadway in NYC. Opening night in Washington is Oct.7 th and NYC Oct. 26 th . Go to our web site for ticket information.