Eric Berryman, Johanna Day & More Join SCENE PARTNERS World Premiere at Vineyard Theatre

Vineyard Theatre Artistic Directors Sarah Stern and Douglas Aibel have revealed additional members of the cast and creative team for the world premiere of Scene Partners by John J. Caswell Jr. (Wet Brain), directed by Tony Award winner Rachel Chavkin (Hadestown). 

Previews begin October 26, 2023, with an opening night set for November 12, 2023, and a limited run through December 3, 2023 at Vineyard Theatre (108 E. 15th Street). 
 
Joining two two-time Academy Award winner Dianne Wiest (Bullets Over Broadway, Happy Days) as Meryl will be Eric Berryman (Primary Trust) as Dr. Noah Drake, Johanna Day (Sweat) as Charlize, Josh Hamilton (Reality) as Hugo, Carmen M. Herlihy (Mrs. Murray’s Menagerie) as Cassie and Kristen Sieh (The Band’s Visit) as Pauline.
 
The design team for Scene Partners includes scenic design by Riccardo Hernández (Indecent), costume design by Brenda Abbandandolo (The Sign in Sidney Brustein’s Window), lighting design by Alan Edwards (Harry Clarke), sound design by Leah Gelpe (Mary Jane), video and projection design by David Bengali (Monsoon Wedding), prop design by Andrew Diaz (The Sign in Sidney Brustein’s Window), and hair and wig design by Leah Loukas (The Sign in Sidney Brustein’s Window). Anne Troup is the video producer. Casting is by Calleri Jensen Davis. Rachel A. Zucker will serve as Production Stage Manager.
 
Artistic Director Sarah Stern says,"We are thrilled to have such an extraordinary cast and design team to bring John J. Caswell, Jr.'s brilliant and hilarious Scene Partners to life. We knew we had to produce this play from the first draft, and now, with this dream team of artists and the visionary direction of Rachel Chavkin, we truly can't wait to share Meryl's unforgettable journey from Milwaukee to Hollywood with audiences.”
 
Winter, 1985. 75-year-old Meryl ditches ice-cold Milwaukee for sunny Los Angeles, hell-bent on becoming a movie star. She’s got big dreams, a little money, and a whole lot of nerve. But will the world ever know her for who she really is?  Starring two-time Academy Award winner Dianne Wiest as Meryl, and directed by Tony Award-winning director Rachel Chavkin (Hadestown; Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812), John J. Caswell, Jr.’s (Wet Brain; Vineyard's Paula Vogel Playwriting Award), Scene Partners is a wildly theatrical, hilarious and genre-twisting gallop through the experience of a woman reborn. 
 
Single tickets to Scene Partners begin at $35 and are on sale at www.vineyardtheatre.org or by calling the box office at 212-353-0303.
 
2023-2024 Season Passes: Become a member with a 2023-2024 Season Pass to ensure great access to all Vineyard Theatre productions for a fraction of the full ticket price. All memberships ensure the earliest access to tickets, maximum flexibility, and other benefits. To purchase and additional information regarding packages please visit WEBSITE HERE 
(https://vineyardtheatre.org/memberships/) or call the box office at 212-353-0303.
 

About Vineyard Theatre

Under the artistic leadership of Douglas Aibel and Sarah Stern, Vineyard Theatre develops and produces new plays and musicals that push the boundaries of what theatre can be and do. For nearly 40 years, The Vineyard has nurtured a community of fearless theatre makers whose work has expanded the form, the field, and the larger culture. Vineyard Theatre has transferred eleven shows to Broadway, seven directly after their acclaimed Vineyard premieres: Lucas Hnath’s Dana H. and Tina Satter’s Is This A Room (both New York Times Best Theatre of 2021); Paula Vogel’s Indecent; Nicky Silver’s The Lyons; Kander, Ebb and Thompson’s The Scottsboro Boys; Bell and Bowen’s [title of show]; and Avenue Q by Marx, Lopez and Whitty (Tony Award, Best Musical). In recent years, four additional shows launched at The Vineyard have been revived in their first Broadway productions: Paula Vogel’s Pulitzer Prize-winning How I Learned to Drive; Lanie Robertson’s Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar And Grill; Becky Mode’s Fully Committed; and Edward Albee’s Pulitzer Prize-winning Three Tall Women.

From our home in NYC’s Union Square, The Vineyard develops and premieres new plays and musicals which go on to be seen around the country and the world. Recently, Jeremy O. Harris’ play “Daddy” (2019) received its London premiere at the Almeida; Ngozi Anyanwu’s Good Grief (2018) and David Cale’s Harry Clarke (2017) were recorded by Audible; Branden Jacobs-Jenkins’ Gloria (2014), a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize, transferred to Chicago’s Goodman Theatre; Paula Vogel’s Tony Award-winning Indecent (2016) aired on PBS’s “Great Performances” and was one of the most-produced plays nationwide in 2019; and Colman Domingo’s Dot (2016) is being adapted into an AMC series. The Vineyard’s first major digital work, Lessons in Survival, was named one of the top theatrical experiences of 2020 by the New York Timesand has been viewed by audiences in more than 40 countries.

The Vineyard’s Paula Vogel Playwriting Award, Susan Stroman Directing Award, and Colman Domingo Award provide residencies to early-career artists and our education programs serve over 700 New York City public high school students annually, culminating in Developing Artists’ REBEL VERSES Youth Arts Festival. The Roth-Vogel New Play Commission is awarded annually to a mid- to late-career playwright to create and develop a new play with The Vineyard. Our work and artists have been honored with numerous awards including Pulitzer Prizes and Tony Awards, and the company is proud to be the recipient of special Drama Desk, Obie, and Lucille Lortel Awards for artistic excellence and support of artists.

Vineyard Theatre’s leadership includes Artistic Directors Sarah Stern and Douglas Aibel (on sabbatical 23-24) and Managing Director Suzanne Appel.

Eric Berryman (Dr. Noah Drake) is a Baltimore born, Brooklyn-based actor who is involved in work that he believes his great-grandmother would dig. He was recently seen in Primary Trust at Roundabout Theater and the final season of the hit TV show “Atlanta” (FX), Episode 8, "The Goof Who Sat by the Door," portraying “short lived Disney CEO” Thomas Washington. He is a Drama Desk nominee for co-creating and starring in The B-Side: Negro Folklore from Texas State Prisons, A Record Album Interpretation (Wooster Group/St. Ann’s Warehouse). In collaboration again with the Wooster Group he has been developing a new piece, Get Your Ass in the Water and Swim Like Me. Other select theatrical credits: Detroit Red (ArtsEmerson-Elliot Norton Award); Private (Mosaic Theater); Toni Stone (Roundabout) Alien/Nation (Williamstown Theatre Festival); Moby Dick, A Musical Reckoning (A.R.T.); Steel Hammer (Siti Company). Recent Film/TV: “Godfather of Harlem” (Epix/MGM+), “Ramy” (Hulu), “Bonding,” “Marriage Story” (Netflix); “Evil” (Paramount+); “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel,” “Empathy Inc” (Amazon); “Motherless Brooklyn.” Training: The Baltimore School for the Arts; BFA: Carnegie Mellon University.
 
Johanna Day (Charlize). Vineyard Theatre: How I Learned to Drive. Broadway: How I Learned To Drive, The Nap, Sweat (Tony Award nomination), You Can’t Take It With You, August: Osage County, Lombardi, Proof (Tony nomination). Theatre: Des Moines (TFANA), Floyd’s (Guthrie), Peace for Mary Francis (New Group), Peter and Jerry (Second Stage – Drama Desk nomination), Appropriate (Signature - Obie Award, The Lilly Award), Poor Behavior (Mark Taper), The Realistic Joneses (Yale), Choice (Huntington), The Rainmaker (Arena Stage – Helen Hayes Award). Television: "Madam Secretary" (five years recurring), "Bull," "For Life," "New Amsterdam," "The Blacklist," "Escape at Dannemora," "The Knick," "The Americans," "Masters of Sex," "Alpha House," "Royal Pains." Film: Worth, Save Yourselves, What is Life Worth, The Post, Great Gilley Hopkins, How Far She Went, The Breatharian.
 
Josh Hamilton (Hugo). On Broadway, Josh’s credits include Dead Accounts, Proof, and The Coast Of Utopia. Off-Broadway, Josh starred in The Antipodes; This Is Our Youth; The Waverly Gallery; Medieval Play; and Hurlyburly (nominated for a Drama Desk Award). In London, Josh’s credits include The Bridge Project and Evening At The Talkhouse. Josh’s TV credits include “The Last Thing He Told Me,” “Accused,” “The Walking Dead,” “13 Reasons Why,” “Ray Donovan,” “Mrs. America,” “This Is Us,” and “Mrs. Fletcher.” Josh’s film credits include Landscape With Invisible Hand, Reality, and Eighth Grade (nominated for an Independent Spirit Award).
 
Carmen M. Herlihy (Cassie). Theater credits include: The Piano Teacher (Vineyard Theatre), Kingdom Come (Roundabout), Doctor Faustus (Classic Stage), Bachelorette (Second Stage), Five Genocides (Clubbed Thumb), Buffalo Gal (Primary Stages), crooked (Women’s Project; Lucille Lortel Nomination for Outstanding  Lead Actress), The Thugs (Soho Rep), columbinus (NYTW, Drama League Nomination for Ensemble), Top Girls (Huntington Theatre), Recent Alien Abductions (Humana Festival). TV:  “Servant,” “Blue Bloods,” “New Amsterdam,” “Awkwafina is Nora From Queens,” “Mrs. Fletcher,” “High Maintenance,” “Madam Secretary.” Film:  The Trouble with Cali, The Switch, The Rebound, Two Lovers, Burn After Reading, Morning Glory, Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, My First Kiss and the People Involved.
 
Kristen Sieh (Pauline) last appeared at the Vineyard in The TEAM’s  RoosevElvis, which she co-wrote. Broadway/West End: The Band’s Visit (original cast), RoosevElvis (Royal Court).  Off-Broadway credits include: February House, Fortress of Solitude (The Public), Dr. Ride’s American Beach House (Ars Nova), Men On Boats (Playwrights Horizons), Iphigenia at Aulis (Classic Stage Company), and work with ERS, Half-Straddle, The Foundry and other companies.  International and regional work includes: Yale Rep, A.R.T., Baltimore Center Stage, and numerous international festivals. Kristen has also appeared on TV ("House of Cards," "Orange is the New Black" etc.) and on your phone as an award-winning narrator of audiobooks. In 2023,  she received a certificate in horticulture from NYBG. 
 
Dianne Wiest (Meryl) is an acclaimed actress known for her roles on both stage and screen. She is best known for her Academy Award-winning roles in Woody Allen’s Hannah and Her Sisters and Bullets Over Broadway, for which she also received a Golden Globe and SAG Award. She has received two Primetime Emmy Awards for her work in "Road to Avonlea" and "In Treatment." She was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her role in Ron Howard’s Parenthood. Her other recent film roles include Steven Soderbergh’s Let Them All Talk alongside Meryl Streep and Gemma Chan, J. Blakeson’s I Care A Lot alongside Rosamund Pike, and Clint Eastwood’s The Mule alongside Bradley Cooper and Laurence Fishburne. Additionally, she has given memorable performances in films such as Charlie Kaufman’s Synecdoche, New York, A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints, The Purple Rose of Cairo, Radio Days, September, Rabbit Hole, Footloose, Edward Scissorhands and The Birdcage. Dianne can most recently be seen in Taylor Sheridan’s Paramount+ series “Mayor of Kingstown” and will next star in the Paramount Players’ feature Apartment 7A opposite Julia Garner and Jim Sturgess. In addition to her career on screen, Dianne is a force on the stage. She most recently performed her acclaimed production of Samuel Beckett’s Happy Days at Yale Repertory Theater, the Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles, and Theatre for a New Audience in Brooklyn. Prior to that, she starred in The New Group’s production of Rasheeda Speaking, directed by Cynthia Nixon, The Cherry Orchard at Classic Stage Company, and Arthur Miller’s All My Sons on Broadway. Other New York theater appearances include The Seagull at Classic Stage Company, Third, Memory House, The Shawl, Hunting Cockroaches, After the Fall, Beyond Therapy, and The Art of Dining.
 
Rachel Zucker (they/them – Production Stage Manager) is thrilled to be returning to the Vineyard Theatre! Past Show: Lessons in Survival: 1971. Broadway: Six, Tina: The Tina Turner Musical, The Prom, True West, Pretty Woman, Farinelli and the King, Indecent. Select Off-Broadway: JOB (Soho Playhouse); Kinky Boots (Stage 42); The Shed: Misty, HELP; The Public Theater: Tiny Beautiful Things, Twelfth Night, Plenty, Southern Comfort, Grounded; Shakespeare in the Park: Hamlet, Othello, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Troilus and Cressida, Cymbeline; New York City Center: Working: A Musical, Road Show; New York Theater Workshop: Lazarus; Signature Theatre Company: Curse of the Starving Class. MFA: Stage Management, Columbia University. IG: @rzucker37.
 
JOHN J. CASWELL, JR. (Playwright) is a writer originally from Phoenix, a recent fellow at Juilliard’s Lila Acheson Wallace American Playwrights Program, and the recipient of the 2020 Paula Vogel Playwriting Award at the Vineyard Theatre. His play Wet Brain won the 2021 L. Arnold Weissberger New Play Award and received its world premiere on the Mainstage Theater at Playwrights Horizons in May 2023, co-produced with MCC Theater (New York Times Critics’ Pick! ★★★★). His play Man Cave premiered Off-Broadway in 2022 (Page 73 Productions), directed by Obie Award winner Taylor Reynolds. Additional honors include the 2020 Jean Kennedy Smith Playwriting Award, a 2018 MacDowell Fellowship, a 2018 SPACE on Ryder Farm Creative Residency, a Play Group membership at Ars Nova, and the 2017 Page 73 Playwriting Fellowship. John is currently under commission at Playwrights Horizons, Manhattan Theatre Club, and Williamstown Theatre Festival. Education: Juilliard School, Hunter College, Arizona State University. .johnjcaswelljr.com | Twitter: @johnjcaswelljr 
 
Rachel Chavkin (Director) received the 2019 Tony Award, Drama Desk Award and Outer Critics Circle Award for Best Director of a Musical for Hadestown. She is a director, writer and dramaturg, as well as the founding Artistic Director of Brooklyn-based ensemble The TEAM whose work has been seen all over London and the U.K. including The National Theatre, the Royal Court and multiple collaborations with The National Theatre of Scotland. Selected freelance work: Dave Malloy’s Natasha, Pierre, & The Great Comet of 1812 (Ars Nova, A.R.T., Broadway), Matt Gould and Carson Kreitzer’s Lempicka (Williamstown), Caryl Churchill’s Light Shining in Buckinghamshire (New York Theatre Workshop), Marco Ramirez’s The Royale (Old Globe, Lincoln Center Theater), Bess Wohl’s Small Mouth Sounds (Ars Nova, Off-Broadway, national tour), Sarah Gancher’s I’ll Get You Back Again (Round House) and multiple collaborations with Taylor Mac including The Lily’s Revenge, Act 2. In addition to her awards for Hadestown, Chavkin is a recipient of a Tony Award nomination for Best Direction of a Musical, three Obie Awards, a Drama Desk Award, multiple Lortel Award nominations, two Doris Duke Impact Award nominations and the 2017 Smithsonian Award for Ingenuity along with Dave Malloy, with whom she is developing an adaptation of Moby Dick (World Premiere at the American Repertory Theater). Her first film, Remind Me, was an official selection of the Venice and Beverly Hills Film Festivals. Proud NYTW Usual Suspect and Member SDC.

Photo credit: Carrington Spires