Cleveland Public Theatre Presents YA MAMA!

Cleveland Public Theatre (CPT) presents Ya Mama! The production is onstage from October 11 - 27, 2018, in CPT's Gordon Square Theatre.

Ya Mama! is the autobiographical story of a young Afro-Creole girl losing a mother, gaining a stepmother, and becoming a mother-all while being an artist. Set in the Lower Ninth Ward of New Orleans, we journey from the schoolyard to the delivery room, from the edge of sanity to pure joy, from devastation to hope. First developed and produced in 2011, Ya Mama! is a CPT classic.

Ya Mama! was developed in CPT's Big Box series-continuing on to the 2011 New York International Fringe Festival and then returning to Cleveland for a full production in CPT's 2011/2012 season. This past June, the piece was remounted to tour to the Hollywood Fringe Festival. This fall, CPT welcomes the beloved production back onto the Gordon Square Theatre stage for three weeks of performances.

According to CPT's Executive Artistic Director, Raymond Bobgan: "Nina Domingue is a Cleveland treasure and we're so lucky to have her as part of our community onstage and off. Nina has this uncanny ability to carry the audience along with her through different characters. She makes us laugh and then, WHAM, suddenly everything flips-there is a broken heart, a tragedy, an opening. You can't help but identify with her characters and her story of struggle and triumph."

Andrew Rothkin of nytheatre.com described the show this way: "Ya Mama! is a richly woven tapestry of love, loss, strength, and spirituality, beautifully written and exquisitely performed by the phenomenally gifted Nina Domingue."

Nina Domingue, playwright and performer, says, "Ya Mama! is a small thread of who I am in the tapestry of my life, and it encompasses all of the joy I have for living, the gratefulness I have for my journey, and it does not deny the pain that helped me get there."

Ya Mama! is performed and was written by Nina Domingue* and directed by Nathan Henry. The creative production team includes Raymond Bobgan - Producer; Beth Wood - Line Producer; Tyree Franklin - Stage Manager.

*Actor appears courtesy of Actors' Equity Association, the Union of Professional Actors and Stage Managers in the United States.

Ya Mama! previews October 11. Press Night is Friday, October 12 and the show runs through October 27. Performances are Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Monday nights at 7:30pm in CPT's Gordon Square Theatre, located at 6415 Detroit Avenue, Cleveland, OH 44102, in the heart of the Gordon Square Arts District.

Tickets are $15-25. Students/Seniors receive $5 off on Friday and Saturday nights. Preview, Thursdays, and Mondays are $15.

PURCHASE TICKETS at www.cptonline.org or call the CPT Box Office at 216.631.2727 ext. 501. Group discounts are available-call the Box Office to inquire. (Reserve early! - CPT never charges any ticket fees, ever.)

The Gordon Square Theatre is ADA compliant featuring a ramped entrance and an all gender, wheelchair accessible restroom.

Every Friday is Free Beer Friday at CPT. Mingle with the artists after the show and discuss the performance in a lively, social atmosphere-your drinks are on CPT.

Nina Domingue is a well-respected and sought-after actress and playwright. Ya Mama! was developed in the CPT Big Box series before debuting in the NY International Fringe Festival in 2011, and then returning to CPT's 2011/2012 season. Nina received a Bachelor of Arts in Theater Arts from Dillard University of New Orleans and a Master of Fine Arts in Acting from West Virginia University. Nina was described by nytheatre.com critic Andrew Rothkin this way: "Domingue, an eloquent artist of more colors than Crayola, and who has the refined skill of someone twice her age." The Plain Dealer described her performances as "Must-see theatre!" Credits include Medea at 6:00 (Ensemble Theatre), Project1Voice 2015: Home by Samm-Art Williams (starring James Pickens, Jr. - Grey's Anatomy), Project1Voice 2014: for colored girls... (lady in orange, Dale Shields), It Hasn't Always Been This Way by Ntozake Shange (Off-Broadway, Diane McIntyre), Venus (The Venus Hottentot, CPT), Merry Wives of Windsor (Mistress Quickly, Great Lakes Theater Festival), Nickel and Dimed (Multiple Characters, co-production between CPT and GLTF), for colored girls... (lady in red, Karamu House, Terrence Spivey). Solo show credits include NY International Fringe Festival, Ya Mama! (developed in CPT's Big Box series), No Child... (CPT), The Little Mermaid (Cleveland Play House, Pamela DiPasquale), A Jewel of a Tale (commission by Cleveland Play House). Independent film: Bringing Henrietta to Life (Henrietta Lacks), The Passageway (Dr. Collins), A Day of Racism (Sancha). She made her mainstage directorial debut at Karamu 2.0 with the American premiere of The Adventures of the Black Girl in Her Search for God by Lisa Codrington. Awards and honors include: Best Actress in a Play (Cleveland Theatre Collective, lady in red), Memorably Distinctive Performances in a Theatrical Season (Cleveland Theatre Collective, 2004-2005 Season), and The Plain Dealer has said that Nina is "...a young Anna Deavere Smith" and watching her is "like a master class in acting." Nina is a wife and mother of five, her greatest work to date.

Nathan Henry is Line Producer and Director of Marketing and Communications at Karamu House, where he has worked as a multi-disciplined artist for nearly a decade. Credits for Karamu include: director of the critically-acclaimed production of Passing Strange; director and choreographer of the regional premiere of Lee Summers' From My Hometown; director of Dale Orlandersmith's Yellowman in collaboration with NYC's Project1Voice; and associate director of the regional premiere of Tony Kushner and Jeannine Tesori's Caroline, or Change, a co-production with Dobama Theatre. He also served as line producer for the world premiere of Believe In Cleveland, the American premiere of The Adventures of the Black Girl in Her Search for God, and the regional premiere of Sassy Mamas - all at Karamu House. Select regional credits include: August Wilson's Seven Guitars, Elton John and Tim Rice's Aida, Smokey Joe's Café, Ain't Misbehavin', The Wiz, Once On This Island, Anything Goes, and Guys & Dolls, among many others. He has worked with The Kennedy Center for Performing Arts TYA/USA, Cleveland Play House, Cleveland Public Theatre, Great Lakes Theater, Dobama Theatre, Beck Center for the Arts, Ensemble Theatre, Porthouse Theatre, Cain Park, Playwrights Local, The Maltz Museum, The Musical Theater Project, Case Western Reserve University, Kent State University, and Talespinner Children's Theatre, where he sits on the board of directors.

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