HETAIRA: A MYTHIC CABARET Will Have New York Preview Before Crossing The Pond

Hetaira: A Mythic Cabaret sets dates for its New York City preview at 59E59 as part of its East to Edinburgh series before heading to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in July. The show will run July 13, 18, and 27 at 8:30 PM.

Written and performed by Allie Jessing and featuring Steph Babirak, directed by Kaitlyn Schirard, and choreographed by Kristen Brooks Sandler, Hetaira follows the timeless, sexy courtesan Aspasia as she performs music spanning the centuries. Aspasia has seen the rise and fall of empires (maybe caused a few herself) and delights audiences as she shares her thoughts on... everything. Sure to entertain and inspire, this mythic cabaret is a smorgasbord for the senses. Celebration and saturnalia from the original classy f-er.

Allie Jessing (Playwright/Aspasia) - Allie is a multi-hyphenate artist based out of New York City. Her fantastical work is driven by a passion for learning and a deep allergy to the status quo. A classically trained singer gone rogue, she began producing experimental cabarets while in graduate school for opera at Mannes The New School for Music. After a wild ride as the owner of a surf hostel in Portugal, Allie landed back in New York to pursue her dream of busting genres and blowing up paradigms with her project V?lva Productions and her show Hetaira, which she is driven to develop into a groundbreaking fantasy musical dramedy for television. www.alliejessing.com

Steph Babirak (Collaborator/Accompanist/Astrid) - Lauded by The Huffington Post as "seraphic" and "a lovely harpist," Stephanie is both a classical and contemporary musician. With engagements at venues including Lincoln Center, Carnegie Hall, rock concerts at Terminal 5, warehouse spaces with Brooklyn LoftOpera, and new music premiere's with the Argento Project, her performance experience is as extensive as it is diverse. To date, Stephanie has performed professionally with orchestras, chamber groups, vocal ensembles, musicals, operas, and solo, as well as working for Indie and Major label artists including Adele, The Joy Formidable, and Andra Day. Her playing was also featured on USA Network's television series "Mr. Robot. Stephanie holds a M.M. from Mannes School of Music and a B.M. from the conservatory at SUNY Purchase.

Kaitlyn Schirard (Dramaturg/Director) - Kaitlyn Schirard is excited for her directorial debut with Hetaira. Her stage credits include work at BAM, the Shakespeare Theater of NJ, Riverside Theater, and Edinburgh Fringe (where she was part of The List's 15th-highest reviewed production in 2018) amongst several New York companies.

Kristen Brooks Sandler (Choreographer) - Kristen Brooks Sandler's work is at the intersection of theater & concert dance, employing narrative in tandem with an avant-garde aesthetic. She believes strongly in art as the medium through which any topic can be uniquely explored and discussed. Previous work: TV/FILM: Shimmer and Shine (Nickelodeon), Sunny Day (Nickelodeon Jr), Sweatsgiving (International Film Channel), Cooking Thoughts of You, Adderal, Plumber, Do You Dance Ms. Parker? THEATER: Lysistrata Jones (Ophelia Theatre, NY), She Loves Me (Broadway in Bartlesville, Lachesism (Dixon Place), Dancing Around the Subject (NY Jazz Choreographer's Festival), Come So Far (Elon University), Last Call (Leg Up On Life), How to Succeed ... (Mendham Theater), Jesus Christ Superstar (Associate, Signature Theater, Helen Hayes Nomination). IG: KristenBrooks19 // www.KristenBrooksSandler.com

Megan Quarles (Costume Designer) - Megan Quarles is a costume designer and Georgia peach now based in Brooklyn, NY. Her work spans multiple genres and costume roles, including building costumes for international dance tours and Broadway, designing costumes for Circus Juventas, wardrobe supervising dance and circus productions, and tailoring costumes for live performance and film. Her recent credits include assisting Christine Crook on Weightless at BRIC Arts Center, wardrobe supervising Your Alice at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, and wardrobe on the 2019 revival of All My Sons at the American Airlines Theater. She has had the pleasure of collaborating with creative minds like Constance Hoffman, Elkhanah Pultizer, Julie Taymor, Jane Greenwood, Nicole Von Arx, Billie Aken Tyers, and Christine Crook. She is an advocate for sustainability in costume design, environmental awareness, and strives to design and make costumes responsibly without creating waste.

Tickets available at https://59e59.org/shows/show-detail/hetaira/. More information at www.hetairathemyth.com

 

To post a comment, you must register and login.