Cast Set For Ensemble Studio Theatre's FRANKLINLAND

Ensemble Studio Theatre will open its 56th Season with the New York premiere of FRANKLINLAND, a comedy by Lloyd Suh, Pulitzer Finalist, EST Member Artist, and alumni of EST’s Youngblood Playwrights Program. FRANKLINLAND was commissioned and developed through the EST/Sloan Project, which is celebrating the 25th anniversary of the partnership between EST and The Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. 

Directed by Chika Ike, the cast features Noah Keyishian, Mason Reeves, and Thomas Jay Ryan. It is a story of growing up as the only son of Benjamin Franklin: the greatest scientific mind in the world, inventor of the lightning rod and the urinary catheter and the glass harmonica and bifocal glasses and, oh yeah, in his spare time the United States of America. FRANKLINLAND will run October 9 to November 3, with opening night on Thursday, October 17 at EST’s long-time home on West 52nd Street.

“Franklinland is in many ways a play about growing up and growing older, so what a treat it is to bring it to Ensemble Studio Theatre, where I had my professional debut over 20 years ago,” said Playwright Lloyd Suh. “The play is also about America, in all its complexities and contradictions, so I'm excited too about revisiting it right now, in this pivotal season of the American experiment.” Suh is featured in the second episode of the podcast EST Re:Members and can be heard discussing more about his history with EST as a playwright. 

“Franklinland is funny as hell and sad as hell. It captures how it felt to be the guy making some of the greatest discoveries and inventions in history - and how it felt to have that guy be your dad. It gets at a central theme of the EST/Sloan Project - those who science and history remember and forget - in a fresh, original way all its own. What a gift to start the 25th season of that program with this play. And with these people: Chika Ike did stunning work directing in the last Marathon of One-Act Plays here. And there's no writer anywhere like Lloyd Suh - and really no play like Franklinland either. We're so proud to have them here at EST this fall,” said Co-Artistic Director Graeme Gillis.

“We’re delighted to partner with EST on the premiere of Franklinland, originally commissioned through the EST/Sloan Project to support outstanding playwrights who incorporate science and technology themes,” said Doron Weber, Vice President and Program Director at the Sloan Foundation. “Suh’s modern comic take on the American Revolution delves into the rivalrous, love-hate relationship between Ben Franklin, one of America’s founders and most gifted inventors, and his son William.”

Tickets for FRANKLINLAND are now on sale and are $30 for general admission, $40 for reserved seating, and $25 for students and seniors. $20 early bird pricing is available through October 8. Performances are Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturdays at 7:00 pm; Saturdays at 2:00 pm, and Sundays at 5:00 pm. Ensemble Studio Theatre (EST) is located at 545 West 52nd Street. For more information, visit www.estnyc.org.

Now in its 56th year, EST has developed thousands of new American plays and has grown into a company of over 600 actors, directors, playwrights, designers, and stage managers. The 2024-2025 season will include an abundance of new play development through ongoing programs, including EST’s award-winning emerging playwrights collective Youngblood.  The EST/Sloan Project will continue to support the development of plays about science and technology with its annual First Light Festival presented throughout the whole season and will award a new round of Sloan Commissions this season. In addition, EST supports its Member Artists through internal developmental programs, offering space for creative exploration. 

In March 2025, the Spring Mainstage production will be the world premiere of the comedy HAVE YOU MET JANE GOODALL AND HER MOTHER? written by Michael Walek and directed by the Program Director of the EST/Sloan Project and EST Member Linsay Firman. EST also recently launched EST Re:Members, a new podcast featuring interviews with Ensemble Studio Theatre's member artists, hosted by Rachel Lin. The podcast goes behind the scenes with the theatre makers who've played on the EST stage in New York’s Hell's Kitchen, from the company's founding in 1968 right up to the present. Inaugural season guests include Stephanie Berry and Lois Smith; Lloyd Suh and Leah Nanako Winkler; and William Jackson Harper and Brian Quijada (releasing August 29).

 

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