Today’s edition of Red Bank oRBit puts the focus on the Two River Theater, that gleaming cathedral of culture that rose up from the warehouses and woodsheds of Red BankÂ’s West Side a few years back. Beginning tonight and for the next few weeks, itÂ’s where youÂ’ll find the latest play by one of the most acclaimed new voices on the American stage — playwright Quiara Alegria Hudes, co-creator of the Tony-winning Broadway musical smash In the Heights.
26 Miles is the name of the new Hudes work; a sprawling yet intimate look at how an estranged mother and teenaged daughter re-bond and re-brand their relationship over the course of a road trip that takes them from the Philly suburbs to Yellowstone National Park. We talk with director KJ Sanchez about the twists and turns that got the play from there to here — and we find out just how she intends to show all that drive-by scenery onstage.
Two River Theater is also the setting for a special event on September 27 — a live edition of SModcast, the downloadable program offered up each week by Bayshore-bred Bodhisattva Kevin Smith (above) and his longtime View Askew producer Scott Mosier. The two co-hosts will shoot the sh*t fantastic (it’s also a signing event for the new book Shootin’ the Sh*t with Kevin Smith: Best of the SModcasts), and, as we report, a limited number of half-price tickets are available as we go to post.
All this and more in the days to come — from updates on RiverCenter’s Taste of Red Bank and Third Thursday events, to the return of some former young turks of punk rock, to an insider’s look at the wonder that is Oklahoma! Right here, in Red Bank oRBit.
