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Lars Norén Declares War on Genocide

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Lars Norén Declares War on Genocide: Introducing a Swedish Theater Voice

In January 2008, Swedish playwright Lars Norén will have his New York debut with his internationally acclaimed play War at the Rattlestick Playwrights Theater. The play, performed throughout the world, will have its American premiere at the Rattlestick Playwrights Theater in February.

Lars Norén is Europe’s most produced living playwright and the author of more than fifty plays. He is also the recipient of numerous awards including the Pilot Prize. Though often the cause of controversy, his plays are nonetheless appreciated and respected by critics and audiences alike. Like many European playwrights, Lars Norén has had his love/hate relationship with America. His earlier plays have been influenced by American writers such as Eugene O’Neill and Edward Albee. His plays touch on themes that American writers have wrestled with. Although internationally acclaimed, Lars Norén is practically unknown in the United States, and until now, he has never ventured to America to work on one of his own plays.

War, in a translation by Marita Lindholm Gochman, is set in a year of ethnic cleansing. A mother and her two daughters, their father missing and presumed dead, think only of survival. When the father returns unexpectedly, they must confront a world gone completely wrong. Through this simple family tale, Norén creates a powerful human statement that becomes, through the use of multiple casts, a history of genocide in our century.

In conjunction with this production, a panel discussion addressing various issues related to genocide will be held at the New York University School of Law. Staged readings of other plays by Lars Norén, as well as film screenings, are also planned as part of this unique project.

Through this production and related activities, we hope that Lars Norén’s work will finally get the attention it deserves.

The Rattlestick Playwrights Theater is currently seeking financial support of this exciting project.

For more information on this project, please contact our Managing Director, Sandra Coudert, at 212-627-2556 or via email

Rattlestick Productions, Inc. (“Rattlestick Playwrights Theater”) is a multi-award-winning 501©3 organization and recipient of the 2007 Ross Wetzsteon Memorial Obie Award, which recognized the theater for its work and mission: developing and producing innovative new plays. Rattlestick provides a positive, nurturing experience for new and emerging playwrights, fosters the future voices of the American theater, and presents to a New York audience important works that might not otherwise be seen. Rattlestick’s core operations are composed of its mainstage Off-Broadway productions, Playwright Mentoring Project and ongoing developmental work.

Rattlestick has produced over thirty-eight world premieres in the past twelve years. Now in their 13th season, Rattlestick has introduced new writers and received critical acclaim for its innovative work.

All donations are 100% tax-deductible, to the extent permitted by law, and will be used solely for this project.

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