59E59 Theaters welcomes the world premiere of THE COMMONS, written by Lily Akerman and directed by Emma Miller.
Missing almonds, empty apologies, and a pizza box in the recycling bin that clearly belongs in the trash. When space is at a premium, there's no room for weak links. THE COMMONS is a play about living with strangers and the things that seem small until they aren't.
Through these quirky and familiar characters and situations, Akerman's story is a microcosm today. It's about eco-systems: can we live together in a shared environment without destroying the space and ourselves? What happens when the mundane is no longer so small?
This world premiere play, which was written on a commission from The Hearth, marks the NYC debut of recent Hunter MFA grad Lily Akerman.
Akerman, who is part of
Clubbed Thumb's emerging writer's group, was introduced to The Hearth by
Gracie Gardner, who penned 2018's critically acclaimed play, Athena, produced by The Hearth. After Akerman shared the seed of her idea for THE COMMONS, The Hearth commissioned her to pen the full-length script.
"We loved the quirky and funny familiarity of these house-mates," says director Emma Miller, who is also Artistic Director of The Hearth. "But the apartment stands in for a bigger ecosystem that questions if we can bury our selfishness so we can survive."
The cast features Olivia Abiassi (Eh Dah?: Questions for My Father at NYTW Next Door);
Julia Greer (Athena with The Hearth); Ben Katz (16 Words or Less with
Clubbed Thumb); Olivia Khoshatefeh (The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt on Netflix);
Ben Newman (Professor James on Pretty Little Liars: The Perfectionists on Freeform).
The design team includes Emmie Finckel (set design); Vicki Bain (lighting design); Dara Affholter (costume design); and
Holden Gunster (props design). The Production Stage Manager is Hanako Rodriguez.
Tickets are available by calling the 59E59 Box Office at 646-892-7999 or by visiting www.59e59.org.
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