De'Adre Aziza, Karl Green, and More to Lead The Public's EVE'S SONG

The Public Theater announced complete casting today for the world premiere of EVE'S SONG, written by The Public's Emerging Writers Group alum and 2017-18 Tow Playwright-in-Residence, Patricia Ione Lloyd. Directed by Obie Award winner Jo Bonney, the genre-bending new drama examines America's present racial climate through the eyes of a regular American family. EVE'S SONG, which was originally scheduled to begin preview performances on October 23, will now begin previews in The Public's LuEsther Hall on Sunday, October 21 with a Free First Preview program performance. The play runs through Sunday, December 2, with an official press opening on Wednesday, November 7.

The complete cast of EVE'S SONG features De'Adre Aziza (Deborah), Karl Green (Mark), Ashley D. Kelley (Upendo), Vernice Miller (Spirit Dancer),Kadijah Raquel (Lauren), Rachel Watson-Jih (Spirit Dancer), and Tamara M. Williams (Spirit Dancer).

EVE'S SONG is a stunning new drama about the haunting of a black family in America. In the aftermath of a messy divorce and a daughter coming out as queer, Deborah is trying to keep things normal at home. But as black people continue to be killed beyond their four walls, the outside finds its way in, blurring the lines between family dynamics, politics, and the spirit world. How long can family dinners keep the dangers outside at bay? Filled with dark humor and boiling suspense, EVE'S SONG examines our present racial climate through the eyes of a regular American family.

EVE'S SONG features scenic design by Riccardo Hernandez, costume design by Emilio Sosa, lighting design by Lap Chi Chu, sound design by Elisheba Ittoop, projection design by Hana S. Kim, and movement direction by Stefanie Batten Bland.

Developed in residence as the Tow Emerging Playwright-in-Residence at The Public Theater.

Patricia Ione Lloyd (Playwright) is the 2017-18 Tow Playwright-in-Residence at The Public. She is a former Fellow at New York Theater Workshop, Playwrights Realm, Dramatists Guild, and the Sundance Theater Lab. She was a part of the 2015 Public Theater Emerging Writers Group. The play she wrote during her time there, Pretty Hunger, led to a Public Studio production at The Public. Lloyd's plays Pretty Hunger and Eve's Song have been included on the Kilroy's List in 2016 and 2017, respectively. She has written for the TV series "Hap & Leonard" on AMC, "The Sinner" on USA, and "Love Is _" on the Oprah Winfrey Network.

Jo Bonney (Director). Public Theater credits include Mlima's Tale; Father Comes Home from the Wars (Parts 1, 2 & 3); Some People; Stop Kiss; References to Salvador Dali...; House Arrest; Fever Chart; Men Inside; and funHouse. Bonney has worked on premieres of plays by Suzan-Lori Parks, Lynn Nottage, Danny Hoch, Diana Son, Anna Deavere Smith, Naomi Wallace, Eric Bogosian, Alan Ball, Hammaad Chaudry, Culture Clash, Eve Ensler, Jessica Goldberg, Neil LaBute, Warren Leight, Martyna Majok, Dael Orlandersmith, Darci Picoult, Will Power, John Pollono, David Rabe, José Rivera, Universes, Michael Weller, and Lisa Loomer. Awards include an Obie for Sustained Excellence of Direction; Lortel for Best Revival and Musical; and AUDELCO, Lilly, and Alliance Awards. She is the author of Extreme Exposure, TCG.

De'Adre Aziza (Deborah). Credits at The Public Theater include A Midsummer Night's Dream, Privacy, The Comedy of Errors, Detroit '67,and Passing Strange. Broadway credits include A Night with Janis Joplin, Passing Strange, and Women on the Verge.... Off-Broadway credits include Piece of My Heart and Doris to Darlene. Regional credits include Paradise Blue, Johnny Baseball, and Passing Strange. Film and television credits include In the Morning, Passing Strange, Red Hook Summer, "She's Gotta Have It," "Elementary," "The Breaks," "Bull," and "Kevin Can Wait."

KARL GREEN (Mark). Regional credits include Anne & Emmett, Revolution, Hero Worship, Un-American, and Veni-Vidi-Vici (Signature Theatre, Washington D.C.). International credits include Sacred Sky and Sacred Earth (NYU Villa La Pietra, Italy). Green is a graduate of NYU Tisch.

Ashley D. Kelley (Upendo) has appeared Off-Broadway in Bella: An American Tall Tale (Playwrights Horizons, director Robert O'Hara). Regional credits include Bella: An American Tall Tale (Dallas Theater Center) and Dorothy in The Wiz (Oregon Shakespeare Festival). Television credits include a recurring role on "Insatiable" (Netflix) and "Luke Cage" (Netflix). Kelley received a Lucille Lortel Award nomination for Bella.

VERNICE MILLER (Spirit Dancer) appeared on Broadway in Brave New World: American Theater Responds to 9/11. Off-Broadway and regional credits include Fast Blood by Judy Tate, All God's Chillun Got Wings (dir. Godfrey L. Simmons, Jr.), and The Trial... (dir. Paul Carter Harrison). European credits include Subpoetics International (Slovenia, Poland, Ukraine, and France) and Old Dreams New Hope (Odin Teatret). Film and television credits include "Law & Order," "Flaming Armadillo" (National Swiss TV), The Golden Boat (dir. Raoul Ruiz), and Leo Sonnyboy (Switzerland). Miller received the London New Play Festival's Best Actress Award for Medea.

KADIJAH RAQUEL (Lauren) is a recent graduate from The SUNY Purchase BFA Acting Conservatory. She was previously featured in Purchase Rep shows such as Hot L Baltimore, Blacktop Sky, A Midsummer Night's Dream, and many more.

RACHEL WATSON-JIH (Spirit Dancer). Television and film credits include "Manhattan Love Story" and Her. Commercials include P.C. Richard & Son and Skype. Music videos include Vanity Fair, "Decade Full of Booms," VICE/Black Coffee, and "Wild Enough." Concert dance includes NYFW Desigual Couture Line (Ryan Heffington), And Other Stories (Celia Rowlson Hall), Holden C (Eric Oberdorff), Ritual Cyclical (Lincoln Center Outdoors and Joe's Pub), and Metamorphosis (Blue Morph Collective). Watson-Jih received a BFA in Contemporary Dance from the University of North Carolina School of the Arts.

TAMARA M. Williams (Spirit Dancer) is an actress, dancer, and writer best known for the guest starring role of Summer on FX's "Pose," Carol in The Garden Left Behind, and an ensemble and choreographer in Street Children.

Public Theater Partner, Public Supporter, and Member tickets are available now. Full price tickets, starting at $50, can be accessed by calling (212) 967-7555, visiting www.publictheater.org, or in person at the Taub Box Office at The Public Theater at 425 Lafayette Street.

Photo Credit: Jennifer Broski