KING JAMES Vermont Premiere to Open at Northern Stage

Northern Stage will kick off the new year with the Vermont premiere of King James by Pulitzer Prize finalist and Obie Award winner Rajiv Joseph. This intimate and engaging two-person play explores the intersection of friendship, fandom, and loyalty through the lens of the Cleveland Cavaliers' LeBron James era, promising laughter, heartbreak, and a poignant look at human connection.

Directed by abigail jean-baptiste, King James features Northern Stage favorite Andrew Gombas (last seen in The Play That Goes Wrong) and Darius Wright (MJ: The Musical on Broadway).

Andrew Gombas plays Matt, a die-hard LeBron fan whose devotion to the Cavaliers mirrors his own personal struggles. Opposite him, Darius Wright takes on the role of Shawn, Matt's newfound friend whose quieter passion for basketball belies a deeper connection to the game—and to life.

Director abigail jean-baptiste (‘Bov Water at Northern Stage) is a theater maker, director, and writer born & based in New York City with familial roots in Haiti and the American South. Her work intersects with critical race theory and contemporary Black visual art to reimagine understandings of the past. Guided by questions about Blackness & femininity & kinship, her work uses images, fragmented language, repeatable gestures, and tangible objects in an ongoing search to build unconventional ways of being.  Past Directing Projects Include: The House That Will Not Stand by Marcus Gardley at Le Petit Theatre (New Orleans), The Story of A Circle by David Ryan Smith with Soho Repertory Theater (NYC) and the salt women by Audley Puglisi with Playwrights Realm (NYC). Currently a part of the Classic Stage Company Associate Board and The New Georges Jam. Previously: Project Number One Artist at Soho Rep, Roundabout Theater Director's Group, Bushwick Starr Reading Series, Resident Lead Artist at The Mercury Store. Abigail has also worked as associate/assistant director to Lileana Blain-Cruz, Saheem Ali, Diane Paulus, Sam Gold, and John Doyle. In 2020, she was named one of the “Powerhouse Women Directors Theatre Fans and Industry Pros Alike Need to Know” by Playbill. Most recently, she directed Angela Davis's School for Girls with Big Eyes by Thalia Sablon at Rutgers Mason Gross School of the Arts. A Proud Lilly Award Winner, abigail received her B.A. at Princeton University.

"King James reminds us how essential it is to fight for friendship amidst its complexities,” says jean-baptiste. “A rigorous play by playwright Rajiv Joseph, this play is hilarious, tense, and a touching love letter to Cleveland, Ohio. Zooming in on how the historic rise of LeBron James tethers an unexpected friendship between two young men, our production at Northern Stage will star the quietly brilliant Darius Wright and dimensionally comedic Andrew Gombas. These two actors' command of the text and playful banter with each other is not to be missed!”

Set against the backdrop of Cleveland during LeBron James's rise to basketball superstardom, King James isn't just a play about sports—it's a tender exploration of how friendships form, evolve, and endure in the face of time and adversity.

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