Company member Maulik Pancholy is in Right Before I Go, written by Stan Zimmerman and directed by Meghan Finn, presented by The Tank in honor of Suicide Prevention Month. The production features different casts each weekend with Zimmerman serving as narrator for all performances. Maulik will perform as part of the September 7–8 cast. The show incorporates real suicide notes from well-known people to war veterans, LGBTQ+ members and kids that were bullied, but ultimately ending on a message of hope. Proceeds from the performances will benefit SL24 Unlocke the Light and their work to arm young people with the tools needed to understand mental health. Performances run September 7-22.
Company member Barzin Akhavan was in A Distinct Society, written and directed by Kareem Fahmy at Weston Theater Company in Vermont. Set in the unique Haskell Free Library—a real-life building that straddles the US-Canada border between Vermont and Quebec—the play follows an Iranian father and daughter who use the library’s peculiar geography to visit each other across international lines. As their story unfolds, the quiet lives of the library’s patrons and staff are stirred, revealing the many ways that family, love, art, and politics can both divide and unite us.
Yura Kordonsky, director, educator, and Associate Chair of Directing at Yale School of Drama, and Fabio Tavares, movement teacher and faculty member at Yale and The Julliard School, will join The Actors Center’s Resident Company this fall for development workshops exploring the work of Anton Chekhov and the Alexander Technique.
Company member Ato Blankson-Wood plays the title role in Pericles, a new adaptation with music and lyrics by Troy Anthony, direction by Carl Cofield, and choreography by Tiffany Rea-Fisher, presented as a Public Works Concert Experience by The Public Theater. Performed by community members from all over New York City alongside a cast that also includes Denée Benton, Amina Faye, Crystal Lucas-Perry, Alex Newell, the production is a celebration of life, love, and transformation. Inspired by Gospel music and the rousing power of the Black church, the free event will be performed in the Cathedral of St. John the Divine. Performances run August 29-September 2.
Company members Pun Bandhu, Purva Bedi, Willa Fitzgerald, and Lou Liberatore are in Relay, the thriller produced and directed by David Mackenzie. Starring Riz Ahmed and Lily James, Relay follows a world class “fixer” who specializes in brokering lucrative payoffs between corrupt corporations and the individuals who threaten their ruin. But when a message arrives one day from a potential client needing his protection just to stay alive, the rules quickly start to change. The film is in theaters nationwide starting August 22. Watch trailer here.