Photo Flash: Lupita Nyong'o and More Celebrate Mobile Unit's TWELFTH NIGHT Opening at The Public

Last night, April 27, The Public Theater officially opened the Mobile Unit's 60th Anniversary production of TWELFTH NIGHT, directed by Saheem Ali. In attendance for were Lupita Nyong'o, Jeff Hiller and more. BroadwayWorld has photos from the festivities below!

The sit-down run of TWELFTH NIGHT began previews on Monday, April 24 and follows a free three-week tour to the five boroughs bringing Shakespeare to audiences who have limited or no access to the arts. This year marks the 60th Anniversary of the MOBILE UNIT and in honor of this milestone, the sit-down run at The Public Theater will be free, running through Sunday, May 14.

The complete cast of TWELFTH NIGHT includes Sebastian Chacon (Sebastian), Michael Bradley Cohen (Orsino, Sir Andrew Aguecheek), Danaya Esperanza (Viola), Ceci Fernandez (Olivia), Christopher Ryan Grant (Sir Toby Belch), Donnetta Lavinia Grays (Feste), Aneesh Sheth (Maria), David Ryan Smith (Malvolio), and Michael Thurber (Antonio).

From schools to homeless shelters, prisons to community centers, The Public Theater's Mobile Unit brings Shakespeare to the people, and the people to Shakespeare. This season, the Mobile Unit celebrates 60 years of igniting dialogue and fostering new connections with a vibrant new production of the gender-bending, heart- mending comedy, TWELFTH NIGHT. When a young shipwrecked immigrant named Viola takes a chance on the "wet foot, dry foot" policy of the mid-'90s and washes up amidst the shore of glitzy Illyria, Florida, she finds herself a stranger in a fabulously strange new land. Thinking her twin brother has drowned, Viola throws herself into a new gig as assistant to Orsino, a wealthy Floridian with a serious case of love sickness for a wealthy lady, Olivia. Having disguised herself as a boy to become Orsino's right hand man, Viola (now Cesario) is tasked with delivering his adoring valentines. But as Viola woos in her boss's name, she falls head over spiky heels for the man himself, while Olivia turns her affections to the intriguing young messenger boy, Cesario (also Viola). Set to the rhythms of house, Cuban and '90s beats, Saheem Ali directs this colorful comedy about the power of new people and new experiences that throw the world into beautiful disarray, and open hearts and minds to the possibility of love.

TWELFTH NIGHT features scenic design by Arnulfo Maldonado, costume design by Dede Ayite, music composition by Michael Thurber, movement direction by Tanya Birl, and fight direction by Lisa Kopitsky.

Free tickets to the MOBILE UNIT's TWELFTH NIGHT will be available via TodayTix Lottery and in-person lottery at The Public Theater.

Photo Credit: Simon Luethi