24th STreet Theatre and Viaje Redondo Producciones Present ROME AT THE END OF THE LINE, Now thru 10/7

On the heels of winning this year's national TCG Peter Zeisler Award for risk taking and innovation in the American theater, 24th STreet Theatre launches its 15th Anniversary Season with a U.S. premiere. The captivating story of a friendship that spans a lifetime, Rome at the End of the Line (Roma al Final de la Via), written by Daniel Serrano and directed by Alberto Lomnitz, opens tonight, Sept. 15 for a limited run through Oct. 7 in a co-production with Mexico's Viaje Redondo Producciones. All performances will be in Spanish with English supertitles and are appropriate for ages 12 through adult.

Norma Angélica and Julieta Ortiz star as EvAngelina And Emilia, born a few days apart in a small Mexican town. As seven-year-olds, they walk together to the train tracks with the child-like hope of boarding the train and traveling to Rome. From that moment, their lives are forever tied together. The two return to the tracks five more times-at ages 13, 20, 40, 60 and 80-to share their dreams, worries and love stories.

"Norma and Julieta are two of the best actors in all of Mexico, and I'm thrilled to welcome them back to 24th STreet's stage," says executive director Jay McAdams. "We've been partnering with Mexican artists and organizations for several years now, part of our mission to make 24th STreet the 'go-to place' for adults and kids to share some of the most sophisticated and provocative art for families seen anywhere in the U.S."

Rome at the End of the Line premiered in April 2011 at the Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana?s theater "La Casa de la Paz," located in Mexico City?s Colonia Roma. In May 2011, the play was chosen for the XV Festival Universitario de Teatro of the Universidad Autónoma de Baja California Norte for which it was presented in Tijuana, Mexicali and Ensenada. Since then, it has been staged at the National Center of the Arts of Monterrey, NL as part of the XXX Festival de Teatro of Monterrey, Nuevo Leon; at the Teatro de la Universidad Autónoma de Sinaloa as part of the Novenario Teatral of Culiacan, Sinaloa; and at the Theatre of the City of La Paz as Special Guest to the fifth Regional Theatre Forum of La Paz, Baja California. Last November the play was chosen from over 200 participating plays to be part of the annual National Theatre Forum of Mexico, held in Campeche, Campeche.

Now, Rome at the End of the Line continues 24th STreet Theatre's ongoing, critically acclaimed tradition of presenting work in Spanish with English supertitles, including La Razón Blindada, which was honored with theLA Weekly 2011 Production of the Year Award, and El Ogrito, named a "Critic's Choice" by the Los Angeles Times.

Under the leadership of artistic director Debbie Devine and executive director Jay McAdams, 24th STreet Theatre is known for being a leader in arts education and community outreach as well as for presenting quality professional theater for young and old alike. Using art as a tool to positively impact the world around them, 24th Street's programming includes free after school enrichment programs, Teatro Nuevo Latino Initiative projects, a music series, outreach programs for at-risk teens, free community events, professional development programs for teachers, arts-ed school workshops, gallery exhibits and international touring in addition to critically acclaimed season productions geared for both adult and family audiences.

Daniel Serrano is a playwright, actor, and theater director who has lived in Tijuana, Mexico since 1995. Of his fifteen written plays, his most recently published work is the trilogy "Ciudades imposibles" (Impossible Cities), which includes the plays París detrás de la puerta (Paris Behind the Door), Roma al final de la vía (Rome at the End of the Line), and Berlín en el desierto (Berlin in the Desert). He is general director of the Dramared theater company, where he recently curated the repertory Memorama and El hombre sin adjetivos (The Man Without Adjectives) by Mario Cantú Toscano, as well as París detrás de la puerta (Paris Behind the Door) and El carbón en la boca de Porcia (The Coal in Porcia?s Mouth), his own work, the latter produced by the Instituto Nacional de Bellas Artes and the Centro Cultural Tijuana. A member of the National System of Art Creators, Daniel is currently the director of the School of the Arts at the Universidad Autónoma de Baja California, México.

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