Urban Stages Continues Its Season With The Premieres Of THE AUDIT And THE AMERICAN DREAM

Urban Stages will continue its season by presenting the winner of their Dynamic Duos playwriting competition. As part of its commitment to supporting new voices in theater, Urban Stages had an open call for one-act plays featuring two characters  -  with over three hundred submissions from all over the US and UK.

The top eight were given staged reading, and two have been selected for full productions on a double bill  - as part of its next production of the season. The winning plays are The Audit by Lynda Crawford, directed by Leigh Selting, and The American Dream by Juan Ramirez, Jr., directed by Maria Mileaf. The Dynamic Duo double bill will begin performances on February 22, 2025, officially open on February 27, 2025, and run through March 16 at Urban Stages (239 West 30th Street, NYC).

Frances Hill, Artistic Director, says,”At Urban Stages, we are committed to amplifying new voices in theater, and the response to our Dynamic Duos competition was nothing short of inspiring. Reading over 300 submissions from the U.S. and U.K. reinforced that theater is thriving everywhere. We are thrilled to bring The Audit and The American Dream to life and champion the next generation of playwrights. To make our work accessible to all, we’re launching Pay What You Wish Wednesdays, ensuring everyone, regardless of financial stability, can experience live theater. We believe theater should be a space for all, and this initiative allows us to welcome even more diverse audiences to experience the power of live performance.”

The Audit by Lynda Crawford – follows a tax audit that takes an unexpected turn when a former military veteran-turned-auditor meets an aging hippie songwriter with a chaotic lifestyle. What starts as a routine examination of finances soon becomes a deeply personal reckoning of choices, regrets, and surprising connections. Directed by Leigh Selting, the play stars Joel Ripka (Beyond the Sheet, The Aliens) and Disnie Sebastien (Amazon TV’s Fun With Disnie). 

The American Dream by Juan Ramirez, Jr. – is about a hopeful immigrant named Corina, as she makes her way across the U.S. border with the help of a smuggler, Efren, only to discover she must pay more than expected for her freedom. It is a tense, timely drama that questions the cost of the American dream. The play is directed by Maria Mileaf and features performances by Juan Ramirez, Jr. (Broadway of The Bronx) and Libe Barer (Carly Bowman in “Sneaky Pete”).

As part of the Urban Stages’ Dynamic Duos playwriting competition, eight other playwrights' works were presented as part of public readings. They include Sam Walch, John Scavone, Ian Rae, Augusto Federico Amador, Laura Ekstrand,  Joe Sutton, Gino Dilorio, and Ruth Apolonia Zamoyta.

The Audit  & The American Dream 

Performances begin on Saturday, February 22 through Sunday, March 16, 2025

Opening Night is February 27, 2025, 

Urban Stages is located at 259 West 30th Street, NYC. 

Performance Schedule: Wednesday through Monday at 7 PM; Saturday and Sunday Matinee at 3 PM. No Tuesday performances, added performance on Sunday, February 23, at 7 PM.

Tickets are $40 (plus $1.80 fee); Pay What You Wish Wednesdays (beginning March 5th) audience members can pay what they can afford to see both shows (cash only at box office, based on availability)

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