Alison Leiby's OH GOD, A SHOW ABOUT ABORTION Announces Extension

The limited engagement of Alison Leiby's Oh God, A Show About Abortion has been extended through June 30 at the Cherry Lane Theatre.

Oh God, A Show About Abortion is presented by Ilana Glazer ("Broad City," "The Afterparty") and directed by Lila Neugebauer (The Wolves, The Waverly Gallery), .

"While we're alarmed at how timely and necessary Oh God has turned out to be, we're humbled by the overwhelmingly positive response to the show," said producers Mike Lavoie and Carlee Briglia. "We're profoundly grateful that Alison will continue sharing her hilarity and insight with theatergoers into the summer."

Oh God will take a hiatus June 5-12 before returning to its regular performance schedule June 13-3o: Monday through Saturday at 7pm, with Saturday matinees at 3pm. Tickets are on sale at OhGodShow.com.

Alison Leiby's summer started with a bang and ended with a visit to Planned Parenthood. In between, she had two root canals, one very scary trip to the "Fertility" section of a Missouri CVS, and a dozen or so meltdowns about what to wear to an abortion, naturally. In her new show, described as "humane and deeply funny" by the New York Times, Alison walks through the stupid minutiae, the backwards practices, and the surprising perspective that comes with exercising your reproductive rights.

Oh God, A Show About Abortion is produced by Mike Lavoie & Carlee Briglia, Bad Robot Live and Chris Burns of AGI Entertainment. The production features lighting design by Amina Alexander and sound design by Margaret Montagna.

After select performances, Bad Robot Productions will host talkbacks at the Cherry Lane Theatre to continue the conversation. Attendees will have an opportunity to donate to participating organizations Planned Parenthood, A is For, and the Center for Reproductive Rights, with Bad Robot Productions matching all resulting donations.

On Thursday, May 19, there will be a post-show conversation on "Advocacy Through Art." This panel discussion will delve into the role that art plays in destigmatizing the conversation around abortion and other "taboo" women's health issues. Speakers include Caren Spruch, National Director of Arts and Entertainment Engagement for Planned Parenthood Federation of America; Kellie Overbey, Co-Founder and Executive Director of A is For, a New York-based arts organization dedicated to ending the stigma against abortion care; award-winning playwright Sanaz Toossi; and acclaimed filmmaker Nia DaCosta. Additional speakers to be announced.

On Thursday, May 28, there will be a post-show conversation following the 3pm matinee with author and editor Shelly Oria. Her new book, I Know What's Best for You, is an explosive, intersectional collection of essays, fiction, poems, plays, and more, which explores the universality of human reproductive experiences, as well as their distinct individuality. I Know What's Best for You is a collaboration with the Brigid Alliance, a nationwide service that arranges and funds confidential and personal travel support to those seeking abortion care.

On Wednesday, June 1, the producers will host a post-show conversation with the Center for Reproductive Rights, a global human rights organization of lawyers and advocates who ensure reproductive rights are protected in law as fundamental human rights. Domestically, the Center argued Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health, the case likely to overturn Roe v. Wade this June, per the recently leaked draft Supreme Court decision.

The Cherry Lane Theatre is located at 38 Commerce St, New York, NY 10014.

To learn more about Oh God, A Show About Abortion, visit OhGodShow.com.
Follow @OhGodShow on Instagram and @AlisonLeiby on Instagram & Twitter.

Bios

Alison Leiby is a Brooklyn-based writer and comedian. She was a co-producer on Amazon's "The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel." She's written for Comedy Central's "The President Show" and "The Opposition with Jordan Klepper," and she also did punch-up on "Broad City." She also executive-produced Ilana Glazer's "Comedy Time Capsule" and Ilana's Amazon stand-up special, "The Planet is Burning." Other credits include Hulu's "Triumph Election Special" and Cartoon Network's "Teenage Euthanasia." Alison's been published in McSweeney's, Vice, Cosmo, Marie Claire, and she's written several humor pieces for The New York Times. Alison also co-hosts Irony Point's popular podcast "Ruined," with Crooked Media's Halle Kiefer. Alison's twitter profile, which has over 25k followers, has also been featured in several publications.

Ilana Glazer is the co-creator and co-star of the critically acclaimed web series and Comedy Central series "Broad City." Most recently, she starred in the Chris Miller & Phil Lord series "The Afterparty" on Apple TV+. Her debut stand-up comedy special, "The Planet Is Burning," was released on Amazon Prime in January 2020.

Lila Neugebauer is a New York-based director. Broadway: Kenneth Lonergan's The Waverly Gallery (Golden Theatre, starring Elaine May). Recent Off-Broadway: Tracy Letts' Mary Page Marlowe (2nd Stage); Annie Baker's The Antipodes; Branden Jacobs-Jenkins' Everybody; Edward Albee's At Home at the Zoo: Homelife / The Zoo Story; Albee's The Sandbox, Mary Irene Fornes' Drowning, Adrienne Kennedy's Funnyhouse of a Negro (Signature Theatre); Sarah DeLappe's The Wolves, Zoe Kazan's After the Blast, Abe Koogler's Kill Floor (Lincoln Center). As co-Artistic Director of The Mad Ones, she co-authors and directs ensemble-devised work, including Miles for Mary (Playwrights Horizons, The Bushwick Starr), Mrs. Murray's Menagerie (Ars Nova), and Samuel & Alasdair... (Ars Nova, New Ohio Theatre). TV: The Duplass Brothers' "Room 104" (HBO), Mindy Kaling's "The Sex Lives of College Girls" (HBO), and "Maid" (Netflix). Her first feature, starring Jennifer Lawrence, is due for release in 2022. She is a recipient of the Obie, Drama Desk, and Princess Grace Awards.

Speaker & Organization Bios

Planned Parenthood is the nation's leading provider and advocate of high-quality, affordable health care for women, men, and young people, as well as the nation's largest provider of sex education. With more than 600 health centers across the country, Planned Parenthood organizations serve all patients with care and compassion, with respect and without judgment. Through health centers, programs in schools and communities, and online resources, Planned Parenthood is a trusted source of reliable health information that allows people to make informed health decisions.

Caren Spruch, National Director of Arts and Entertainment Engagement, Planned Parenthood Federation of America:

Caren Spruch founded Planned Parenthood Federation of America's program to advance sexual and reproductive health and rights through the arts and serves as its National Director of Arts and Entertainment Engagement. Caren collaborates with TV and film directors, producers, and writers to change the conversation around sexual and reproductive health and rights through accurate and sensitive storytelling. She also works closely with many celebrities and other prominent artists by engaging them to speak out on behalf of Planned Parenthood's mission and services.

A is For is a nonprofit organization dedicated to advancing reproductive rights and ending the stigma against abortion care. Founded in 2012, A is For emerged as a response to the ever-escalating legislative attacks on access to safe reproductive healthcare. A is for envisions a world in which every person has access to the full spectrum of reproductive healthcare free from judgment, scrutiny, and obstruction. Hester Prynne's Scarlet A, intended as a symbol of shame, is re-appropriated. You decide what your A is for: Advocacy, Autonomy, Abortion, etc.

A is For works at the intersection of the arts and social justice. Art is a powerful tool for change, and through creative initiatives - from video and social media campaigns to theatre and other storytelling series - A is For seeks to elevate the human experience of abortion. A is For also has a history of giving back, and provides monthly financial assistance to abortion providers. Learn more at www.aisfor.org

Kellie Overbey, Co-Founder & Executive Director, A is For:

Kellie Overbey has worked for over three decades as a professional actress in theatre, television, and film. She made her Broadway debut in the Steppenwolf production of Sam Shepard's Buried Child and has performed in over 70 plays including new works with renowned playwrights Tom Stoppard, Chris Durang, Beth Henley, Steve Martin, Tracy Letts, and more. She has received a Lucille Lortel nomination and two Drama Desk nominations. Also a writer, she's written several plays and penned the screenplay for That's What She Said which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in 2012, directed by Carrie Preston. Besides helming A is For and working to eradicate stigma against abortion care, she is an Eastern Principal Councilor at Actors Equity Association and a founding member of Fair Wage On Stage, which advocates for fair wages for artists working in the theatre.

Sanaz Toossi, Playwright:

Sanaz Toossi is an Iranian-American playwright from Orange County, California. Her plays include English (co-production Atlantic Theater Company/Roundabout Theatre Company; NYT Critics Pick; Weissberger New Play Award) and Wish You Were Here (Playwrights Horizons, spring 2022; Williamstown/Audible, released 2020). She is currently under commission at Atlantic Theater Company (Launch commission; Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation grant), Roundabout Theatre Company, Williamstown Theatre Festival, Manhattan Theatre Club, South Coast Repertory, and Oregon Shakespeare Festival (American Revolutions Cycle). In television, Sanaz recently staffed on "Invitation to a Bonfire" (AMC); "A League of Their Own" (Amazon); "Five Women" (Marielle Heller/ Big Beach); and sold an original idea, "The Persians," to FX with Joe Weisberg & Joel Fields attached as Executive Producers. Sanaz is a member of Youngblood and the Middle Eastern American Writers Lab at the Lark, and an alum of Clubbed Thumb's Early Career Writers' Group. She was the 2019 P73 Playwriting Fellow and a recipient of the 2020 Steinberg Playwright Award. MFA: NYU Tisch.

Nia DaCosta, Filmmaker:

Nia DaCosta is a writer/director from New York City. Her debut feature film, Little Woods, a complex family drama starring Tessa Thompson and Lily James, made its world premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival and won the Nora Ephron Award for 'spirited and bold' storytelling. Her script for Little Woods was one of the 12 projects chosen for the 2015 Sundance Screenwriters and Directors Labs. Her filmmaking has also received support from New York Film Festival, San Francisco Film Society, and the Time Warner Foundation.

Most recently, she directed Candyman, a new retelling of the classic horror pic with Jordan Peele producing and she has been tapped to direct the latest film in the Marvel universe, The Marvels, starring Brie Larson. DaCosta is the first black woman to direct a Marvel film, and the fourth woman. DaCosta attended New York University's Tisch School of the Arts.

The Center for Reproductive Rights is a global human rights organization of lawyers and advocates who ensure reproductive rights are protected in law as fundamental human rights for the dignity, equality, health, and well-being of every person.

Since its founding in 1992, the Center's game-changing litigation, legal policy, and advocacy work-combined with unparalleled expertise in constitutional, international, and comparative human rights law-has transformed how reproductive rights are understood by courts, governments, and human rights bodies. The Center has been involved in all four abortion cases in front of the United States Supreme Court over the last thirty years.

Through its work across five continents, the Center has played a critical role in securing legal victories before national courts, United Nations Committees, and regional human rights bodies on reproductive rights issues including access to life-saving obstetrics care, contraception, maternal health, and safe abortion services, as well as the prevention of forced sterilization and child marriage.