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Press Releases

LATINX PLAYWRIGHTS CIRCLE, WP THEATER, AND THE SOL PROJECT ANNOUNCE ALL-LATINX CAST & DESIGN TEAM FOR THE OFF-BROADWAY PREMIERE OF SANCOCHO STARRING ZULEYMA GUEVARA and SHIRLEY RUMIERK

 

Written By Christin Eve Cato

Directed By Rebecca Martinez

 

PREVIEWS BEGIN SATURDAY, MARCH 11 

OPENING NIGHT SET FOR THURSDAY, MARCH 23 

FOR STRICTLY LIMITED ENGAGEMENT AT WP THEATER  

    

(New York, NY – February 10, 2023) Producers Latinx Playwrights Circle, WP Theater, and The Sol Project are thrilled to announce an all-Latinx cast and design team for the Off-Broadway Premiere of Sancocho. The new play by Christin Eve Cato (The Good Cop, DUAF 2022) directed by Rebecca Martinez (Miss You Like Hell; Theatre for One: Here We Are) will star Zuleyma Guevara (Bruise & Thorn, “Gotham”) and Shirley Rumierk (Good Person, “Manifest,” “Rise”). The limited engagement will run from March 11–April 9, 2023, at WP Theater (2162 Broadway). Opening Night is set for Thursday, March 23.   

 

Simmering between two Puerto Rican sisters is a family tension that finally comes to a boil. Forced to confront the reality of their father’s rapidly declining health, Renata and Caridad clash over cultural divides, unearth old wounds, and reveal long-buried secrets. As Caridad’s sancocho bubbles on the stove, will the two sisters reconcile their past resentments to face their uncertain futures – together? 

 

Sancocho features scenic design by Raul Abrego (Princeton University’s Adamandi, Ain’t Misbehavin’), costume design by Harry Nadal (Miss You Like Hell, Porgy & Bess), lighting design by Maria-Cristina Fusté (Jagged Little Pill, Songs About Trains), and sound design by Germán Martinez (Into The Woods, Ohio State Murders), production stage management by E Sara Barnes (Jersey Boys, Broadway Bounty Hunter). Casting by Kelly Gillespie, C.S.A.  

 

Sancocho was produced by Vision Latino Theatre Company in October 2022, as part of Destinos, the fifth annual Chicago International Latino Theater Festival.  The Chicago Tribune hailed the production as “inspirational” and “a multi-sensory experience…two strong [sisters] have the hard conversations, face down their generational trauma and find a path forward toward healing. The stew that they prepare throughout the evening serves as a metaphor for this process, as ingredients are sliced and crushed to create a meal ‘healing to the soul.’” The Chicago Reader described the show as “rich family fare. Named for a type of beef stew, Sancocho highlights the significance of familia for the best or otherwise. The dialogue melds between English and Spanish sweetly as the sancocho literally simmers on the stove. The scent made me long to return to Puerto Rico to devour más mofongo y tostones.” Originally developed at Latinx Playwrights Circle’s developmental programs, the play has also been selected as a featured play on #NewPlayExchange and developed at Ingenio Festival & Playwrights Center Core Apprentice Workshop. 

  

Tickets are now available at www.wptheater.org. The ticket range is $29-$79 during previews, and $39-$89 after opening night. The regular performance schedule is  Tuesday – Thursday at 7pm, Friday at 8pm, Saturday at 2pm & 8pm, and Sunday at 3pm. The performances on Saturday, March 11 and Sunday, March 12 are at 7pm. 

  

@WPtheater  

 

TO DOWNLOAD HEADSHOTS & ARTWORK, CLICK HERE

 

BIOGRAPHIES:  

 ZULEYMA GUEVARA (Caridad) is a NY based actress whose most recent stage credits include Somewhere by Matthew Lopez at Geva Theater, Carla in Grand Horizons at People’s Theater and this past spring was seen in the NYTimes pick of the week, Bruise and Thorn.  Previous theater credits include the New Jersey premiere of Water by the Spoonful at Kean University, Columbia Stages La Paloma Prisoner and The Hour of The Star, the world premiere of Seven Spots on the Sun at the Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park and Working Theatre’s production of La Ruta.  TV credits include “Sonia’s Choice”, “Legend of the 13 Suns”,  “Gotham”, “FBI Most Wanted” as well as “Law and Order” and the CBS pilot “Limitless”. Film credits include New York State of Mind, Third Trinity, The Meal and the soon to be released Tumba del Mar.                      

SHIRLEY RUMIERK (Renata) will next be seen in Zack Braff’s film Good Person starring Morgan Freeman. She was series regular “Vanessa Suarez” on the NBC series “Rise” and appeared in HBO’s “Scenes from a Marriage”. She recurred as “Autumn Cox” on “Manifest” and as “Yolanda Carrion” in the Netflix series “Teenage Bounty Hunters” Shirley has guest-starred on “Chicago PD”, “New Amsterdam”, “East New York” and “Power”. She starred in the independent film 11:55 and can be seen in David Frankel’s feature Collateral Beauty.  Shirley is a board member and alumna of The 52nd Street Project and Oliver Scholars. She is a graduate of Harvard University.

CHRISTIN EVE CATO (Author) is a playwright and performing artist from the Bronx. She holds an MFA in Playwriting from Indiana University and completed her BA in Political Science and Philosophy at Fordham University. Cato is also a graduate of Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School for Music and Art and the Performing Arts. She is affiliated with NYC theater companies, Pregones/PRTT (ensemble member & former Resident Dramaturg), INTAR Theatre (UNIT 52 ensemble member), and the Latinx Playwrights Circle. Cato’s artistic style is expressed through Caribbean culture and the Afro-Latinx diaspora, honoring her Puerto Rican and Jamaican roots. Recent Off-Broadway productions include The Good Cop (DUAF 2022) . Recent productions include, Sancocho (Vision Latino Theatre Company/ Destinos, 5th Chicago International Latino Theater Festival); American Made (Samuel French OOB Festival/ NYC); and an audio play journey, The Mayor of Hell’s Kitchen Presents: A Time Traveling Journey Through NYC’s Wild West (The Parsnip Ship & Playwrights Horizons/ NYC). www.christinevecato.com

REBECCA MARTíNEZ (Director) (she/her) is an award-winning director and choreographer and the BOLD Associate Artistic Director at WP Theater. Upcoming projects include: Living and Breathing (Two River), a musical adaptation of The Comedy of Errors (The Public Theater’s Mobile Unit). Recent projects: Los Complicados (EST Marathon), Randy’s Dandy Coaster Castle (Egg & Spoon Collective), Songs About Trains (Working Theater and Radical Evolution), Somewhere Over the Border (Syracuse Stage and Geva Theatre). Rebecca has developed new work with The Public Theater, Amas Musical Theater, the O’Neill, Latinx Playwrights Circle, the Sol Project, NAMT, INTAR, Working Theater, The Playwrights Realm, among others. Affiliations: Sojourn Theatre Ensemble, 2021 TCG Rising Leaders of Color; Sol Project Collective, Lincoln Center Theater Directors Lab, INTAR’s Unit52, New Georges Affiliated Artist, WP Lab, Drama League Directing Fellow, member of SDC. Awards: Colorado Henry Award for Directing; four Portland, Oregon Drammy Awards; Lilla Jewel Award for Women Artists. Rebecca is originally from Colorado with deep ancestral roots in the Southwest. rebeccamartinez.org.

RAUL ABREGO (Scenic Design) is a set designer for Opera, Theater and Television.  His work has been seen at The Juilliard Opera Center, The Manhattan School of Music, The Spoleto Opera Festival in Italy, The Rattlestick, Cherry Lane Theater and Intar.  Noted Recent projects: Adamandi for Princeton University, book and lyrics by Mel Hornyak and Elliot Valentine Lee, directed by Georgina Escobar, Ain’t Misbehavin’ for Barrington Stage and Geva Theater Center, directed by Jeffrey Page. The Brobot Johnson Experience by Darian Dauchan at The Bushwick Starr, Living and Breathing by Mando Alvarado, directed by Rebecca Martinez for Two River Theater, How to Melt Ice by Amalia Oliva Rojas for Boundless Theater Company and New Perspectives directed by Elena Araoz.  Assistant Art Director credits for Television include: “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” Season 3 & 4, “Ghost” (Power Book 2) and “John Wick”,  Art Director for “Falling Water” (pilot), The Outcasts (film) and Production Designer for 2009 film Cruzando.

 HARRY NADAL (Costume Design) Originally from San Juan, Puerto Rico. NEW YORK: Lincoln Center Institute, Atlantic Theater Co., Brooklyn Academy of Music, Juilliard, Intar, Labyrinth Theater Co., Pregones/PRTT, Boundless Theater, HERE Arts Center and Theater for the New City among others. REGIONAL: Arena Stage (Washington, DC), Chicago Opera Theater, TheaterWorks Hartford, Des Moines Metro Opera, Zach Theatre (Austin, TX), George Street Playhouse (New Brunswick, NJ), UrbanArias (Arlington, VA), Baltimore Center Stage, Boise Contemporary Theater, People’s Light Theater (Malvern, PA), Open Stage (Harrisburg, PA), Bloomsburg Theatre Ensemble and Danza del Alma (Cuba) among many. Faculty member at Pratt Institute’s Film School. MFA: New York University, Tisch School of the Arts. WEBSITE: harrynadal.com

 MARÍA-CRISTINA FUSTÉ (Lighting Design) Broadway: Jagged Little Pill, Associate LD 2021 remount. Off Broadway: Songs About Trains (Working Theater/Radical Evolution); Fur, Mud, and The Conduct of Life (Boundless Theatre Company, NYC) Regional: Cleveland Playhouse, Alabama Shakespeare, Bay Street Theater. American Mariachi (Goodman Theatre, Chicago); Measure for Measure (Chicago Shakespeare Co); Anna in the Tropics (Barrington Stage, MA); Airness (Geva Theatre Center, NY); Children of Eden (Aurora Theatre, GA); Sweat (People’s Light Theater, PA); In The Heights (Westport Country Playhouse, CT); The Heath (MRT, MA). Opera: Cecilia Valdés (Teatro Colón, Bogotá); Tosca, Bluebeard’s Castle, Madama Butterfly, Don Pasquale, and L’Elisir d’Amore (Ópera de Puerto Rico, San Juan PR). Training: MFA in Lighting Design (NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts). Awards: Princess Grace Award 2018, Suzi Bass Award 2016/ 2017, Nomination 2019, HOLA Award 2022. MC is the Executive Artistic Director of Boundless Theatre Company: www.boundlesstheatre.org. Website: www.mcfuste.com

GERMÁN MARTÍNEZ (Sound Design) A proud son of immigrant parents, Germán Martínez is a Honduran-American NYC/NJ based Sound Designer. Germán is a Montclair State University alum (2018), and is the current Eastern Representative for the TSDCA (Theatrical Sound Designer and Composers Association). His work has been featured at: The Public, Theaterworks Hartford, Playhouse 46 ,Page 73, Williamstown Theatre Festival, MCC, American Repertory Theatre, Repertorio Español, GALA Hispanic, George Street Playhouse, Two River Theater, and Trinity Rep. Broadway credits include Associating on: Into The Woods. The Piano Lesson, and Ohio State Murders. As a designer, he seeks work that will uplift and support BIPOC, queer, and immigrant stories in innovative and beautiful ways. Germán calls this work, “art from the heart”. He invites any like-minded artists to collaborate. You can keep up with his work on Instagram: @GermanTheSoundDesigner.

 E SARA BARNES (Production Stage Manager) With WP Theater:: Weightless, Our Dear Dead Drug Lord , Other NYC: Broadway Bounty Hunter (Greenwich House Theater), Jersey Boys (New World Stages), Pacific Overtures (Classic Stage); Oh, Hello (Cherry Lane); Straight (Theatre Row); By the Water (Manhattan Theatre Club); Pageant (Davenport Theater); Bloodsong of Love (Ars Nova); The Sonic Life of a Giant Tortoise (Play Company); Three Men on a Horse, Bedroom Farce (The Actors Company Theatre); Twelfth Night  (Sonnet Repertory Theatre). REGIONAL: May We All (TPAC), Other World (DTC), Broadway Bounty Hunter (Barrington Stage Company), Gypsy! (starring Karen Ziemba, Sharon Playhouse), I Promised Myself to Live Faster, Twelfth Night, Zero Cost House (Pig Iron Theatre Co.); Guys and Dolls, Saving Aimee, Memphis! Hello, Dolly! (5th Avenue Theatre).

THE LATINX PLAYWRIGHTS CIRCLE (LPC) is an artist-led development and production organization for Latinx(é) playwrights. Founded in 2017 by playwrights Guadalís Del Carmen and Oscar Cabrera with the mission to build a network of Latinx(é) playwrights nationwide in order to promote, develop and elevate their work while making their plays accessible to theater makers looking to find the next generation of American Storytellers. Its programs include Sunday Service, Fresh Draft Series, Greater Good Commision and Festival, Intensive Mentorship Program, LPC Community Nights and Page-to-Stage, whose inaugural production is Sancocho by Christin Eve Cato. In 2020 LPC received a residency at Kabayitos Theater, located in the Clemente Soto Velez Center where it produces a portion of their programming. In 2022 LPC was awarded a Creatives Rebuild New York Grant (CRNY) as well as the HOLA Award for Excellence in Theater.

For more information on Latinx Playwright Circle and its many programs please visit latinxplaywrights.com

LPC embraces the ever evolving landscape of Latinidad and the names used to describe this community, including Latiné, Latinx, Hispanic, and the next generation of names to come. Like language itself, this is an ever evolving name.

WP THEATER now in its 45th Season, is the nation’s oldest and largest theater company dedicated to developing, producing and promoting the work of Women+ at every stage in their careers. For over four decades we have served as leaders at the forefront of a global movement towards gender parity, and the example we set and the artists we have fostered have grown into a robust and thriving community of artists in theater and beyond. WP Theater received a 2018 Lucille Lortel Award, a 2019 Obie Award, and a 2020 Drama Desk Award,  all for Outstanding Body of Work, recognizing WP’s unique place and vital work in the theatrical landscape. WP empowers Women+ of all kinds to reach their full potential and, in doing so, challenges preconceptions about the kinds of plays women write and the stories they tell. As the premiere launching pad for some of the most influential Women+ theater artists today, our work has had a significant impact on the field at large. Nearly every prolific female theater artist has been through our doors, including 2019 Tony Winner for Best Direction of a Musical, Rachel Chavkin, 2018 Tony Winner for Best Direction of a Play, Rebecca Taichman, 2013 Tony Winner for Best Direction of a Play, Pam MacKinnon, 2013 Tony Winner for Best Direction of a Musical, Diane Paulus, 2018 Pulitzer Prize Winner Martyna Majok, and two-time Pulitzer Prize Winner Lynn Nottage. These powerful women found an artistic home at WP and are a testament to our role as a driving cultural force.

“When we say Women+ we mean: cis women, trans, non-binary, or gender-nonconforming people and all gender identities which have been systematically oppressed throughout history in the theater and beyond.”

THE SOL PROJECT is a national theater initiative dedicated to amplifying the voices of Latiné playwrights by supporting, nurturing, and advocating for fully realized productions in NYC and beyond. Founded by Jacob G. Padrón and driven by an artistic collective, The Sol Project works in partnership with leading theaters to center Latiné dramatists and nurture a growing community of Latiné theater artists. With the writers we champion, The Sol Project aspires to create a bold, timeless, and kaleidoscopic body of work for the new American theater.

The Sol Project launched in 2016 with the world premiere of Alligator by Hilary Bettis in collaboration with New Georges, followed by the New York premieres of Seven Spots on the Sun by Martín Zimmerman (Rattlestick Playwrights Theater) and Oedipus El Rey by Luis Alfaro (The Public Theater). In the fall of 2018, The Sol Project collaborated with Yale Repertory Theatre to produce the world premiere of El Huracán by Charise Castro Smith and in early 2020 partnered with Baltimore Center Stage and The Playwrights Realm to produce the world premiere of Richard & Jane & Dick & Sally by Noah Diaz. In 2022, The Sol Project collaborated with Soho Rep for the world premiere of Notes on Killing Seven Oversight, Management and Economic Stability Board Members by Mara Vélez Meléndez. The Sol Project will partner with MCC Theater for the world premiere of Bees and Honey by Guadalís Del Carmen this spring..  In addition to productions, The Sol Project advances its mission by producing a yearly new play festival, SolFest, in partnership with Pregones/Puerto Rican Traveling Theater, while also supporting our community through readings, workshops, a podcast (SolTalk), and ongoing symposia.

The artistic collective includes Adriana Gaviria (Co-Artistic Director), Rebecca Martínez, David Mendizábal, Jacob G. Padrón (Co-Artistic Director), Julian Ramirez, and Laurie Woolery.  Isabel Pask is the Producing Associate. Brian Herrera is the Resident Scholar. Stephanie Ybarra is the Resident Dramaturg. Our partners include Atlantic Theatre Company, Baltimore Center Stage, Berkeley Repertory Theatre, Center Theatre Group, LAByrinth Theater Company, Latinx Playwrights Circle, Magic Theatre, MCC Theater, New Georges, New York Theatre Workshop, Playwrights Horizons, Pregones/Puerto Rican Traveling Theater, The Playwrights Realm, The Public Theater, Rattlestick Playwrights Theater, Steppenwolf Theatre Company, Soho Rep, WP Theater, and Yale Repertory Theatre.

# # # 

Weightless Takes Flight This Fall in Off-Broadway Stage Premiere

WRITTEN BY THE KILBANES
DIRECTED BY TAMILLA WOODARD
CHOREOGRAPHED BY NICHI DOUGLAS

PREVIEWS BEGIN SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 17
OPENING NIGHT SET FOR THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 29
FOR STRICTLY LIMITED ENGAGEMENT AT WP THEATER

 “Weightless has a well-crafted form, and its spoken dialogue melds beautifully with the propulsive score. Weightless is an accomplished work, and an entertaining one.” – The New York Times

 “The Kilbanes could fly endlessly into space on a single, hypnotically executed chord…To watch this show is to be reanimated with a childlike sense that our choices have magical origins and magical ripple effects.” – San Francisco Chronicle

(New York, NY – August 4, 2022) WP Theater (Producing Artistic Director Lisa McNulty, Managing Director Michael Sag), are thrilled to announce that Weightless will play a limited engagement from September 17 – October 16, 2022 at WP Theater (2162 Broadway), with support from piece by piece productions. The off-Broadway stage premiere of this soaring and dynamic indie rock musical follows the smash success of Weightless on screen, which was reconceived for film and live-streamed by WP in a limited run in 2021. Featuring the propulsive and intimate musical storytelling of Bay Area indie rock band The Kilbanes – headlined by married songwriting and performing duo Kate Kilbane and Dan Moses the production will be directed by Tamilla Woodward (Assoc., Hadestown; WP’s Where We Stand), and choreographed by nicHi Douglas (Assoc., Girl From The North Country).  Opening Night will take place on September 29, 2022

Sisterhood. Love. Vengeance. Flight. Inspired by a tale from Ovid’s Metamorphoses, Weightless tells the story of two deeply devoted sisters, Procne and Philomela. Separated by circumstance, they must travel across worlds—facing devastating sacrifice and divine intervention—in order to reunite. The Kilbanes’ Weightless is a theatrical concept album driven by a deeply moving narrative, which weaves ancient myth with indie rock; the band and the cast are one and the same, blurring the line between actors and musicians, as well as between musical theater and rock concert. 

Starring alongside Kilbane (Procne/Bass) and Moses (Keyboards/Chorus) in the Off-Broadway stage premiere of Weightless are Lila Blue (Philomela), Kofy Brown (Iris/Percussion), Joshua Pollock (Tereus/Guitar), and Dan Harris (Percussion/Chorus), all of whom reprise their roles from the 2021 film version. Set Design is by Peiyi Wong (Broadbend, Arkansas), Costume Design is by Dina El-Aziz (The Vagrant Trilogy), Lighting Design is by Stacey Derosier (sandblasted, Fat Ham), Sound Design is by Joanna Lynne Staub (Hatef*ck; Assoc.: Angels in America), and Projection Design is by Johnny Moreno (For All The Women Who Thought They Were Mad, Paper Piece). The Production Stage Manager is Ralph Stan Lee.  Weightless is produced with support from piece by piece productions.

The world premiere of Weightless was developed and produced by Z Space (Lisa Steindler, Executive Artistic Director) and piece by piece productions in March 2018 at Z Space in San Francisco. In 2019, it played at A.C.T. in San Francisco, and BRIC House in Brooklyn as part of the Public Theater’s Under the Radar festival.  In these early iterations, the New York Times hailed the show for its “well-crafted form, and its spoken dialogue which melds beautifully with the propulsive score. Weightless is an accomplished work, and an entertaining one.”

The San Francisco Chronicle wrote, “The Kilbanes could fly endlessly into space on a single, hypnotically executed chord…to watch this show is to be reanimated with a childlike sense that our choices have magical origins and magical ripple effects.”

Following the piece’s extensive further development with director Tamilla Woodard, including at TheaterSquared as part of the Arkansas New Play Festival, WP Theater filmed the show at CalShakes, a spectacular outdoor amphitheater in the Bay Area, and streamed it online May-June of 2021. The Kilbanes’ subsequent release of the Weightless album, can be heard on Spotify and other streaming services. 

Tickets are now available at www.WPtheater.org.  The ticket range is $39-89.  

@WPtheater | #WeightlessMusical

TO DOWNLOAD PRODUCTION & PROMOTIONAL PHOTOS FROM THE FILM VERSION, CLICK HERE.

BIOGRAPHIES:

KATE KILBANE (Author/Procne/Bass, She/Her) & DAN MOSES (Author/Keyboard, He/Him). The Kilbanes are a theatrical rock band led by married songwriting duo Kate Kilbane and Dan Moses. Their rock musical Weightless ran at ACT after productions at the Public Theatre’s Under the Radar Festival and Z Space in San Francisco. Weightless received the highest rating from the SF Chronicle as well as a Bay Area Critics Circle Awards nomination for Best New Music. Their piece, Eddie the Marvelous, Who Will Save the World, was selected for the O’Neill National Music Conference in 2018. Eddie got its start at Berkeley Rep’s Ground Floor and was featured at Theatreworks’ New Works Festival. The Kilbanes collaborated with SF Shakespeare Festival on a musical version of As You Like It that played throughout the Bay Area. They currently have commissions with Theatreworks Silicon Valley and ACT’s Youth Conservatory program and have collaborated on several pieces with nationally renowned playwright Lauren Gunderson.    

TAMILLA WOODARD (Director, She/Her) Recently named one of 50 Women to Watch on Broadway, Tamilla Woodard is Chair of the Acting Program at the David Geffen School of Drama at Yale University; the co-founder of the site specific international partnership, PopUP Theatrics; the current Artistic Advisor and former co-Artistic Director of the award-winning Working Theatre in New York; and was the Associate Director of the Tony Award-winning Hadestown on Broadway in its premier season. Prior to joining Working Theater, Tamilla was the BOLD Associate Artistic Director at WP Theater. Tamilla has directed at theaters nationally and internationally, including at WP Theater, Baltimore Center Stage, American Conservatory Theater, Classical Theater of Harlem, The Bushnell Center for the Performing Arts with TheaterWorksUSA, and The Cleveland Public Theatre, among others. Recent highlights include Working: A Musical at the Alliance Theatre; the Lucille Lortel and Audelco-nominated world premiere of Donetta Lavinia Gray’s Where We Stand at WP Theater and Baltimore Center Stage; the Drama League-nominated interactive digital production ofAmerican Dreams by Leila Buck for Working Theater in collaboration with ASU and 9 theaters and performing arts organizations across the country; Caryl Churchill’s Top Girls at A.C.T.’s Geary Theatre; and the critically acclaimed immersive off-Broadway production of 3/Fifths by James Scruggs. Currently, Tamilla is represented online by the concert film Weightless by The Kilbanes (WP Theater); Where We Stand (Steppenwolf NOW); Theater for One’s Here We Areseries by Nicole Salter and Delanna Studi; The Parsnip Ship and MCC’s audio sci-fi This is Where We Go; and the audio drama The House of the Negro Insane by Terence Anthony, produced by the Contemporary American Theater Festival. Next up, Tamilla will head to the Guthrie to direct Lynn Nottage’s Pulitzer Prize-winning play Sweat. Tamilla is a proud board member of the Society of Stage Directors and Choreographers, and is a recipient of the Josephine Abady Award from the League of Professional Theatre Women.

nicHi douglas (Choreographer, she/he/they/we). nicHi douglas is a Brooklyn-based performer, choreographer, director, playwright, educator and ART-IVIST who spells her name with a capital H. She is the Head of Movement in the NYU/Tisch Playwrights Horizons Theater School studio. She has developed original theater work at Denver Center, Berkeley Rep, and The Public Theater, among others. She recently developed an interactive dance exhibit for the National Museum of African-American Music, and Co-Directed an evening-length event for the Women’s Summit at this year’s all-virtual Sundance Film Festival (2021). Her sacred offering for Black womxn, (pray), co-composed by Starr Busby & JJJJJerome Ellis, has been commissioned by Ars Nova. nicHi’s reparations-based mutual aid fund, nicHi’s SuSu, launched in October 2020. nicHi is currently a Resident Artist in Ars Nova’s Vision Residency 20-21 and New Victory Theater’s LabWorks Residency 20-21. Recent stage credits: A Time Like This: Music for Change (Carnegie Hall, Stage Director), Girl From the North Country (Public Theater, Associate Choreographer), where love lies fallow (Open Call/The Shed, The Public Theater, Playwright/Choreographer/Director), SKiNFoLK: An American Show (NYT Critic’s Pick//The Bushwick Starr/National Black Theater, Choreographer). Upcoming: The Harriet Holland Social Club Presents the 84th Annual Star-Burst Cotillion in the Grand Ballroom of the Renaissance Hotel (The Movement Theatre Company/New Georges, Movement Director)BFA, Tisch/NYU; MFA, The New School www.mynameisnichi.com | @mynameisnichi

LILA BLUE (Philomela, They/She) Off-Broadway credits include Anya in Cherry Orchard (Lake Lucille Chekov Project), Philomela in Weightless (Z Space), and Lila in Live From the Basement (New Conservatory Theatre Center). Television and film credits include her original music in the film Story of A Girl (Lifetime), as well as original music in the documentary Each and Every Day (MTV). She is currently pursuing a B.A. at Sarah Lawrence.

KOFY BROWN (Iris/Percussion, She/Her) An Oakland, Calif. musician, singer and songwriter, Kofy is a pioneering force in the Bay Area’s hip-hop soul/rock music scene. She’s played the prestigious North Sea Jazz Festival, toured with Iggy Pop, and performed with Bootsy Collins, Maceo Parker, Macy Gray and others as well as placing music on MTV, OWN and other independent films. While on tour the KBB (Kofy Brown Band), have spread the gospel of Brown’s unique style of soul, rock, funk and more all-over North America, Canada and Europe. She is also the drummer/singer for Skip The Needle and bassist/singer for Sistas in the Pit. Her music is released on her indie label Simba Music and is available on all electronic formats.  www.kofybrown.com

DAN HARRIS (Percussion, He/Him) has been the drummer with the Kilbanes for over 10 years. He also plays with San Francisco rock band Society of Rockets. In the early and mid-2000s he produced hip hop with various rappers in St. Louis, and played drums with the St. Louis hip hop band Sac Lunch. When not drumming, he develops cutting-edge digital audio technologies for consumer electronics and professional audio companies. He received his Master of Science degree in Music Engineering Technology from the University of Miami Frost School of Music.

JOSH POLLOCK (Tereus/Guitar, He/Him) is an actor, composer, and musician who’s performed throughout the world in about 4,000 bands and in collaborations with the likes of John Cale, Flea, Acid Mothers Temple, and Van Dyke Parks, amongst others.  He was last seen on stage playing drums and all the old white dudes in The Shotgun Players’ “My H8 Letter To The Gr8 American Theater”, on television as Wolverine #2 in the series Trauma (NBC), and on film as Coughing Man in Steven Soderbergh’s Contagion.  He can also be heard narrating the audiobook of I’m Your Man: The Life Of Leonard Cohen, by Sylvie Simmons.   JoshPollockInc.com

PEIYI WONG (Scenic Design) is a scenographer and interdisciplinary artist based in Brooklyn, NY.  She designs sets, installations, and costumes for live performance and film.  Select off-Broadway and downtown credits include set+costume design: The Trial of the Catonsville Nine (Transport Group), A Hunger Artist (Sinking Ship|The Tank), MukhAgni (The Public UTR), The Seventh Voyage and All the Different Ways…(Theater in Quarantine); set design:  The Vicksburg Project (Mabou Mines), Songs About Trains (Radical Evolution|Working Theater),  Look Out Sh!^head (Object Collection|La Mama), Memoirs of a…Unicorn (NYLA, 2018 Bessie Award Outstanding Design), Charleses (The Tank, Hewes nomination); costume design for Namour (ARRAY feature film, on Netflix).  Upcoming: SPEECH (Lightning Rod Special).  Faculty at Playwrights Horizons Theater School, NYU Tisch. MFA, CalArts. www.peiyiameliawong.com

DINA EL-AZIZ (Costume Design, She/Her/Hers) Regional Theater: Selling Kabul (Seattle Rep); Unseen (OSF); When Monica Met Hillary, (Miami New Drama); This is Who I Am (OSF/Woolly Mammoth/The Guthrie/ART/PlayCo); 9 Parts of Desire (Portland Center Stage); King Lear (Northern Stage); Noura (The Guthrie); Noura (The Old Globe); Selling Kabul (Williamstown Theatre Festival). Off-Broadway: The Vagrant Trilogy (The Public Theater); Spindle Shuttle Needle (Clubbed Thumb); Heartland (Geva Theater/59E59); First Down (Noor Theater/59E59); Hindsight (Fault Line Theater); Eh Dah? Questions for My Father (Hypokrit Theatre); The Russian and The Jew (Anna and Kitty Inc/The Tank); Dead Are My People (Noor Theater). Other Theater: One Night, P*ssyC*ck Know Nothing, Marjana and the Forty Thieves Pay No Attention To The Girl, (Target Margin Theater); Design for Stage and Film M.F.A. – NYU Tisch School of the Arts. www.dinae.me

STACEY DEROSIER (Lighting Design, She/Her) Credits: Fat Ham (Public Theater), sandblasted (Vineyard Theatre and WP Theater, Lortel nomination), This Beautiful Future (TheaterLab), The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe (The Shed), The Last of the Love Letters (Atlantic Theater Company), Stew (Page 73), for all the women who thought they were mad (Soho Rep), White Noise conceived by Daniel Fish (NYU Skirball), Playing Hot! (Pipeline Theater Company), Lewiston/Clarkston (Rattlestick Playwright’s Theater). 2018 Recipient of The Daryl Roth Creative Spirit Award.

JOANNA LYNNE STAUB (Sound Design, she/her) returns to WP Theater, having previously designed Hatef**k and the 2018 Pipeline Festival. She is a NYC-based Sound Designer and Audio Engineer with over 30 years of experience in Live Entertainment. Her Off-Broadway and Regional designs include work at Alliance Theatre, Asolo Rep, 5th Avenue Theatre Seattle, Goodman Theatre, La Jolla Playhouse, Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Public Theater, and Seattle REP. She has extensive credits associate designing and engineering Broadway Shows and National Touring Companies. TV credits include audio engineering the NBC-Live! Productions of The Sound of Music, Peter Pan, and The Wiz. Her work as a recording engineer was honored with a 2022 GRAMMY Nomination for Best Musical Theatre Album for Snapshots. She has lectured at Ithaca College, Princeton University, and University of Cincinnati. She holds degrees in music and audio engineering from Ithaca College and the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Jlssound.com

JOHNNY MORENO (Projection / Video Design) is a production designer, film & video maker and educator working in Live Music, Theater, Film & Video. For over a decade he has toured internationally as a video director & designer with multi-Grammy Award winning singer Lila Downs. As a film / video maker & cinematographer, he directs and creates visual material across a variety of mediums. Projects include work for composer Hans Zimmer, Production Design on José Rivera’s short film The Fall of a Sparrow, Executive Producer on award winning short film Early Light. He provided camera work for designer Peter Nigrini on Broadway’s MJ the Musical, Dear Evan Hansen and MCC’s Space Dogs of the Cosmodrome. Theater Design: Fandango for Butterflies and Coyotes (La Jolla Playhouse), For All the Women Who Thought They Were Mad; (Soho Rep), Addressless; (Rattlestick Theater), A Grave is Given Supper; (New Ohio Theater / Teatro Dallas), Definition; (Bushwick Starr) Art / Public Installations include: Sweet Crude Video Sculpture (Anna Kustera Gallery), As Above So Below (Dumbo Arts Festival) Upcoming: Public Obscenities; (Soho Rep).  johnnymoreno.com IG/Twitter: @johnnymoreno

RALPH STAN LEE (Production Stage Manager, he/him) Ralph Stan Lee hails from Long Island. Ralph graduated from an HBCU, NC A&T and went to grad school after. During his career he has worked several festivals, off-Broadway and regional shows. Ralph primarily has worked on National and International tours. Ralph also served as the Head of B.F.A. Stage Management at Penn State University. Selective PSM Credits: National Tours; Hamilton (Angelica first national) Summer: The Donna Summer Musical (first national), Chicago (Cellblock tour), The Bodyguard (first national), Motown (second national, 1st SM), Nice Work if You Can Get It, A Christmas Story, Dreamgirls, Hello Dolly (50th anniversary w/ Sally Struthers), Kinky Boots (Asia), Cinderella (2nd National). He is blessed to have been taken around the world to do theater. I love you Naomi & Leanora. 

ABOUT WP THEATER (Lisa McNulty, Producing Artistic Director; Michael Sag, Managing Director), now in its 45th Season, is the nation’s oldest and largest theater company dedicated to developing, producing, and promoting the work of Women+ at every stage of their careers.

For over four decades we have served as leaders of a global movement towards gender parity, and the example we set and the artists we have fostered have grown into a robust, thriving community in theater and beyond. WP empowers Women+ artists of all kinds to reach their full potential, challenging preconceptions about the kinds of plays they write and the stories they tell. 

Founded in 1978 by Julia Miles as Women’s Project Theater, WP Theater has earned acclaim as a home for Women+ theatermakers, historically marginalized in the field, to hone their craft while becoming leaders, change-makers, and advocates in the industry. To date, we have produced more than 600 Mainstage productions and developmental projects and published 11 anthologies of plays by Women+ artists. WP Theater is proud of the ways in which we have made a difference in the artistic landscape of New York and beyond, and we continue to forge forward by offering these artists a platform to develop and present their stories.

Today, WP accomplishes its mission through several fundamental programs, including: the WP Lab, a celebrated two-year mentorship and new play development program for Women+ playwrights, directors, and producers; the Domestic Partner residency program; the Developmental series of workshops and readings; the Commissioning program, and the Mainstage series, which features a full season of Off-Broadway productions written and directed by extraordinary theater artists.  Current artists under commission are:  Donnetta Lavinia Grays, Emily Kaczmarek, MJ Kaufman, Sylvia Khoury, Zoe Sarnak, and Leah Nanako Winkler.

WP Theater received a Lucille Lortel Award and an Obie Award, both for Outstanding Body of Work; and a 2020 Special Drama Desk Award recognizing WP and its founder, Julia Miles. As the premier launching pad for some of the most influential artists in theater, television, and film, our work has a significant impact on the field. Nearly every notable female theater artist has been through our doors, including: 2019 Tony Winner Rachel Chavkin; two-time Pulitzer Prize Winner Lynn Nottage, 2018 Pulitzer Prize Winner Martyna Majok; MacArthur “Genius” Grant Winner & Tony Award Nominee Dominique Morisseau; Tony Winner Pam MacKinnon; and Tony Winner Diane Paulus. At WP, these powerful women found an early artistic home and are a testament to our role as a driving cultural force.

When we say Women+ we mean people who are cis women, trans, non-binary, or gender-nonconforming people, and all gender identities which have been systematically oppressed throughout history in the theater and beyond.

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Stuffed Full Cast Announcement

WP Theater (formerly Women’s Project Theater) is pleased to announce that Obie Award Winning actress Zainab Jah (Eclipsed) and rising actress Jessica Luck will be joining two-time Grammy-nominated comedian Lisa Lampanelli (HBO, Comedy Central, The Howard Stern Show) and Outer Critics Circle Award winner Ann Harada (Avenue Q, Cinderella) in completing the cast for the world premiere of  STUFFED, a new play written by Lampanelli. Read more…

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2016-17 Season Announcement

WP Theater (formerly known as Women’s Project Theater) is thrilled to announce their 2016-17 Season at the McGinn/Cazale Theater (2162 Broadway, at 76th Street), the artists for WP’s 2016-2018 WP Lab and the new Domestic Partner residency initiative. The season will feature the world premieres of two new plays, STUFFED by two-time Grammy Award-nominated comedian Lisa Lampanelli (HBO, Comedy Central, The Howard Stern Show), and SUNDOWN, YELLOW MOON by award-winning playwright Rachel Bonds (Five Mile Lake). Read more…

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Stuffed Announcement

Women’s Project Theater (WP Theater) is thrilled to announce the world premiere of STUFFED, written by and starring internationally renowned comedian and two-time Grammy Award nominee Lisa Lampanelli (HBO, Comedy Central, The Howard Stern Show), with additional material by Ashley Austin Morris. Directed by Jackson Gay (These Paper Bullets!), previews begin Friday, September 23, 2016. Read more…

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Sol Project Launch Announcement

Rattlestick Playwrights Theater, The Public Theater, Labyrinth Theater Company, Atlantic Theater Company and Women’s Project Theater join New Georges as the first six of 12 trailblazing theater companies that have signed on to present a Sol Project playwright as part of their respective main stage seasons. Read more…

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WP’s 31st Annual Women of Achievement Awards Gala

WP Theater presents the 31st ANNUAL WOMEN OF ACHIEVEMENT AWARDS GALA, Monday, June 13, 2016 at 6:30pm at The Edison Ballroom, 240 W 47th Street The gala will honor Emmy Award winning actress Martha Plimpton; celebrated film, television and Broadway producer Jenna Segal; and actress, producer, environmentalist and UNICEF ambassador Trudie Styler. Hosted by Grammy nominated comedienne Lisa Lampanelli, with special performances by Fun Home’s Tony Award Nominee Beth Malone and Tony Award winner Jeanine Tesori; dance company Monica Bill Barnes & Co. and a presentation by Emmy Award nominee Heidi Thomas (creator of “Call the Midwife”), read more…

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The Pipeline Festival Announcement

Women’s Project Theater, under the leadership of Producing Artistic Director Lisa McNulty and Managing Director Maureen Moynihan, is thrilled to announce the complete lineup for the inaugural Pipeline Festival, showcasing the work of the celebrated WP Lab residency for playwrights, directors and producers from March 24 – April 23 at WP Theater on Broadway & 76th Street, New York, NY.

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Tony Award nominee Marin Ireland to star in the New York premiere of IRONBOUND

Rattlestick Playwright’s Theater and Women’s Project Theater have announced that Tony Award nominee Marin Ireland (Reasons to be Pretty, “Homeland”) will star in the New York premiere of IRONBOUND by Martyna Majok (Petty Harbor) alongside Josiah Bania (Ironbound, Sarah Ruhl’s Three Sisters at Yale Rep), Shiloh Fernandez (“Queen of Carthage,” “Red Riding Hood”) and Drama Desk nominee Morgan Spector (A View From The Bridge, “Boardwalk Empire”). Daniella Topol (When January Feels Like Summer, Row After Row) directs.

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Harris Yulin returns as Robert Lowell & joins Mia Katigbak as Elizabeth Bishop

Drama Desk nominee Harris Yulin (Hedda Gabler, Diary of Anne Frank) will return to play Robert Lowell opposite Lortel Award winner Mia Katigbak (Awake and Sing!, Great Lakes) as Elizabeth Bishop in DEAR ELIZABETH

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FREE Event Series: DEAR MISS BISHOP: Poets in Conversation with Sarah Ruhl’s Dear Elizabeth

Women’s Project Theater, under the leadership of Producing Artistic Director Lisa McNulty and Managing Director Maureen Moynihan, in conjunction with Farrar, Straus and Giroux, is thrilled to announce DEAR MISS BISHOP: Poets in Conversation with Sarah Ruhl’s Dear Elizabeth, a series of conversations with important contemporary poets and writers…

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Additional Casting for Dear Elizabeth

HBO’s “Girls” co-stars Becky Ann Baker and Peter Scolari will join the rotating casts for WP Theater’s New York premiere of DEAR ELIZABETH by Sarah Ruhl

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Dear Elizabeth Cast Announcement

Featuring a rotating cast of luminaries including, DAVID AARON BAKER, KATHLEEN CHALFANT, RINDE ECKERT, CHERRY JONES, MIA KATIGBAK, POLLY NOONAN, ELLEN MCLAUGHLIN, J. SMITH-CAMERON, JOHN DOUGLAS THOMPSON, & HARRIS YULIN

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2015-16 Season Announcement

Women’s Project Theater, under the leadership of Producing Artistic Director Lisa McNulty and Managing Director Maureen Moynihan, is thrilled to announce the 2015-2016 Season and the beginning of its three year residency at the McGinn/Cazale Theatre, 2162 Broadway (at 76th Street), creating an artistic home for women in theater.

WP’s 30th Annual Women of Achievement Awards Gala

WP’s annual WOMEN OF ACHIEVEMENT AWARDS will honor Tony Award and six-time Emmy Award winning actress Tyne Daly, President and Vice Chairman, Fairchild Fashion Media Stephanie George and Group President, North America, Proctor & Gamble Carolyn Tastad. Hosted by Two-time Tony & Emmy Award-winner Bebe Neuwirth, with special appearances by Four-time Tony Award & Emmy winner Terrence McNally (It’s Only a Play, The Visit), Sierra Boggess (The Little Mermaid, It Shoulda Been You), Jeb Brown (Beautiful, The Carole King Musical), Margo Seibert (Rocky), and more…

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The Undeniable Sound of Right Now Announcement

USORN TICKET BUTTON 3 Women’s Project Theater and Rattlestick Playwrights Theater present the World Premiere of “THE UNDENIABLE SOUND OF RIGHT NOW” – a new play by Laura Eason (Sex With Strangers, House of Cards). Kirsten Kelly (Slipping) directs.

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Bright Half Life Announcement

Bright Half Life WP Website HomepageWomen’s Project Theater presents the World Premiere of “BRIGHT HALF LIFE” – a new play by Pulitzer Prize nominee Tanya Barfield. Tony Award nominee Leigh Silverman directs.

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A Beautiful Day in November on the Banks of the Greatest of the Great Lakes Announcement

NewGeorgesGREATLAKEScastwindow_photocreditJessicaOsberNew Georges in association with Women’s Project Theater present a return engagement of the New York Times Critics’ Pick “A BEAUTIFUL DAY IN NOVEMBER ON THE BANKS OF THE GREATEST OF THE GREAT LAKES” by Kate Benson. Lee Sunday Evans directs.

2014-2015 Season Announcement

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Women’s Project Theater, under the leadership of new Producing Artistic Director Lisa McNulty and Interim Executive Producer Jessica R. Jenen, is pleased to announce the four plays in its 2014-15 season, continuing the theater’s 37 year commitment to producing the finest work by women in the theater.  Beginning in October, WP Theater’s season will include new work by Cori Thomas, directed by Daniella Topol ; Kate Benson, directed by Lee Sunday Evans; Tanya Barfield, directed by Leigh Silverman, and Laura Eason, directed by Kirsten Kelly.

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When January Feels Like Summer Announcement

Women’s Project Theater and Ensemble Studio Theatre present a return engagement of the critically acclaimed “WHEN JANUARY FEELS LIKE SUMMER” by Cori Thomas. Daniella Topol directs.

WP Theater Announces New Producing Artistic Director

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Women’s Project Theater today announced the appointment of Lisa McNulty to become the Off-Broadway theatre’s new Producing Artistic Director. Ms. McNulty, who has been Artistic Line Producer at Manhattan Theatre Club since 2006, will assume her new position as of August 11, 2014.