Playwrights Kate Cortesi, Brenda Withers & Emily Zemba Announce Details for THE POOL at New Ohio Theatre
The Pool’s vision is to create a sustainable model where playwrights lead their own processes and by-pass the slow gatekeeping of institutional American theater.
By: Chloe Rabinowitz Sep. 29, 2021
Playwrights Kate Cortesi, Brenda Withers, Emily Zemba, and producer Victor Cervantes Jr. are pleased to announce details for the 2021 edition of The Pool, a temporary consortium of playwrights producing their own plays in rep at the New Ohio Theatre from November 1-20, 2021. The Pool's vision is to create a sustainable model where playwrights lead their own processes and by-pass the slow gatekeeping of institutional American theater. Cortesi, Withers, and Zemba inherited this pop-up theater company from The Pool's founders, Susan Bernfield, Lynn Rosen, and Peter Gil-Sheridan, who produced their own plays at The Flea in 2017. Sliding scale tickets for the 2021 edition are now on sale at www.thepoolplays.org.
The 2021 edition of The Pool includes the World Premiere of Is Edward Snowden Single? by Kate Cortesi and directed by Kate Bergstrom; the New York Premiere of The Ding Dongs, or What is the Penalty in Portugal? by Brenda Withers and directed by Daisy Walker; and the World Premiere of Superstitions by Emily Zemba and directed by Jenna Worsham. The Pool is an Equity Approved Showcase.
The Acting Company for The Pool includes Celeste Arias*, Latoya Edwards*, Jonathan Fielding*, Rebecca S'manga Frank*, Nicholas Gorham, David Greenspan*, Iliana Guibert*, Rebecca Jimenez, Elise Kibler*, Robert Kropf*, Brian Miskell*, Ricardo Vázquez*, Naren Weiss*, and Brenda Withers*.
The artist-led production model of The Pool puts playwrights at the helm of the producing process. Once the 2021 edition of The Pool has closed, the playwrights will pass the company onto another cohort of writers. At a time when theater makers are asking not just IF they can return to work in person but HOW, The Pool offers an empowering, sustainable model that centers artists and their vision.
"In 2003, our heroes at the great 13P came together and said: we don't develop plays, we do them. We hear that as a call to action," playwrights Cortesi, Withers, and Zemba commented. "The three of us envision a theater where playwrights guide our own processes and speak directly to audiences with immediacy and integrity. You don't need permission to make your art. All you need is a fierce community and the will to do it. So, we're doing it. As producers, we are honored to support our peers' visions. As playwrights, we're ready to get to work. It's hard to exaggerate how profound it feels, in 2021, to say, 'rehearsal starts in October.' The Pool is a proud testament to our belief in each other's work and our own."
The creative team for The Pool includes scenography design by Masha Tsimring & Tuçe Yasak, sound design by Brian Hickey, costume design by Riw Rakkulchon, and props design by Vinny Mraz.
The three plays in The Pool run in rep from November 1-20 at the New Ohio Theatre, located at 154 Christopher Street in Manhattan. Critics are welcome as of November 5 for an official opening on Sunday, November 7. The Pool is all about expanding access to the stage, for artists and audiences alike. Sliding scale tickets starting at $5 can be purchased at www.thepoolplays.org or by calling OvationTix at 212-352-3101. A $75 Pool Plays Pass includes reserved seating to all three productions. Standard ticketing fees apply.
The Pool will require proof of full vaccination for all artists and audience members for these in-person performances. Masks and/or CDC-recommended face coverings will be required for audiences and employees inside the theater at all times.
Details on each production of the 2021 edition of The Pool, along with a complete performance schedule can be found at www.thepoolplays.org.
The Pool is made possible by the generous support of The Venturous Theater Fund of Tides Foundation; the Artists Patron Fund; the City Artists Corps Grant from New York Foundation For The Arts and The New York City Department Of Cultural Affairs; the Trinity Rep Launch Grant; and the Bret Adams and Paul Reisch Foundation.
About The Pool Plays and Performance Schedule
Is Edward Snowden Single?
By Kate Cortesi
Directed by Kate Bergstrom
Featuring Rebecca S'manga Frank*, Elise Kibler*, and Brian Miskell*
November 4, 6, 7, 12, 19 at 8pm; November 10, 14, 17 at 2pm, November 20 at 5pm
Much like the U.S. government, a pair of interracial BFFs find themselves in a crisis of integrity. Two virtuosic actresses play all nineteen roles in this volcanic comedy about pretty lies, ugly truths, and the complications of sisterhood.
The Ding Dongs or What is the Penalty in Portugal?
Directed by Daisy Walker
Featuring Jonathan Fielding*, Robert Kropf*, and Brenda Withers*
November 3, 5, 10, 13, 15, 18 at 8pm; November 7, 12 at 5pm; November 20 at 2pm
When a sweet-faced couple shows up on a suburban doorstep, an unsuspecting homeowner finds himself the victim of a surreal home invasion. An offbeat look at the cycle of violence that fuels our system of private property.
Superstitions
By Emily Zemba
Directed by Jenna Worsham
Featuring Celeste Arias*, Latoya Edwards*, Nicholas Gorham, David Greenspan*, Iliana Guibert*, Rebecca Jimenez, Ricardo Vázquez*, and Naren Weiss*
November 1, 11, 14, 17, 20 at 8pm; November 5, 19 at 5pm; November 7, 13 at 2pm
A stranger finds a penny on the ground, unleashing an absurd day of unsettling interactions, puzzling connections, and plain bad luck. An ensemble cast of eight navigates personal and national terrors in this unconventional dark comedy about what happens when we believe in the unknown.
*Equity Member appearing with the permission of Actor's Equity Association without the benefit of an Equity contract in this Off-Off Broadway production.
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