Katrina Lenk, Amber Gray, Aisha De Haas & More to Star in Second Annual FREEFEST

The New Group has revealed casting for the second annual FreeFest: Danny Bo, Kirstyn Bollard, Donna Lynne Champlin, Damon Daunno, Aisha de Haas, Alaina Janelle Ferris, Keri Rene Fuller, Chad Goodridge, Amber Gray, Fernell Hogan,  Zainab Jah, Austin Ku, Katrina Lenk, Nicholas Matos, Euan Morton, Mason Alexander Park, Matilda Luz Concha Pearson, Kate Pittard, Hubert Point Du Jour, Lacy Rose, Colton Ryan, Milly Shapiro, Emily Skinner, Mariand Torres, Kuhoo Verma, Natalie Walker and Antu Yacob, with additional casting to be announced.  The second annual FreeFest, a weeklong festival of FREE readings, featuring new works that embrace radical expression, as previously announced, takes place June 13 – 20.  The festival, a venture from The New Group/New Works program, will provide a public platform for artists to showcase their creative voice and further their writing process.
 
Conceived and curated by The New Group’s Director of Artistic Projects Shariffa Ali, the festival will feature free readings of three musicals and two plays: The Female Pope, with Book and Lyrics by Shannon Burkett, Music by Heather Christian, Music Direction by Brian Usifer, Directed by Johanna McKeon; Red Taxi by Banna Desta, Directed by Yohana Desta; Hold Still by Nadia Davids, Directed by Jay Pather; The Last Bimbo of The Apocalypse, with Book by Michael Breslin and Patrick Foley, Music and Lyrics by Michael Breslin, with additional music and lyrics by Patrick Foley, Music Direction by Dan Schlosberg, Directed by and developed with Rory Pelsue; and hag, with Book and Lyrics by Kate Douglas, Music and Lyrics by Grace McLean, Music Direction by Or Matias, Directed by Kate Whoriskey.
 
Director of Artistic Projects Shariffa Ali announces, “FreeFest is back and it's bigger than ever! It is with excitement and joy that I get to share these exceptional stories by artists of extraordinary ability. For me, the theater is the place where we can be our most brave and daring selves. Each of these pieces seek to do just that. I hope you will join us and give them a hospitable welcome.”
 
Scott Elliott, Founding Artistic Director of The New Group, hails FreeFest as a beacon for new work, remarking, “Shariffa Ali's sustained vision for this festival is inspired, and an ideal way forward for The New Group's ongoing commitment to brilliant artists getting to stretch and explore new territory. FreeFest continues to be an important part of our development process.”
 
FreeFest performances and schedule are detailed below.  All readings will take place at The Pershing Square Signature Center.  Readings are free and open to the public. Reservations are required as space is limited.  To learn more, visit thenewgroup.org/FreeFest.
  
The New Group/New Works development program focuses on the nurturing and development of new plays and musicals.  A core tenet of this program is to build and facilitate lasting relationships between The New Group, artists, and audiences who connect through theater that is adventurous, stimulating, and socially relevant.  This program has become a vital incubator for emerging and established playwrights, and serves as the primary pipeline for world premieres at The New Group.  Public reading festivals have long been a part of the program’s developmental process. 
 
This year, The New Group is proud to collaborate with The Pipeline Arts Foundation to include two new musicals - hag and The Female Pope - in the FreeFest lineup.  These presentations are two of the winners of the Pipeline Arts Foundation's 2024 Pipeline Awards, which awards creative teams with cash prizes or presentations to continue the development of their ground-breaking work.
 

The Female Pope

Book and Lyrics by Shannon Burkett
Music by Heather Christian
Music Direction by Brian Usifer
Directed by Johanna McKeon
With Kirstyn Bollard, Alaina Janelle Ferris, Chad Goodridge, Austin Ku, Nicholas Matos, Euan Morton, Mason Alexander Park, Matilda Luz Concha Pearson, Lacy Rose, Mariand Torres
 
Thursday, June 13 at 4:00PM at The Ford Studio Theater at The Pershing Square Signature Center

Joan, desperate to go to school, agrees to dress as a boy for the promise of an education.  In doing so, she unlocks a passion for learning that propels her to the most powerful position in the world, a stunning achievement that could threaten the very existence of the Catholic Church itself.  Set in the 9th Century England, The Female Pope is the highly disputed story about a woman challenging institutionalized gender oppression to reach her full potential. 
 

Red Taxi 

By Banna Desta
Directed by Yohanna Desta
With Kate Pittard, Hubert Point Du Jour, Antu Yacob
Friday, June 14 at 4:00PM at The Ford Studio Theater at The Pershing Square Signature Center
 
Abraha is a new immigrant and Eritrean cab driver in Washington, D.C.  Over four decades, from the 1980s to present day, Abraha and his four close friends experience the emotional and political highs and lows of being in the taxi business, which begs them to question how they can thrive and maintain relationships in such a fragile democracy.
 

Hold Still 

By Nadia Davids 
Directed by Jay Pather 
with Zainab Jah
Saturday, June 15 at 4:00PM at The Ford Studio Theater at The Pershing Square Signature Center

When Ben and Rosa, an eclectic vibrant couple in North London, discover their son is hiding an asylum-seeking teenager in their home, they must decide between morality and endangering their own family.  As tensions flare and ideologies clash, the Feigels grapple with the ethics of law, the essence of empathy, and the lengths one would go to safeguard loved ones and strangers alike.  Hold Still is a vivid portrait of a family shaped by intergenerational trauma.
 

The Last Bimbo of The Apocalypse 

Book by Michael Breslin and Patrick Foley 
Music and Lyrics by Michael Breslin with additional Music and Lyrics by Patrick Foley
Music Direction by Daniel Schlosberg 
Directed by and developed with Rory Pelsue 
With Danny Bo, Keri Rene Fuller, Fernell Hogan, Milly Shapiro, Natalie Walker
Wednesday, June 19 at 3:00PM at The Rehearsal Studio at The Pershing Square Signature Center

Three Gen Z internet sleuths investigate the mysterious disappearance of an early 2000s one-hit-wonder, leading them on an epic musical quest to uncover the truth, deliver justice, and rewrite pop history.
 

hag 

Book and Lyrics by Kate Douglas
Music and Lyrics by Grace McLean
Music Direction by Or Matias 
Directed by Kate Whoriskey
With Donna Lynne Champlin, Damon Daunno, Aisha de Haas, Amber Gray, Katrina Lenk, Colton Ryan, Emily Skinner, Kuhoo Verma 
Thursday, June 20 at 3:00PM at The Ford Studio Theater at The Pershing Square Signature Center
 
Lois, a middle aged woman in Aurora, New York, hates change.  But today is her birthday - and everything is about to change.  Her body is metamorphosing into something mysterious, mystical, and perhaps powerful. hag is a musical about finding beauty through aging and truth through karaoke.
 
 

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