Cast Revealed For STRAPPED at The Downtown Urban Arts Festival

The Creative Co-Lab, in partnership with The Downtown Urban Arts Festival, is proud to announce casting for the showcase production of sTrapped, a new play by Arelia Johnson & Award-winning playwright Bryan-Keyth Wilson. Wilson is set to direct the piece, which follows seven strangers as they navigate conversations surrounding race, intimacy, trauma, sex, and sexual identity.

In sTrapped, seven strangers come to the theatre expecting to see Award-Winning playwright Bryan-Keyth Wilson's new play about gun violence, but they are told by the stage manager the performance is canceled. Tempers flare, and a mysterious, omnipresent voice begins to calm the audience down and interrogate the upset seven strangers. As we learn about the seven strangers, trauma is uncovered, and deeper conversations on sexuality, religion, and colonization emerge. sTrapped was initially produced by The Normal Anomaly for World AIDS Day in Houston, Texas.

sTrapped features Garrett Taylor (He/Him) as Dylan, Milo Longenecker (He/Him) as Bell, Danielle James-Turner (She/Her) as Sharon, Eden Rose Torres (She/Her) as Ashlynn, Isaiah Aldridge (He/Him) as Dwayne, Cameron King (She/Her) as Vee, LrVane Harrington (He/Him) as P.J., and J. Carlos Lacey (He/Him) as The Voice.

Cameron King (She/Her) VEE - Cameron is a true performer and storyteller. She is a film and stage actor as well as a dancer. She is well-versed in hip-hop, bachata, modern, jazz, contemporary, pole, and aerial. Born and raised in Houston, Tx, she recently moved back to Puerto Rico. She is bilingual and also works in the radio and voice-over sectors. She has narrated several audiobooks in post-production and voiced characters for audio dramas on all-streaming platforms. Some of her most popular on-screen work is her appearance as Karma Jinx in the award-winning web series The Szn and as Officer Roberts in the feature film Unfinished Business. She is the leading lady in the JalaWorld Productions' feature Plain Sight. Her artistry is unmatched, and her work ethic is impeccable. Each day, she strives to contribute to the creative spaces of Houston.

Danielle James-Turner (She/Her) SHARON - Danielle is happy to return to the theatre with the production of Strapped! Her previous productions as an actor include Macbeth, Godspell, Ragtime, Gloria, Single Black Female, The Colored Museum, etc. She graduated from Xavier University of Louisiana (B.S.) and the University of New Orleans (M.F.A.). She hopes you enjoy the show and wants to leave you with her favorite Shakespearean quote "All the world's a stage, And all the men and women merely players."

Eden Rose Torres (She/Her) ASHLYNN - Eden Rose Torres is a former resident company member of a professional musical theater company that performed at The Hobby Center. This production marks her return to the stage after twelve years away. Highlights of her career include RENT, Thoroughly Modern Millie, Ave Q, and Stephen Sondheim's Assassins. During her absence on stage, she Founded PridePortraits.org. As Executive Director, she's photographed and interviewed 7K LGBTQIA+ community members nationwide. Her activism focuses on trans liberation, equity, and equality. I.G.: @edenrosetorres

Garrett Taylor (He/Him) DYLAN - A movie lover from a young age, Garrett Taylor found his way into acting in college, graduating from the School of Theatre at Louisiana State University. Garrett has spent time on stage in starring roles in iconic American plays such as 'Eddie' in Sam Shepard's 'Fool for Love' and 'John Williamson in David Mamet's 'Glengarry Glen Ross.' His screen credits include roles in 'Queen Sugar,' 'Evil Lives Here,' 'Titans: The Rise of Wall Street' and most recently, the starring role of whiskey titan Jack Daniel in the History Channel series, 'The Booze, Bets, and Sex that Built America.' For him, every role is an opportunity to understand better the complex layers of humanity and the shared human experience.

LeVane Harrington (He/Him) P.J. - LeVane is an N.Y.C.-based performer and hip-hop artist from Cape Cod, MA. He is so excited to be a part of the Downtown Urban Arts Festival for the second year in a row, after last year's DUAF Best Audience Award Winner For Colored Boyz. Big thanks to Bryan-Keyth for trusting me and bringing me on! Recent: World Premiere of For Colored Boyz (Fulton), White Christmas (Fulton), Mamma Mia! (Cape Rep), The Color Purple (Plaza Theatrical), Cabaret (Argyle), and The Glass Menagerie (Provincetown Theater). BLACK LIVES MATTER. Training: AMDA NYC Rep: F.S.E. Shoutout to Mom, Dad, Mimi, Maggie, & Tiera. Peace. I.G.: @levane_harrington195

Milo Longenecker (He/Him) BELL - Milo Longenecker is an actor, musician, movement artist, and writer based in Brooklyn, NY. He earned a B.F.A. from N.Y.U. Tisch and has created, produced, and performed indie theater in N.Y.C. since 2015. Acting credits include Sherman/Louie in Bliss Street (Theater For The New City), Edmund in King Lear (Hamlet Isn't Dead/The Center at West Park), Pain in Show Me Eternity (54 Below, Teatro LATEA), Haimon in Anne Carson's Antigonick (Torn Out Theater), Wickham in the Dillon & Caps musical adaptation of Pride + Prejudice (The Connelly), and Brother in Quiltbag (The Public Theater). @milo_longenecker

Isiah Aldridge (He/Him) P.J. - is a recent graduate of The American Musical and Dramatic Academy and is trained in Shakespeare and stage combat. Some of his theater credits include "What We Cannot Forgive" and "Deliberate Destruction." He has worked on projects such as "Inventing Anna" opposite Julia Garner and "Works of Mercy" opposite Catherine Curtin.

J. Carlos Lacey (He/ Him) THE VOICE - James Carlos Lacey is a Paraguayan actor that grew up in Great Britain. He is also a playwright, director, and singer-songwriter. Initially a History Major from the University of East Anglia, England, he has performed globally and received his Master's at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, London, where he co-founded The Undertow Theatre Company. He has just completed his M.F.A. at the Academy for Classical Acting with the Shakespeare Theatre Company in D.C. This is his New York, Playwrights, and Creative Co-Lab debut. Regional: Romeo & Juliet (Chesapeake Shakespeare Company), Playboy of the Western World (Solas Nua), Merchant of Venice (Shakespeare Theatre Company), International: Hamlet (Tower Theatre), Antony & Cleopatra (Tower Theatre), Orphée (Bloomsbury Festival), The Bacchae (Festival of Ancient Messene). FILM: Butcher, The Queue.

The creative team includes Bryan-Keyth Wilson (Playwright/Director/ Producer), Arelia Johnson (Playwright), LaTreva Washington (Associate Director), Shantez Tolbut Associate Director/ Producer) and Nia Donna Benn (Stage Manager), and Eddie Datz (Producer).

Award-Winning playwright Bryan-Keyth Wilson is no stranger to this festival. Last year his production of FOR COLORED BOYZ on the verge of a nervous breakdown/ when freedom aint enuff won the Best Audience Award. "It is an honor to be amongst some of the best playwrights in the business. I am excited to be back at the Downtown Urban Arts Festival with this new play. sTrapped is a provocative play that fearlessly delves into the complexities of colonization, sexual identity, gender, and race, this play not only challenges our societal norms but also invites us to confront our own biases and prejudices" , said Bryan-Keyth Wilson.

This play/ theatrical experiment captivated audiences in Houston and took its turn Off-Broadway during the renowned Downtown Urban Arts Festival. Join this dynamic cast and creative team for a night of theatre that will make the eyebrows tickle your fancy in all the right places. Celebrate Juneteenth weekend with two black playwrights from Houston/ Galveston at the best theatre festival in the city.

sTrapped will run one night only Saturday, June 17th, 2023, at 8 pm at Peter Jay Sharp Theater at Playwrights Horizons, New York, NY (416 W 42nd St floor 4, New York, NY 10036). Tickets are on sale now. Join us on our Instagram where you can meet the actors and creatives, follow us @strapped_theplay Go to www.duafnyc.com to purchase tickets and for more festival information.

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