Ken Jaworowski of West Windsor is opening WorkShop Theater Company’s main stage season with his new play, “Interchange.” The play, a story of life, death, and choice opened on Thursday, October 7 for a four-week run through Saturday, October 30, in the Main Stage Theater at 312 West 36th Street, fourth floor, New York City. Tickets are $18. Call 866-811-4111 for tickets and information.
Jaworowski, a staff editor for the New York Times, is a regular contributor to the culture section of the paper. He has been writing plays for close to 10 years, and has seen his plays performed in New York and London. His other WorkShop Theater Company productions include “Never Missed A Day” and “Certain Souls.”
“I grew up in a working-class neighborhood in Philadelphia, and like to focus on characters who have to face difficult though recognizable choices including work vs. family, money vs. integrity, and loyalty vs. breaking away,” he says. “I think there can be real magic and true tragedy in even the smallest moments of our lives.”
The play “draws together the lives of five seemingly disparate characters: A hard-driving businessman struggling to raise his grandson. A paroled convict hoping to find redemption. A shy college professor trying to win the approval of his students. A middle-aged office manager pressured to hide her secrets. And a haunted young man hungry for revenge. As their stories unfold in plots both tragic and comic, these desperate souls find themselves intertwined in each other’s battles and dreams.”
Although the company specializes in the development of new plays by the presentation of readings and workshops, as well as fully staged plays and musicals, several have moved on to off-Broadway runs and Oscar-nominated films including Alan Knee’s play that went on to become “Finding Neverland” starring Johnny Depp.
Jaworowski’s journalism career began when he was a reporter for Bloomberg News. “As a journalist I loved to tell stories, and I saw playwriting as an extension of that — a way to explore who we are and why we do the things we do,” he says.
Although Jaworowski does not perform he is involved in casting and some other production aspects of the show. A recent short play of his was produced at the WorkShop and published in a literary magazine (www.acappellazoo.com/spring09.225)
A West Windsor resident for three years, he lives with his wife, Michele, and their two children. “When I’m not working at The Times or in the theater, I’m busy coaching my daughter’s softball team in the West Windsor Little League — and that’s the toughest job of all.”
— Lynn Miller
“Interchange.” Main Stage Theater, 312 West 36th Street, fourth floor, New York City. $18. Through Saturday, October 30, 212-866-811-4111.
